Sweet Chili Pineapple Chicken is an easy crock pot recipe that is a favorite at our house. My family loves it for the taste, I love it because it is a simple “throw and go” recipe for the crock pot.
The ingredients might sound a little odd (sweet chili sauce and vegetable), but don’t be fooled. My kids describe the taste as, “sweet & sour chicken, but much, much better!”
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Ever feel like you’ve turned into a short order cook at dinner time?
My kids attend two different school and take part in five after school clubs and two different sports. I love their interests but can spend WAY too much time preparing quick meals that work with all of our different schedules.
Add in my work schedule, my husband’s job, and a German Shepherd that needs two walks daily and you have the makings of a CRAZY MOM who is sick of cooking.
(Or so I’ve heard…wink, wink!)
Crock Pot Meals for Busy Days
A slow cooker or crock pot can be a lifesaver when schedules are busy and no one has time to sit down to a family dinner. It keeps meals hot for several different dining times and allows me to quickly prepare our evening meal in the morning.
I affectionately refer to my favorite type of crock pot meals as throw and go recipes. These recipes require no complex chopping, pre-browning, or onion sauteing at 6 a.m. You simply add the ingredients to the slow cooker and then forget about it until dinner.
Crock pot meals that require little to no prep keep our family eating healthy and help us resist the call of the drive-thru window. A greasy burger seems much less tempting when a tasty crock pot full of Sweet Chili Pineapple Chicken is waiting to be eaten at home.
Sweet Chili Pineapple Chicken
This recipe uses frozen chicken and your favorite vegetables to make a healthy Asian inspired dinner.
All you need to do is layer chicken, sweet chili sauce and pineapple in your slow cooker. (This takes less than 5 minutes!) While the chicken cooks the sweet chili sauce and pineapple turn into a delicious sweet and sour sauce (with a little kick!).
Crock Pot Steamed Vegetables
When I get home from carpool duties I add our favorite vegetables to the crock pot and allow them to cook until they are tender crisp. The hot chicken and sauce help the slow cooker gently steam the vegetables without turning them to piles of mush.
I hate recipes that turn tender, delicious vegetables into indistinguishable lumps by adding them to the cooker at the same time as the raw meat. The broccoli, pepper and pea pods in this meal all cook quickly and can be steamed to perfection in just a few minutes.
The vegetable cooking time is the perfect opportunity to cook rice and set the table, then voila… a delicious and healthy family dinner is ready to serve!
Sweet Chili Sauce
Don’t be intimidated if you’ve never used sweet chili sauce. It’s not scary or fish flavored, I promise!
Sweet Chili Sauce is a classic Thai sauce; it is made with red chilies and is slightly sweet. Sweet chili sauce is often served as a dipping sauce for chicken skewers, spring rolls, and dim sum. My kids love the sauce (sometimes called duck sauce) with crispy tofu.
You can buy Sweet Chili Sauce in the Asian foods section of your local grocery store. My local market carries several Americanized versions including Panda Express Sweet Chili Sauce as well as more authentic versions such as Mae Ploy and Jufran brands.
I hope you try Sweet Chili Pineapple Chicken. Even my picky eater loves it and asks for seconds. Score one for mom!
Dinner Supplies
I love kitchenware and wanted to share some of my favorite items from this recipe with you.
- Crock Pot – My current slow cooker is a Crock-Pot 7-qt. Slow Cooker with a lovely chevron pattern.
- Rice Cooker – I use a small rice cooker to quickly prepare rice. It is a great appliance that make perfect rice and doesn’t take up much cupboard space.
- Chopsticks – My stainless steel chopsticks are from Korea, you can buy them here. I love chopsticks that can safely go in the dishwasher! (Get my favorite Korean recipe.)
- Dishes – I purchase my blue and white dishes in Japan (get my favorite Japanese recipe). You can get beautiful Japanese dishes at World Market. (I am tempted to buy the cherry blossom pattern every time I visit the store.)
Sweet Chili Pineapple Chicken Easy Crockpot Recipe
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 360 minutes
- Total Time: 365 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: American
Description
This easy and delicious crock pot recipe combines Thai chili rice with pineapple and chicken. It tastes a little like sweet & sour chicken, but healthier!
Ingredients
- 1 330 g bottle sweet chili sauce
- 1 8 oz can chunk or crushed pineapple in juice
- 4 –6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (frozen)
- 2 cups fresh red, yellow, or orange bell peppers (optional)
- 2 cups fresh pea pods (optional)
- 2 cups fresh broccoli florets (optional)
- 2 tbsp corn starch (optional)
Instructions
- Place frozen chicken in slow cooker.
- Pour chili sauce and pineapple with juice over chicken
- Cook on high for 4-6 hours or low for 7-9 hours.*
- About 45 minutes before serving slice chicken into ¾ inch slices and stir the chicken back into the sauce.*If you prefer a thicker sauce, combine 2 tbsp of cornstarch with 1/8 cup of cold water until there are no lumps and stir into sauce. It will thicken as the mixture continues to cook.
- Place your choice of vegetables on top of the chicken mixture. Continue cooking in slow cooker on high until vegetables are tender crisp. (This is a good time to put your rice on to cook too.)
- Serve over rice.
Notes
*Each slow cooker tends to cook at a slightly different speed. Watch new recipes closely the first time to find out exactly how long they take to cook to your liking. You should adjust all crock pot recipes for your slow cooker.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/8 of recipe
- Calories: 297
Keywords: Sweet chili pineapple chicken, slow cooker pineapple chicken, sweet and sour chicken
More Easy Crock Pot Recipes
I love crock pot dinners with no prep. They are perfect for busy days and help keep healthy eating on track. Try these other EASY crock pot recipes that are sure to become family favorites:
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Vicci Schooler
What happens if you use thawed chicken breast?
Bren
It will need less time to cook. Test to make sure the chicken reaches 165°F.