Slow Cooker Sweet and Spicy Coconut Chicken
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 343cal
Slow Cooker Coconut Chicken cooks up tender in coconut milk, then gets tossed in a sticky sauce made with vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and a touch of apricot jam. It's a bold, saucy dinner that's perfect over rice or noodles!
Print Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breasts (about 2 lbs)
- 1 can coconut milk (13.5 oz/400 ml)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Sweet and Spicy Sauce
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup white vinegar
- ½ cup low sodium chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon apricot jam or jelly
- 2 cloves garlic (finely minced)
- ¼ teaspoon fresh minced ginger
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes (optional, for extra heat)
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
- 1 teaspoon water
Instructions
- Add the chicken breasts to a 3-4 quart slow cooker.
- Pour the coconut milk over top, add the salt, ginger and ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes and stir until chicken is coated and spices are mixed in.
- Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours, until a meat thermometer reads 165℉ in the thickest pieces.
Sweet and Spicy Sauce
- 20 minutes before the chicken will be done, make the sauce. In a medium pot, combine sugar, vinegar, chicken broth, soy sauce, apricot jam, garlic, ginger, and pinch of red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and reduce heat to medium. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, until slightly reduced.
- Combine corn starch and water and stir into sauce to thicken, whisking until combined and thickened.
- Remove chicken from the slow cooker and discard the cooking juices. Slice or shred chicken and toss with sauce. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. (*Optional: place back in the slow cooker to keep warm.)
- Serve over rice or noodles.
Video
Notes
Ingredients and Substitutions:
- Chicken: boneless, skinless chicken thighs work just as well in here -- I estimate about 2 thighs for every breast.
- Spices and seasonings: this chicken has some kick and zing -- you can reduce the vinegar as well as the red pepper flakes or ginger to reduce the punch a little. You can also skip the sweet and spicy sauce and serve without!
- Apricot jam: you can skip this if you don't have it, it just adds a nice mild fruity flavor.
Nutrition
Calories: 343cal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 72mg | Sodium: 1041mg | Potassium: 608mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 95IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 25mg | Iron: 3mg