In my crock pot series we have covered pork chops and chili, so today I thought it was time for a simple, and pretty healthy, chicken recipe.
I love sweet and sour chicken. The flavors just go together so well. It is one of those simple meals that has so much flavor.
Today’s recipe is even more simple because it is made in the crock pot. One of the things I love about this sweet and sour chicken is that it is a pretty healthy dinner. All you have to do is add some rice and dinner is done.
I will say that this is not my kid’s favorite meal. My husband and I love it, my kids, not so much. My son dislikes peppers and pineapple. My girls love pineapple, but not cooked pineapple.
So, this is one of those meals that I love, but don’t cook often. My kids eat it, because it is what I serve, but it is not their favorite.
I just wanted to add that in case you have kids like mine, who are a bit picky when it comes to peppers and cooked pineapple. Or are my kids the only ones that don’t like those things?
Crock Pot Sweet and Sour Chicken
An easy slow cooked sweet and sour chicken.
Ingredients
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce ( use gluten free soy sauce for gf version )
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken
- 16 ounces canned pineapple, drained
- 1 green bell pepper cut into chunks
- 1 red bell pepper cut into chunks
Instructions
- In a small bowl combine sugar, ketchup, orange juice, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, and ground ginger.
- Place chicken, onions, pineapple, and peppers in a crockpot. Pour sauce over them.
- Cook on low for 6 hours.
- Serve over cooked rice.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 416Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 135mgSodium: 544mgCarbohydrates: 32gFiber: 2gSugar: 28gProtein: 45g
Nutritional values are approximate and aren't always accurate.
Adapted from Cooking Light
This looks fantastic! Do you think it would hold up to a longer cook time? Say, 9ish hours?
I think so, especially if you used large pieces of chicken. The texture may not be quite as good, but I think it will taste fine.
Looks so good! Think I’ll try it this weekend and since I on’t have kids I don’t have to worry about the picky eaters LOL! Question, do you cut the chicken into pieces or o you leave it whole? I’m wondering if you used thighs or just breasts? Thanks for all your fantastic recipes!
It will cook faster if you cut the chicken up, so it will work either way. If you leave them whole breasts, etc it takes about 6 hours, so that is usually what I do. I think cut up it would cook in 4-5 hours. Breasts or thighs work fine. We like white meat so I usually use breasts and again if you use thighs they might not take as long to cook since they are usually smaller. I hope that helps.
I used to love this when I was a kid because it was sweet. Nowadays peppers don’t agree with me. I notice that pineapple is not included in the instructions. Do you add them in at the end? (I was thinking of suggesting that to avoid over-cooking the fruit for your daughters’ tastes.)
I like that your kids eat the food even if it’s not their favorite.
I fixed the recipe. Thanks for catching that about the pineapple. I add it in the beginning, but you could add it towards that end. I guess I should have said cooked and canned pineapple. They love the fresh stuff when I cut it up and serve it out of a can or cooked they really don’t like it at all.
Ah, totally different thing. I can understand that. If as a kid I had had more opportunities to have fresh tropical fruit like pineapple, I’d turn my nose up at the canned stuff too. I don’t think I had fresh pineapple until I was a teenager.
I love sweet & sour chicken. I will have try this recipe soon. My son also will not eat anything if he sees chunks of bell pepper in it. Maybe I could puree the peppers and make them part of the sauce and then he would at least get the nutrition and not know what he was eating, lol. Personally, I think food looks more appetizing if it has more color in it and red, yellow and orange bell peppers add a lot of color to your food 🙂
I’ve got this cooking now and it smells wonderful but I noticed it is pretty soupy…is yours that consistency? I’ve got mine in my dutch oven so wasn’t sure if that changed anything or not. I was expecting a little thicker sauce like the typical sweet and sour. Should I turn the heat up or down or just let it finish like it is? Thanks
It is pretty liquidy but we don’t mind that since we eat it over rice. You could mix a little corn starch with a little water, mix until smooth and add that to the dish just at the end of the cooking time. I think that should help thicken it up some. You could also try turning up the heat, just be sure not to get it too hot.
Ok, thanks! I may try that next time. I loved the flavor, it tastes similar to a pineapple chicken dish I order at a local thai restaurant. Thanks again for the tip 🙂