Get out your crock pot! These Slow Cooker Honey-Soy Chicken drumsticks and thighs are soaked in a honey-soy sauce spiked with orange, ginger, and garlic. So easy and delicious!
Love these flavors, but don’t have a crockpot? Make our Honey Soy Baked Chicken instead.
Easy Crockpot Honey-Soy Chicken Recipe
I don’t have a lot of slow cooker recipes in my catalog because I just find most of them, well…unimpressive. Bland. So when I make one that has great flavor and worth making again, I get so excited. This slow cooker honey-soy chicken is one of those!
You can use chicken drumsticks, thighs, or a combination of both. They’re lightly pan seared, then slow cooked in a flavor-packed Asian marinade. Serve over rice for a delicious meal.
Ingredients Needed
This easy crockpot chicken recipe calls for pretty common Asian ingredients.
(Scroll below to the printable recipe card for details and measurements.)
- Chicken – 2 1/2 pounds (8 bone-in) chicken pieces. Can be all drumsticks, all thighs, or a combination.
- Olive oil – To lightly pan sear the chicken before transferring to the slow cooker.
- Soy sauce – Opt for low sodium to avoid the dish being overly salty.
- Orange juice and zest – For a bright, citrus flavor.
- Garlic & Ginger – Fresh for best aromatics and flavor.
- Rice wine vinegar – Adds some zest and tang.
- Honey – Provides some sweetness and balances out the vinegar.
- Seasonings – Salt, pepper, and cracked red pepper flakes.
- Toasted sesame seeds – For a lovely crunchy, nutty flavor.
- Chopped fresh parsley – For garnish
How to Make Crockpot Pot Honey-Soy Chicken
It’s super easy to make this slow cooker chicken recipe. Here’s a summary:
(Scroll below to the printable recipe card for details and measurements.)
- Pan sear chicken. Lightly pan-sear the chicken in a bit of olive oil until they have a golden crust. Transfer to a greased 6-quart slow cooker.
- Make the marinade. Combine all the marinade ingredients and pour over the chicken.
- Cook. Put the lid on and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours (or until chicken registers 165F in the thickest part), basting the tops halfway through if possible, so the skin doesn’t dry out
- Make sauce reduction. Transfer the chicken pieces to a bowl. Very carefully pour the liquid from the slow cooker into a medium skillet with a bit of cornstarch. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil until reduced and slightly thickened. Pour the sauce over the chicken and stir to coat.
- Serve. Serve, sprinkled with parsley, over cooked white white and enjoy!
Can I Bake The Chicken Instead?
Serving Suggestions
We love this chicken served with white rice or pineapple coconut rice. It’s also great with a side of wonton soup or miso soup for a complete meal. A slice of naan to mop of the juices is great, too!
Storing Leftovers
Cool chicken completely, then store in airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
More Crockpot Chicken Recipes:
- Honey Garlic Chicken
- Crockpot Chicken and Stuffing
- Chicken Taco Soup
- Slow Cooker Orange Chicken
- Crockpot BBQ Chicken
- Slow Cooker Italian Lemon Chicken
I hope you love this delicious and easy recipe – be sure to give it a review below! Also don’t forget to follow Belly Full on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube!
Slow Cooker Honey-Soy Chicken
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup honey
- 2 teaspoons orange zest
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 & 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 & 1/2 pounds (8 bone-in) chicken pieces
- salt and pepper
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- cooked white rice , for serving
Instructions
- Coat a 5 to 6-quart slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, combine honey, orange zest, orange juice, soy sauce, salt, garlic, ginger, vinegar, crushed red pepper, and sesame seeds.
- Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Season chicken on both sides with a little salt and pepper; sauté for about 3 minutes per side, until they have a golden crust. Transfer to the slow cooker along with the sauce mixture.
- Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours (or until chicken registers 165F in the thickest part), basting the tops halfway through, so the skin doesn't dry out.
- Transfer the chicken pieces to a bowl.
- Very carefully pour the liquid from the slow cooker into a medium skillet with a tablespoon of cornstarch. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil until reduced and slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Pour the sauce over the drumsticks and stir to coat.
- Serve, sprinkled with parsley, over cooked white white and enjoy!NOTE: You can skip the sauce reduction, if preferred, it will just be looser.
Will this recipe work with skinless, boneless breasts? If so, would I need to adjust anything?
I made this recipe, but baked it all in the oven using your variation. It was delicious – thanks!
Looks and sounds amazing!
Love this chicken!
Always looking for slow cooker meals and this was great! I served it with sesame noodles on the side.
I love that this doesn’t have any cream of canned soup or dairy!
This was dinner last night – loved it!