Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken

Our slow cooker honey garlic chicken is one of those recipes that’s easy to make and hard to stop eating. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are slow-cooked in a sweet honey, garlic, soy sauce mixture until they’re super tender and juicy, then shredded and served over rice.

Shredded honey garlic chicken on top of a bed of rice.

The only thing that tastes better than a hearty chicken dinner is an easy one. That’s why recipes like our slow cooker creamy ranch chicken, slow cooker sweet and sour pork, and slow cooker red beans and rice are always in our menu rotation.

Now, we’ve added this delicious honey garlic chicken to our rotation. It’s another easy slow cooker recipe that comes together quickly and only requires a little patience to make!

Shredded honey garlic chicken on top of a bed of rice.

❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe

  • Limited Ingredients: It only takes four ingredients to make this recipe.
  • Easy: Just mix the sauce, add everything to the slow cooker, and wait a few hours!
  • Sweet and Tangy: The honey, soy sauce, and garlic create a sweet, tangy, bold sauce that’s perfect with the tender chicken.
  • Versatile: Shred this chicken and serve it over rice or as a filling for sandwiches, wraps, or tacos.
  • Perfect for Meal Prep: This is a freezer-friendly recipe, making it perfect for meal-prepping.

🛒Ingredients

Bowls of ingredients on a counter ready to cook.

We’ve made this list to help you save time on your next trip to the grocery store. You can find the full amounts needed in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

  • Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • Honey
  • Soy sauce
  • Garlic – minced

📝Variations

  • Chicken: This can be made with chicken breasts or thighs. Both are delicious.
  • Other Meats: This sauce is perfect with beef or pork. You can even use it with shellfish.
  • Spicy: Add red pepper flakes, hot sauce, or cayenne for a hot honey version.

🥄 Equipment

  • Measuring cups and spoons
  • Mixing bowl
  • Slow cooker

🔪 Instructions

This is a quick overview of the steps needed to make this recipe. You can find the full instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Sauce being mixed with a whisk in a glass bowl.
  1. Add the chicken to at least a 5-quart slow cooker. Mix the sauce ingredients in a bowl.
Soy sauce being poured over meat in a slow cooker.
  1. Then, pour it over the chicken.
Cooked meat in a crock pot.
  1. Cook until fork-tender.
Shredded meat in a crock pot.
  1. Shred and serve over rice. Enjoy!

💭 Tips

  • Mix the sauce ingredients before adding them to the slow cooker. They won’t mix while they cook.
  • Spray your slow cooker with nonstick spray to prevent sticking.
  • You can cook the chicken on low or high, but we prefer low for a super-tender and juicy chicken.

🥫 Storage

Refrigerate leftovers for up to 3 days in an airtight container. For longer storage, freeze for up to 3 months in an airtight, freezer-safe container or heavy-duty freezer bag.

Defrost overnight in the refrigerator before reheating. Then microwave individual portions at 1-minute intervals.

Serve With

Serve this chicken shredded over white rice or with dishes like mashed potatoes, oven ranch potatoes, or melting potatoes, along with vegetables like green beans with mushrooms.

Shredded honey garlic chicken on top of a bed of rice.

⁉️ FAQ

Do you have questions about this recipe? Here are the answers to the most commonly asked questions.

Why do you have to spray a slow cooker with nonstick spray?

It’s not always necessary to spray a slow cooker with nonstick spray. However, it should be used when the recipe doesn’t have very much liquid.

What is the easiest way to shred chicken?

To easily shred chicken, use a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, a hand mixer, or two shredding claws.

Why was it so hard to shred my chicken?

If your chicken is hard to shred, it may have been either overcooked or undercooked, or cooked in a way that doesn’t allow for the muscle fibers to break down properly.

🍽 More Recipes

If you’re looking for more delicious chicken recipes, check out our hot honey chicken salad, sheet pan lemon chicken and potatoes, or blackened chicken club sandwiches.

🧾Recipe Card

Want to make this recipe? Print the recipe card below, or pin this recipe, so you can find it later.

Shredded honey garlic chicken on top of a bed of rice.

Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken

This slow cooker honey garlic chicken is tender, juicy, and flavorful. It's also ridiculously easy to make—perfection.
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Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 6 hours
Total Time: 6 hours 10 minutes
Servings: 6 Servings
Calories: 278kcal

Equipment

  • large bowl
  • slow cooker

Ingredients

  • 3 pounds chicken breasts
  • ½ cup honey
  • ½ cup soy sauce
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1 tablespoon garlic minced

Instructions

  • Place the chicken breasts in a 5 quart (or larger) slow cooker.
  • In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together honey, soy sauce, water, and minced garlic. Pour this mixture over the chicken in the slow cooker.
  • Cook the chicken on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours until the chicken is fork tender.
  • Use forks to shred the chicken, then serve it hot over rice.

Disclaimer

Any nutritional data I provide is an approximation and actual dietary information can vary based on ingredients and proportion sizes.

Nutrition

Serving: 1Serving | Calories: 278kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 50g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 145mg | Sodium: 1344mg | Potassium: 897mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 74IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 1mg

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