Slow Cooker
Teriyaki Chicken
Chicken breasts slow cooked all day in a savory teriyaki and chicken stock sauce with red onion, garlic, and ginger — then shredded and returned to the liquid for the most flavorful, versatile protein in the collection. Pile it over cauliflower rice, stuff it into lettuce wraps, or eat it straight from the pot. Set it and forget it.
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- ¾ cup low-sodium chicken stock
- ½ cup low-sodium teriyaki sauce
- 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
- ½ red onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated (or ¼ tsp ground ginger)
- — sesame seeds, to garnish (optional)
- — sliced green onion, to garnish (optional)
-
1
Load the slow cooker
Place the chicken breasts in the slow cooker. Add the chicken stock, teriyaki sauce, white wine vinegar, chopped red onion, garlic, and ginger. Stir briefly to combine the liquids. Cover and cook on low for 6–7 hours until the chicken is completely tender and pulls apart easily.
-
2
Shred the chicken
Remove the chicken breasts from the slow cooker and shred using two forks or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Return the shredded chicken to the teriyaki liquid in the slow cooker and stir to coat every strand in the sauce.
-
3
Serve
Serve the teriyaki chicken over cauliflower rice, spooning the cooking liquid generously over the top. Garnish with sesame seeds and sliced green onion. The liquid in the slow cooker becomes a deeply flavored teriyaki sauce — don't leave it behind.
- Check your teriyaki sauce label: Store-bought teriyaki sauce varies wildly in sugar and sodium content — look for a low-sodium version and check the sugar per serving. A little goes a long way and the chicken stock dilutes it significantly during cooking.
- Garlic and ginger are essential: The original recipe didn't include either — but teriyaki without garlic and ginger tastes flat and one-dimensional. Both are what make this taste like proper teriyaki rather than just chicken in sweet sauce.
- The liquid is the sauce: The cooking liquid that the shredded chicken soaks in is deeply flavored — spoon it generously over cauliflower rice when serving. It's the best part of the dish.
- This chicken goes everywhere: Serve over cauliflower rice, stuff into lettuce wraps with shredded carrots and cucumber, use as a filling for bell pepper halves, or add to a simple salad. One batch covers lunches and dinners for days.
- Meal prep: Keeps in the fridge with the cooking liquid for up to 5 days — the chicken continues to absorb the teriyaki flavor as it sits and tastes even better the next day. Freezes beautifully for up to 3 months.