Slow Cooker Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken delivers tropical flavor with low effort. Tender, saucy chicken dinner with just 15 minutes of prep.
This recipe will help you keep your time management in check after you get home from work or school. For more easy Slow Cooker Dinners try Slow Cooker Orange Chicken or Slow Cooker Sesame Chicken.
Sabrina’s Slow Cooker Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken Recipe
Slow Cooker Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken is a quick and easy meal that you can make on a weeknight that will transport you to the Hawaiian Islands. The first time I made this Pineapple Chicken in the slow cooker, it was because I was looking for a healthier option to replace Sweet and Sour Chicken, which is one of my favorite takeout meals. If you are looking for a yummy, Hawaiian Beef dinner try out my Loco Moco next week!
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 4 Chicken Thighs , (bone-in and skin on)
- 2 cups pineapple , cut into 1" chunks
- 1 yellow onion , cut into 1″ chunks
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon grated ginger
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds , optional
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 red bell pepper , cut into 1″ chunks
- parsley , for garnish
Instructions
- Using a skillet or the cast aluminum slow cooker insert, brown your Chicken Thighs on both sides for 3-5 minutes over high heat then remove them.
- Add the pineapple and onion to the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Mix the honey, soy sauce, brown sugar, grated ginger and garlic into the slow cooker.
- Carefully add the Chicken Thighs back into the slow cooker.
- Cook on low for 5 hours or on high for 3 hours
- Add the cornstarch to a tablespoon of water, mix, and add to the slow cooker with the bell peppers and let it cook an additional 30 minutes while you cook some rice to accompany your meal.
- Serve with parsley for a garnish if desired.
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Table of contents
About this Recipe
The tangy and sweet sauce with the pineapples, onions, and bell peppers is a flavor we weren’t looking to lose, but the deep-fried chunks of chicken had to go. With just fifteen minutes of prep time in the morning, you can come home, put some rice on the Stovetop, and by the time it is done cooking, you’ll have a fantastic meal with fresh ingredients instead of takeout.
What to Pair With
Pair this delicious chicken on a bed of Instant Pot Rice for a complete meal. Also, you can serve the chicken with Cheesecake Factory Luau Salad.
Related Recipes
More Tasty Slow Cooker Chicken Recipes
These photos were in a previous version of this post
Mine came out bland, sadly.
I’m sorry you had lackluster results, Max. Can you tell me what happened during cooking that might’ve contributed? I’d love to troubleshoot this for you.
Can I use chicken breasts instead of thighs?
Yes you can, Sharon. As you know chicken breasts cook faster (approx 15 – 20 min faster) so test the inside temp of your thickest chicken breast for 165 degrees to know when they are done.
Can you use canned or frozen pineapple
You can. Come back and let us know how your recipe turns out!
Love this recipe, next time I want to make some spicier.
Go for it Jackie! Everyone has a different taste for “spice” in recipes. Thanks for the kind review.
How long would I cook this in an instapot?
Hi Susan, I haven’t tested this recipe using an Instapot.
We thought the recipe was delicious, but as a Type 2 Diabetic I was concerned about the amount of sugar it had in it. Please let me know if I can use a diabetic sugar substitute.
I haven’t tested diabetic sugar substitute in this recipe. Let me know if you try it and how it turns out!
I am diabetic is this recipe good for my diabetes I did notice a lot of sugar can I use a substitute sugar for this
I cannot answer your question as I am not a doctor; however, I have heard over the years that people do use substitute sugars for our recipes from time to time. If you decide to do so, please let us know what you used and how it turns out! All the best! Enjoy!
Can I use boneless thighs for this recipe?
Yes you can and let us know how your chicken turns out Heather!
Can I used canned pineapple instead?
You can, drain well.
Mine was good but runny. If using canned pineapple, should it be drained?
Yes, I use fresh pineapple and don’t have the extra juices in this recipe. I agree with you, you should drain the canned pineapple. Thank you for asking!
Can I use drumsticks??
Can this be doubled and cooked in crock pot?
Yes!
My family LOVES this recipe. The gravy is delicious! I make this recipe many times.
Thank you Marlene and thank you for the five star review.
I used fresh pineapple but will use canned pineapple next time. The bell peppers and onions were too soft. I’ll add them in the last two hours of cooking. I substituted chicken breasts for thighs; big mistake!
The overall flavor was delicious. My wife raved about it.
This was delicious! My son gobbled it up! I did what another reader suggested and only put 1/2 amount of sugar, and it was plenty. I also subbed a shallot for an onion since I didn’t have One.Also, I’m not sure why, but I didn’t have a lot of sauce. I did use breasts, so possibly morerat than what it called for. I will make this again, but double the sauce as it has great flavor. I think I’ll add another pepper as well.
When using skinless boneless chicken breasts, how long do you cook it in the slow cooker? Same amount of time? Do you brown the chicken breast ahead of time in the skillet?
Yes you can brown ahead of time in the slow cooker. Skinless boneless chicken takes less time so decrease cooking time by 8 – 20 minutes. I know that’s a long range of time. Best to check the temperature of your chicken to ensure it is at 165 degrees. Enjoy.
Hi Sabrina! It’s Sabrena ? I know this post has been on her for some time but can you freeze its meal after it’s been cooked? What’s the best way to store it?
HOW TO STORE SLOW COOKER HAWAIIAN PINEAPPLE CHICKEN
Serve: Don’t leave cooked chicken at room temperature for more than 2 hours.
Store: To store your Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken recipe, let it cool to room temperature then store it in an airtight container in the fridge. It will last well for 3-4 days.
Freeze: This is also a great recipe to make ahead. You can freeze Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken for up to 4 months. To reheat the chicken, let it defrost in the fridge overnight. You can reheat the chicken in the oven, then add some extra fresh pineapple chunks.
Enjoy!
This was fantastic! Though I’m not much of a fan of the skin of chicken thighs, I can always take the skin off and not eat it. But I’m thinking maybe making it with boneless skinless chicken thigh next? My daughters ate it right up and I had a big old bowl! Thank you for the recipe!
Thank you for the wonderful recipe for Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken! I added a view vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower and carrots. I served it over a bed of rice. My family really enjoyed it. Thank you so much; it was a snap to make. I will definitely make it again!
It was a very good recipe,and produced a very nice tasty dish.
Could I add fresh mint???
Sounds interesting!
Great recipe. I also use this for Hawaiian meatballs ans pulled pork. Other recipes just don’t seem to be tasty. Thank you for sharing this.
This is delish! I did season my chicken with salt and pepper first. Then I just threw it all in together at once (peppers and all) and let it go because that’s why we crockpot! Love the sweetness of the pineapple and the sauce is yummy. Great recipe!
The receipe that I made was Pineapple Chicken & it was delicious & easy to make!! Family loved it!!
Just love this recipe. Having a husband and 5 children I learned to adjust the quantities over the years, increasing them over the years to less and less over the years as all my children flew the coup. I have been making something similar for the past 45 years. The only difference is I use both chicken thighs and chicken legs as well as adding some bacon I have browned in the pan before browning the chicken. The quantity of bacon varies depending on how much and what type I have in the freezer, and how big the pieces are, which are defrosted and patted dry with a paper towel. Though usually, I use 4 slices sliced into 2 1/2 cm pieces – of streaky bacon, or 6 slices of short-cut bacon or 4 slices middle cut bacon). I also add broccoli florets into the mix 30 minutes prior to serving, at the same time the bell peppers (we call them capsicums here in Australia) again the quantity depends on how much I have in the refrigerator. I also season my chicken before browning, sometimes with just a pinch of salt and ground pepper, other times with onion salt or garlic salt. I also use a large can of pineapple in natural syrup (no added sugar) when fresh pineapple is out of season. Draining the can of pineapple really well, reserving a little of the liquid to mix with the cornstarch instead of with water. This is a great recipe that can be easily tweaked to suit your taste and has been a true hit with my family, and now my grandchildren, over the past 45 years.
I used 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs, 32 oz can of pineapple with juice, 1/4 cup of coconut sugar, hemp seeds instead of sesame seeds, arrowroot instead of corn starch. I added 2 crowns broccoli with the red peppers the last 30 minutes. I used coco aminos instead of soy. Next time I will add more chicken and 1/2 tsp sea salt and 1/2 black pepper. And 1 more tbs of arrow root became of the addition of pineapple juice
Will there be enough liquid?
Won’t the chicken skin be mushy after cooking in the liquid? Why does the picture look like the skin is still nice and crisp?
Yes! I just made it today and while it was really tasty I had to remove the chicken skin because it was soggy and mushy! I’m not sure how you would keep it beautiful and crispy like the picture? I think next time I would just buy the chicken without the skin.
Don’t see when to add the sesame seeds. Are they an ingredient or garnish? Do you mix the wet ingredients together before adding or just separately to the pot? Is the time for browning for each side or total?
Tried the recipe and just added 1/3 cup of brown sugar. Used 6 chicken thighs.
Way…way too sweet! Rescued it by draining the pepper onions and pineapple and washing it in cold water. Dumped 3/4 of the sauce out. Added chicken stock and put everything back in.
Looks good but these calories are absolutely wrong. I forgot to add the bell pepper to the calories and it’s still 421 cal per serving. Recipe says 193.
Kind of deceiving.
I’ve made this a few times now and is becoming a firm favourite for all seasons. I tried it with chicken breast, but found the meat was very dry so only use thighs and drumsticks now. Its fresh and light for the warmer days and by slightly increasing the ginger, gives it added warmth for colder days.
For health issues, I have to follow the Low Fodmap diet which is complex and hard to find recipes without strings of ingredients that I know I react to. This one is loved by all and so easy to adapt. I’m fine with raw honey and by using spring onion tops instead of onion, I get the flavouring. Another way to get it is to cut a red onion in half and placing in the bottom of the slow cooker. I remove both portions before serving to ensure I don’t eat any by accident and those who want any can help themselves.
So glad you were able to adapt this recipe to meet your needs. Thank you for sharing, others will benefit from what you have shared.
Great base recipe Browned thighs so they looked more like fried chicken. Added red, orange and Yellow peppers. Didn’t drain the pineapple so I would have sauce for the rice. You can add more cornstarch if you like it thicker Turned out yummy.
Thank you, David!
I used bone in chicken 9not Foster Farms though a little pricier than the rest) and it was great according to the gang. I personally wont eat dark meat chicken so next time its white meat. Hey I am the cook. Right? So my question what does the cook time change to?
I just asked about using skinless chicken breasts then read your comment on another recipe of how the skin becomes crispy as the underlying fat is rendered off and adds flavor to the dish. My question then is really only can I substitute chicken breasts for thighs?
Yes, you can
Delicious – I made with boneless breasts instead. Liked by all ? and did on high for 3 hours. I used frozen pineapple chunks as well. Will definitely make again
It looks delicious but I do not like dark meat or skin at all. Can this be made with skinless chicken breasts? So many luscious looking recipes on your site call for chicken thighs so my question is for several recipes.
Yes, you can use skinless chicken breast. As well as the other recipes that call for thighs.
I tried this in my instant pot and it turned out really good. I may have overcooked a little so next time I’ll shorten the cooking time. I’ll have to try it in my crock pot too. Great recipe. Thank you