Slow Cooker Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken

Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken Thighs are a moist and flavorful family favorite that comes together in a snap with the help of the slow cooker. 

I originally shared this recipe in 2017. I've recently updated this post with additional information, including a recipe card complete with nutritional information and a video, but the recipe itself (and the photo images) have remained unchanged.

**Please Note - The printable recipe card with detailed instructions, complete ingredient measurements, and nutritional information for making Slow Cooker Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken is available at the end of this post. OR you can hit the "jump to recipe" text (found below) to be taken directly to the recipe.

The ingredient list:

**Note - The following lists of ingredients plus kitchen tools and equipment contain affiliate links (highlighted in blue) for your consideration and shopping convenience. #CommissionsEarned

• boneless/skinless chicken thighs (4-5 pounds)
• salt and pepper
• pineapple juice
• coconut milk (I used light)
• sesame oil
• teriyaki sauce
• pineapple chunks
• garlic
• cilantro (optional)
• instant brown rice
• butter

Kitchen tools and equipment needed:

• 7-quart slow cooker
• large mixing bowl
• whisk
• measuring cups and spoons
• 3-quart saucepan with lid
• ladle
• can opener
• large slotted spoon or tongs

Why this recipe works:

After a long and busy day, this recipe for Succulent Slow Cooker Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken Thighs will become your new best (dinnertime) friend, and will leave your family asking for "moa," which is Hawaiian for chicken!

What I wrote about Slow Cooker Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken Thighs in 2017:

Boneless, skinless chicken thighs make me happy! It may sound like an overly simplistic statement, but it's true. I've always been a fan of the tender dark meat of the chicken thighs because (to me) they're the most flavorful part of the chicken. 

In addition to chicken thighs being the tastiest part of the chicken, their tender dark meat always stays moist and meaty no matter how you cook them, and they never seem to dry out and become chewy as chicken breasts sometimes do. 

Since I like to buy boneless skinless chicken thighs when they're on sale in the market so I almost always have them on hand in my freezer.

How this recipe came to be:

This recipe for Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken Thighs came about when I also had an abundance of pineapple juice in the fridge after making my Golden Statute Prosecco Cocktails to sip on while watching this year's Academy Awards.

By the way, did you see that mix-up at the end when they announced La La Land for best picture and the award was really meant for Moonlight? That was priceless and was (by far) my favorite part of the entire show. LOL

But I digress, back to the Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken Thighs, and how they came into being...

Since I also have a (new) thing for canned coconut milk (not sure where that one came from, but it's a versatile ingredient to have on hand), I decided to combine the pineapple juice and coconut milk.

From there I added a few other simple pantry ingredients and then poured it into the slow cooker along with a family-sized package of (thawed), boneless and skinless chicken thighs.

If you're wondering where the brown rice comes in, stick with me. I have a surprise for you a little later.

The step-by-step photos for making slow cooker Hawaiian chicken thighs:

• Add the seasoned chicken thighs to the slow cooker.

• To the base ingredients for the sauce (the pineapple juice and coconut milk), I added a bit of teriyaki sauce, some minced garlic, and the slightest touch of sesame oil to make things interesting. It was a good call if I do say so myself!

• Once I added everything into the slow cooker, I tossed in some chunked pineapple, because pineapple is tasty, and because I hear that it helps melt away belly fat. So please, pay no attention to that coconut milk I added a short while ago! Ha Ha!

• Cover the cooker and set it to high for 5-6 hours. It will look like this with the chicken will being thoroughly cooked and incredibly flavorful. 

• Remember that brown rice trick I was talking about earlier? If you want to get the most flavor from your rice (I used instant brown rice), ladle the chicken cooking liquid from the slow cooker into a saucepan, following the box instructions. Use that as a substitute for the plain water (called for on the box) when making the rice. The results will completely complement the flavor of the Hawaiian Pineapple Chicken Thighs and will tie the flavor of chicken and rice together nicely.

Printable Recipe Card

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