Slow Cooker Hawaiian Chicken

As a busy working parent, I know how tough it can be to get a wholesome meal on the table on busy weeknights or when you’ve got a weekend full of activities. With five easy to follow steps and about 10 minutes of hands on time, our dump-and-go sweet Hawaiian Crockpot Chicken recipe will bring a flavorful, high protein meal that’s packed with fruit and veggies to your table for an easy lunch or dinner.

If your family loves easy slow cooker recipes like we do, this sweet and savory Crockpot Hawaiian Chicken needs a slot in your family’s meal rotation. Like our Crockpot Salsa Chicken and Crockpot Chicken Bacon and Ranch Tater Tot Casserole, this easy chicken breast dinner idea has minimal hands-on time and makes a meal with maximum flavor!

If you love this sweet and savory chicken recipe, then you also have to try my Chicken Mango Lettuce Wraps (they only take 30 minutes to make)!

Why You’ll Love This Crock Pot Hawaiian Chicken

Quick and easy to make. Your hands-on time for Sweet Hawaiian Crockpot Chicken is only about 15 minutes. Minimal effort is needed before the rest of the ingredients are dumped into the crockpot to slow-cook for the day.  

Full of flavor and texture. The chicken, pineapple, and bell peppers are slow-cooked for hours in a tangy and delicious sauce. The sauce coats the meat, fruit, and veggies as it thickens up at the end of cooking time. You’re left with plenty of extra sauce for drizzling over rice. Most Hawaiian chicken recipes only call for pineapple juice or pineapple puree. I add large, pineapple chunks so that each bite has a mouthful of sweet and fruity flavor!  

Simple ingredients. This Crockpot Hawaiian Chicken recipe only calls for 3 main ingredients.  The rest of the ingredients that are used to make the sauce are readily found in most kitchens.

Dump and go recipe. This is a low-maintenance, dump-and-go recipe that cooks low and slow while you’re at work for the day.  

Hawaiian Crockpot Chicken Ingredients

• Chicken Breast. Use boneless skinless chicken breasts. Always trim any visible fat, tendons, and connective tissue. Trimming the meat will leave you with perfectly clean and tender chicken breast pieces. 
• Bell Peppers. Choose two different colors of bell peppers. Red bell peppers and yellow bell peppers will make the dish look as tropical as it tastes! Orange bell peppers and green bell peppers are also an option though.  
• Pineapple. You’ll need canned pineapple chunks in 100% pineapple juice. Don’t drain the pineapple juice! You’ll need to reserve some of the juice to use during the final steps in this recipe.  
• Brown Sugar. You can use either light brown sugar or dark brown sugar.  The brown sugar will dissolve as the slow cooker warms up and will be the main ingredient that sweetens up the sauce.  
• Low Sodium Soy Sauce. Double-check that your soy sauce is the low-sodium variety.  I’ve developed this recipe specifically using low-sodium soy sauce. If you use full-sodium soy sauce, then your sauce may turn out too salty.
• Hoisin Sauce. Hoisin sauce is a sweet and salty sauce commonly used in Asian-inspired recipes. Hoisin is my secret ingredient that will deepen the rich, sweet, tangy, and umami flavors in this crock pot recipe!     
• Ginger and Garlic. Ground ginger (grated fresh ginger is okay too) and freshly minced garlic are added for extra flavor!

See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements. 

Helpful Equipment for Making Slow Cooker Hawaiian Chicken

You’ll need to use a larger-sized slow cooker to make this recipe. I love this 6-Quart Programmable Crock Pot Slow Cooker.  

How To Make Hawaiian Chicken (Crockpot)

Step 1: Add chicken breast and bell peppers to the basin of a large crockpot.

Step 2: Then add brown sugar, minced garlic, and ground ginger to the slow cooker.

Step 3: Drain and reserve approximately ¼ cup of the pineapple juice from the can, and then pour the pineapple chunks and any remaining juice into the crock pot.

Step 4: Finally add the soy sauce and hoisin sauce in and place the lid onto the slow cooker. Cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or HIGH for 3-4 hours.

Step 5: During the last 30 minutes of cooking, whisk the reserved pineapple juice and cornstarch together in a small bowl.

Step 6: Pour the cornstarch slurry into the crockpot, and stir to combine. Allow the Hawaiian chicken to cook for 30 minutes longer.

Step 7: Serve over rice of choice, with the option to add optional toppings like sesame seeds and sliced green onions, and enjoy!

Crock Pot Hawaiian Chicken Variations

• Use different cuts of chicken. I prefer to use chicken breast because it’s one of the healthiest cuts of chicken. Boneless skinless chicken thighs or chopped chicken tenderloins would also be an option though. I suggest trimming some of the fat off of the chicken thighs if you make this substitution.  
• Add BBQ sauce. Adding BBQ sauce to Crock Pot Hawaiian Chicken will give the sauce a smokey flavor. BBQ sauce is a common addition to Hawaiian chicken recipes.  
• Make it spicy. If you love to add a little bit of heat to your meals, then a pinch of red pepper flakes or a dash of cayenne pepper powder would do the trick! Another option is to add chopped jalapeno peppers.
• Use fresh or frozen pineapple. Instead of canned pineapple, you can use fresh or frozen pineapple chunks. I prefer to use canned pineapple though because canned pineapple will supply you with the pineapple juice needed in this recipe. Canned pineapple also significantly cuts down on prep time, compared to chopping up fresh pineapple. 
• Add more veggies. I really like to make Hawaiian chicken using the traditional veggie choice of bell peppers. If you want to be creative with your vegetable additions, then you could also try adding cauliflower, broccoli, onions, or carrots! 

Possible Dietary Restrictions?

This slow cooker Hawaiian chicken is dairy free as it’s written. This recipe can be gluten free as long as you make sure gluten hasn’t snuck into your soy sauce or your hoisin sauce!  

Wheat is a common ingredient in most traditionally produced soy and hoisin sauces. Luckily you can find San-J Gluten Free Tamari Low Sodium Soy Sauce and San-J Gluten Free Hoisin Sauce in most grocery stores! 

I don’t suggest trying to make this recipe vegetarian or vegan because chicken is the main ingredient.  

Tips For Making Crock Pot Hawaiian Chicken

• Chop your chicken and bell peppers into equally sized pieces. Make sure they’re bite-sized as well!  
• Don’t skip the cornstarch slurry! Adding a cornstarch slurry at the end of cooking time is the key step that is needed to really thicken up the sweet and sticky sauce.
• This recipe is really easy to double. All you have to do is double the ingredients. The recipe steps and the cooking time will not change. 
• You don’t have to serve this recipe over rice. You could shred the chicken and serve it in soft taco shells or make sliders using Hawaiian sweet rolls.   

Storing Hawaiian Crockpot Chicken

Store leftover Hawaiian pineapple chicken in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. I suggest storing the crockpot portion separately from any leftover rice. 

This is also a freezer friendly recipe!  You can freeze this recipe for up to 3 months. Let the Hawaiian crockpot chicken cool completely. Transfer leftovers into a freezer bag and squeeze out all of the air. Seal the freezer bag, label it with the recipe name and date, and lay it flat on your freezer shelf.