Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Chicken with Pineapples

By damiles1

Homemade and healthier sweet and sour chicken with pineapples.  No need to order take-out with this easy and delicious slow cooker version

is one of my husband’s favorite takeout dish.  I used to make it for him regularly when we first got married but lately, I’ve been making Sweet and Sour Chicken instead and in the slow cooker.

It’s so much easier to whip up and you won’t have to stand in front of the hot stove which makes it perfect for those busy week nights or days when you need your hands free.

You just whisk together the homemade

sauce and pour it over the chicken in the crockpot – then just sit back and let the machine do all the cooking for you!

, then you pour in the sauce and thirty minutes later, you’re ready to  serve this warm over a bowl of cooked rice or quinoa.

Your favorite take-out dish tha

Yields

Homemade sweet and sour chicken. No need to order take-out with this easy deliciou

Ingredients

• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into bite-sized 1” cubes
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• Cooking oil
• 1/3 cup soy sauce*
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste or ketchup
• 3 tablespoons of honey or brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons oyster sauce
• 1 teaspoon of dark soy sauce (leave out if you can’t find this)
• 1/4 teaspoon of sesame oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced
• 2 tablespoons corn starch + 3 tablespoons cool water
• 1 cup pineapple chunks
• 2 sweet red bell peppers, deseeded and cut into 1" pieces
• Cooked rice, to serve with
• Sesame seeds, for garnish, optional

Details

Servings 4
Preparation time 15mins
Cooking time 225mins
Adapted from lifemadesweeter.com

Preparation

Step 1

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into bite-sized 1” cubes

2 sweet red bell peppers, deseeded and cut into 1" pieces

Cooked rice, to serve with

In a large resealable storage bag, combine cornstarch and black pepper. Add chicken. Seal bag and shake until well coated.

Heat cooking oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Brown chicken for about 2 minutes on all sides. Transfer chicken to slow cooker.

In a medium bowl, whisk together soy sauce, chicken broth, tomato paste, honey, vinegar, oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic and ginger. Pour over chicken and cover with lid. Cook on high for 1 1/2 - 2 hours or on low for 3 - 4 hours.

To thicken sauce, whisk together corn starch and water in small bowl and stir into slow cooker. Add pineapples and bell peppers to slow cooker. Turn heat to high and allow sauce to cook and thicken for 15 – 20 minutes.

Serve hot over cooked rice. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, if desired.

Skip browning meat if desired and add directly to slow cooker. Meat will not have crispy coating.

You can use ketchup in place of the tomato paste. Just omit or reduce the apple cider vinegar as it may be too sour.