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Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Chicken (Crockpot)

written by Ashley Fehr

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4.98 from 47 votes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 10 minutes
Servings 6 servings

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Last updated on January 11, 2021

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This Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Chicken is so easy and BIG on flavor! The crockpot makes it juicy and moist, with extra sauce for serving over rice. With VIDEO.

slow cooker sweet and sour chicken in crockpot with pineapple and peppers

I’m going to try to refrain from going on and on and on about my love for slow cookers.

I feel like I’ve probably done that somewhere before… just like I’ve also whined to you about how difficult it can be to get dinner on the table these days.

Another thing I love? CanadiAsian food.

I’m not ever going to claim I know anything about actual Asian/Chinese cuisine, but based on my limited experiences in restaurants in Manitoba, this is how we do our slow cooker sweet and sour chicken!

This crockpot sweet and sour chicken is a hit with the family, especially because it’s loaded with enough chunks of pineapple that they forget about all those peppers 😉

We love sweet and sour sauce on everything.

And I love coming home to a perfectly cooked meal, or just calmly sipping a late afternoon cup of coffee instead of slaving over the stove like I ought to be.

slow cooker sweet and sour chicken on white rice on blue plate overhead

If you’re like me and you’re looking for even more easy slow cooker meals, check out these Easy Crockpot Meals, this Italian Crockpot Chicken and Potatoes, or these Crockpot Chicken and Noodles!

How to make this slow cooker Sweet and Sour Chicken:

  1. Put your chicken in the slow cooker (so far, so good, right??)
  2. Add your pineapple, vegetables and sauce.
  3. Turn on your crockpot.
  4. Grab a cup of coffee and watch your dinner make itself. Pretty great, right?!
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Variations on this crockpot Sweet and Sour Chicken:

The cooking time with this can vary for a lot of reasons. How full your slow cooker is, how hot your slow cooker is, the size of your pieces, etc. Here are some tips to slow down or speed up the cooking process.

  • Cook slower: If you’re looking to leave the chicken in a long time (8 hours or so), try putting the breasts in whole. A whole chicken breast will always take longer to cook, but that might be something you want if your slow cooker is less full and you need to leave the chicken in for quite a while. Back in the day before I knew the “rules”, I used to put the chicken in frozen when I worked out of the house all day. This isn’t generally recommended, but I’ve done it quite a few times and am still around to tell the tale 😉
  • Cook faster: You can always cut the chicken into smaller pieces to cook more quickly, or make this recipe on the stove top. Simply brown the chicken, and pour the sauce over to simmer and thicken until the chicken is fully cooked. Dinner will be ready in no time!
crockpot sweet and sour chicken on plate close up on grey marble

Tools you’ll need for making this sweet and sour chicken recipe:

  • I love my 2.5 quart Crockpot for this recipe because it’s just the right size and because it fills nicely, my chicken doesn’t become dry or overcooked. You can absolutely use a larger slow cooker, just keep in mind that a crockpot that is less full will cook a little more quickly.
  • You definitely don’t need them, but if you find yourself short on clean up time, throw in a slow cooker liner and skip the scrubbing!

Looking for more slow cooker meals?

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Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Chicken

written by Ashley Fehr

4.98 from 47 votes
{Slow Cooker} Sweet and Sour Chicken: the perfect crockpot meal to come home to after a long day! Great served over rice or noodles.
slow cooker sweet and sour chicken on blue plate
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours
Total Time 3 hours 10 minutes
Cuisine American
Course Main Course
Servings 6 servings
Calories 363cal

Ingredients

  • 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into 1″ pieces (Or use thighs)
  • 1 can pineapple chunks (398ml)
  • 1 red pepper diced
  • 1 green pepper diced
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar
  • 3/4 cup vinegar
  • 1/2 cup ketchup
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 3 tbsp corn starch
  • 1 tsp minced garlic
  • 1/2 tsp minced ginger

Instructions

  • Place chicken, pineapple and peppers in a 2.5-4 quart slow cooker.
  • Combine sugar, vinegar, ketchup, soy sauce, corn starch, garlic and ginger and pour over chicken. Cook on low for 3-4 hours, or high for 1.5-2 hours.
  • *If needed, you can stir together 1-2 tbsp additional corn starch and water to thicken the sauce.
  • Serve over cooked rice or noodles.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 363cal | Carbohydrates: 67g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 48mg | Sodium: 608mg | Potassium: 547mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 60g | Vitamin A: 865IU | Vitamin C: 52.1mg | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 0.9mg

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Meet Ashley

My name is Ashley Fehr and I love creating easy meals my family loves. I also like to do things my way, which means improvising and breaking the rules when necessary. Here you will find creative twists on old favorites and some of my favorite family recipes, passed down from generations!

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Comments

  1. Renee Schouten says

    Hi Ashley,

    Do you put the chicken in the slow cooker raw? I am more of a fan of cooking the chicken and then putting it in the slow cooker.

    Thanks,

    Renee

    Reply

  2. Cynthia Taffet says

    Hi Ive made this before and it was delicious this time I purchased the diced chicken by Perdue. How do I calculate the diced chicken to equal 4 chicken breasts. I was trying to base it on weight but could not find equivalent calculations Do you have any advice.. Thanks again and keep sending recipes

    Reply

  3. Valerie says

    If you don’t have fresh ginger…can you substitute ground ginger..if so…how much in this recipe?
    2nd question…do you drain juice from pineapple chunks or use juice too?

    Reply

  6. Mandi says

    Made this tonight and it was delicious! I realized that I didn’t have vinegar when I got home, so I added some sweet Thai chili sauce I had and cut back on the sugar. Definitely making this again and not just during the summer.

    Reply

  7. Nancy Perine says

    I’ve had Sweet & Sour Chicken in restaurants and have gotten take-out, but hadn’t cooked it … until now. I love my slow cooker and with your recipe it turned out so yummy. I served it over what we call “sticky rick” here in Hawaii. It was a big hit and I’ll be making it many more times. THANKS!!

    Reply

    • Ashley Fehr says

      Thanks Celeste! You technically could, but I would worry about the chicken being overdone. I would definitely use whole chicken breasts if you are going to leave it for a longer period of time, but I still wouldn’t go longer than 6-8 hours for best results. I hope that helps!

      Reply

    • Ashley Fehr says

      I think that would be fine! Just always double check the temperature before serving to ensure it’s reached 165, but I don’t think there’d be any problems!

      Reply

  10. colet says

    Made for the first time and the hubby is already asking for it again! Will be a recipe I keep handy! Thanks!!

    Reply

  15. Alice @ Hip Foodie Mom says

    I neglect to realize sometimes how awesome the slow cooker really is. . I love that you made a slow cooker sweet and sour chicken!! and oh my gawd, I NEED to try your {Slow Cooker} Mongolian Beef ASAP!!! love!!

    Reply

    • Ashley says

      Thanks Alice! I can’t get enough of it! To be totally honest, tomorrow will be the 3rd day in a row that we’ve had supper in the slow cooker!

      Reply

  19. Natalie @ Tastes Lovely says

    Oh how I love my slow cooker. I’ve got some soup in there cooking away for me right now! This sweet and sour chicken sounds amazing, i will definitely be adding this recipe into our weekly rotation. Have the best Thanksgiving tomorrow friend!

    Reply

    • Ashley says

      Thanks Natalie! I had my (Canadian) Thanksgiving 6 weeks ago, but I actually have the day off for a doctor’s appointment, so it will almost feel like a holiday anyway! Lol.

      Reply

  20. Annie @Maebells says

    I am with you, I love any type of Asian inspired food. I was intimidated by it for a long time because I wasn’t sure how to use those ingredients well but after playing around with it we have some great Asian type dishes in our rotation! I love that this is a slow cooker recipe. I find that since it is dark by four now I am so useless at night. I get nothing done after work! I need lots of good slow cooker recipes for these dreary winter days!

    Reply

    • Ashley says

      I think it’s mostly because I love sugar in everything…. and the whole sweet and sour thing totally works for me. Lol. I think being 8 and a half months pregnant has really made me resent making supper… so I use my slow cooker a LOT! I’d much rather be baking (and eating!) chocolate!

      Reply

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