Slow Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken
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Sweet honey and sesame sauce smothering this Slow Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken is an easy family-favorite and so easy it will become a new staple recipe in your rotation!
Really good things are happening around here. For one thing, a last minute trip to Las Vegas for a few days with our friends kind of came out of nowhere and changed our week for the better. Warm weather was desperately needed by all of us, especially me, and not just because I felt like my skin was so colorless it was glowing in the dark. Seriously though. Paste-y to the max. For some reason last summer while I was pregnant with the twin kidlets I did not tan, I just fried and peeled all season long. Anyone else have that experience?? So unlike me. I usually tan tan tan in the summer sun but last year the sun and my skin were not friends.
Needless to say, some sunshine was needed. For my skin, and for my so-done-with-winter mood.
Other good things that are happening? Some pretty amazing dinner things, not the least of which was the Thai curry steak noodle bowls. Ohmagosh. so. good. But the slow cooker dish I’m sharing today has to be one of my favorites – both slow cooker and just dinner, period – ever ever.
If I could fill an entire pool with this honey sesame sauce, it still wouldn’t be enough to satisfy my cravings. It is that good. Very flavorful, but not overbearingly sweet or anything, just kind of a perfect blend of flavors. And not spicy – for those of you who cringe when you think of digging into that slow cooker firecracker chicken. (I looooove that stuff something fierce)
This chicken dish is really simple and easy to make. You whip up a sauce, saute your chicken over medium heat for about 2 minutes, then throw it all in the crockpot and come back a few hours later to the most delicious smelling and tasting dinner you could dream of.
And the sauce is a bit customizable. I wrote it exactly how I like it but if you make it once and then want to play with the flavors a bit the next time you could up the amount of sesame oil, or increase or decrease the amount of honey. Or, if you do happen to want to heat things up a tad, you can add a little sriracha or crushed red pepper flakes. But don’t add too much, you don’t want to overpower those incredible honey and sesame flavors!
What people are saying about this Slow Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken
“I made this tonite for dinner. I used my thermal cooker (off the grid). It turned out so tender and the rice was so fluffy in my cooker. My husband and I both loved it and will make it again. Thank you so much.” – Joni
“This was great! It tasted better than what you get at a Chinese restaurant. Definitely will make again.” – Laura
“I nailed it
It turned out perfect . I did add some fried wonton chips and green onion When I served it. Added Sriracha to the sauce. Also since I had 4 chicken Breasts I increased the sauce . Yummy 
” – Darlene
“Really delicious! Even my toddler who is extremely picky said ‘mmm good!’ Thank you!” – Lauren
If you liked this recipe, you’ll love my Sticky Sesame Chicken!
Slow Cooker Honey Sesame Chicken
Ingredients
- 3 medium-large boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ⅓ cup corn starch
- 2 tablespoons oil
- ½ cup cold water + 2 tablespoons corn starch
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 6 tablespoons honey
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 teaspoons ketchup
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- sesame seeds, for topping
Instructions
- Chop chicken into 2 inch pieces. Add to a large resealable bag and add corn starch. Seal and shake to coat chicken.
- Drizzle a large skillet with the oil and preheat over medium-high heat. Add chicken and saute 1-2 minutes (just to brown the very outside, chicken should not be cooked through) and remove from heat. Add to a greased slow cooker.
- Whisk together the cold water and corn starch til dissolved. Add soy sauce, sesame oil, honey, garlic, ketchup, and rice vinegar and whisk to combine.
- Poor sauce over the chicken. Cover and cook on low 3 hours. Serve over cooked rice and garnish with sesame seeds if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Well.. I’m not sure what I did wrong, but that was a bit of a disaster. The sauce was really grainy and cloudy, and didn’t really thicken much. Tasted a bit.. naff. I must have gotten the amounts wrong somewhere. Was it really meant to be 1/4 cup of soy, plus another 2 tablespoons of soy?
We really enjoyed this on the day it was made! We had trouble with the leftovers: while the flavor was still great, the sauce became very gloppy (I think because of the cornstarch). I may have been able to fix it somehow in the re-heating process? Anyway, we loved it for day-of eating!
So I had 1/3 cup of starch twice? In the bag and in the sauce?
No, dear. the 1/3 cup goes into the bag; 2 additional tablespoons go into the water to make the sauce.
I found that difficult to understand in the recipe also. Thanks for explaining it 👍
So do I add 1/3 cup of starch in the bag AND in the sauce with cold water?
You add 1/3 cup corn starch to the bag with the chicken to coat the chicken. Later, you will mix the cold water with the 2 tablespoons of corn starch.
The only changes were I added frozen broccoli and edamame half way through and took the top off the slow cooker for the last hour. Oh and added cayenne and garlic powder (didn’t have any fresh garlic and I like spice!). Also gave a squirt of agave because my honey had crystallized and when I tasted it, thought it needed a touch more sweetness. Soooo good. No more sesame chicken take out for me!
Tiffany! WHAT HAVE I DONE??? I am VERY new to this whole cooking thing and absolutely l.o.v.e your blog (I’ve made the slow cooker broccoli beef + firecracker chicken [i love me a crock pot] and both turned out fantastic!) This however was such a fail…I believe my boyfriend said it kind of reminded him of jello chicken lol. I left it in there for 3 hours and the sauce was like trying to move concrete around. Did I just burn it? Whaaaaaaat have I done?!
Hi Rachel! Gahhhh that sounds terrible! It sounds like it just got overcooked! I would say that your crockpot maybe gets hotter than others but if you made the firecracker chicken without any issues then that might not be true because it’s really the same cooking method – I am so lost! But it does sound overcooked, maybe it only needed two hours?? Dang, this recipe is seriously one of my favs I’m sad it didn’t come out right for you!
too much cornstarch perhaps?
It sounds like you may have put the ⅓ cup corn starch in the slow cooker mix and used the two tablespoons to coat the chicken in the bag? ⅓ cup corn starch would certainly turn it gloopy.
Do you think this would work for whole chicken cutlets (not cut)? And can the recipe be tripled?
I think that could probably work! You could definitely triple the recipe, just keep an eye on it because it will need some extra cooking time.
This looks so yummy!! I think it will be a hit with my family for sure. Thanks!
I made this tonite for dinner. I used my thermal cooker (off the grid). It turned out so tender and the rice was so fluffy in my cooker. My husband and I both loved it and will make it again. Thank you so much.
So glad you and your husband enjoyed this dish Joni! Anything that pleases the hubby is a winner in my book!
hey girl this looks really good!
Thanks so much Shawnna!!!
I just found this recipe today and I don’t have time for a slow cooker can I make this on the stove?
I’m sorry, this recipe isn’t tested for the stove so I can’t say for sure if it would work or not.