Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki

It might be my imagination, but somehow there seems to be something magic in my slow cooker that makes things taste that much more delicious than their traditional stovetop versions.  It might be magic, or it might be the fact that whatever it is gets to simmer away all day long, low and slow in whatever sauces and seasonings you have in the slow cooker.  Take this chicken teriyaki for example.  It spends all day in a bath of soy sauce and sugar and ginger and onion, and at the end of eight hours it is tangy tender deliciousness. Plus the kitchen smells like teriyaki heaven.  I’m going back to my original theory about the magic.

Here’s how easy this deliciousness is.  Pop a few boneless skinless chicken breasts in your slow cooker.  You want the nice thick kind.  Now whisk together the teriyaki mixture – soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, a little ground ginger – and pour the whole thing over the chicken.  Scatter on some chopped  onion.  Now put the top on, turn the slow cooker on low and go find something to do for 8 hours.  (This is my second favorite part of making slow cooked chicken teriyaki).

When you come back, the chicken will be falling apart tender – scoop it out and shred it into bite sized pieces and pop it back in the slow cooker.

You might be perfectly happy with it at this point, but if you like your teriyaki sauce a little thicker, stir a little bit of flour into the slow cooker and turn the setting up to high for about 5 minutes.  I like to shake the flour on through a fine mesh strainer just to avoid any lumps – or if you have Wondra flour, that is perfect.  This will thicken things up just a little.

Now scoop it out onto some hot cooked rice, and if you want to be extra fancy you can top the teriyaki with chopped green onions and/or sesame seeds.  I like being fancy so I went for both.  And dig in!  (This is my first favorite part.)

Magic, I tell you.

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