Slow Cooker Pineapple Chicken
This slow cooker pineapple chicken is a sweet, savory, and spicy love-fest that basically cooks itself. Brown sugar, soy sauce, sake, and sesame oil team up with umami-packed miso and an array of aromatics to create a sauce so good you’ll want to bottle and sell it (but if you do, I want a cut). Toss in pineapple chunks for some tropical sweetness, then cook until the chicken thighs are fall-apart-tender. Stir in basil for a fragrant finish, and serve over rice to soak up the luring layers of flavor.
Ingredients
- ¼ packed cup light brown sugar
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup sake
- ¼ cup sesame oil
- 1 tbsp white miso paste or sub 1 tsp MSG
- 1 2-inch knob ginger peeled and thinly sliced
- 3 serrano peppers stems removed and sliced, plus more for garnish (optional)
- 1 small yellow onion roughly chopped
- 8 cloves garlic smashed
- 1 medium pineapple peeled, cored, and cut into chunks (or sub a 20 oz can of pineapple chunks, drained)
- 4 chicken thighs bone-in skin-on
- 2 cups basil leaves (include some Thai basil, if I have it)
- Steamed rice for serving
Instructions
- Combine brown sugar, soy sauce, sake, sesame oil, and miso (or MSG) in a slow cooker. Whisk to combined.
- Mix in ginger, serranos, onion, garlic, and pineapple. Nestle chicken thighs into the mixture.
- Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-5 hours.
- Transfer chicken thighs to a cutting board with tongs. Remove bones and skin from thighs and discard them. Lightly shred chicken into bite-sized chunks. Return to the slow cooker. Stir in basil, replace lid, and allow to cook until wilted. Serve over rice. Top with more serranos if desired.