If you love bourbon chicken from the food court at the mall, you’ll love this version of Crock Pot Honey Bourbon Chicken that’s made right in your slow cooker!
Slow Cooker Honey Bourbon Chicken
Crock Pot Honey Bourbon Chicken
One of my favorite things about cooking, and I’ve said this before, is having leftovers. Today, however, there was no chicken left and none of the M&M cookies.
I hate when that happens. But, it is a good indicator of how good these dishes are.
I’ve made bourbon chicken before but I really liked this crock pot rendition. This version tastes less like the food court dish but it is simple and very good. I forgot how much I’ve missed my crock pot the last few months.
Why it’s called Bourbon Chicken
Fun Fact: There’s no bourbon in this recipe, which many of you have pointed out to me (mostly rudely). The name Bourbon Chicken comes from Bourbon Street in New Orleans, which it’s named after.
If it makes you happy, throw in some bourbon.
When I was in college, I used to stop at the mall that was across the street and have lunch. My favorite restaurant in the food court was one called Bourbon Street Grill. They had the best bourbon chicken.
I used to get the chicken with potatoes and rice. #carbsoncarbs
This slow cooker version makes a lot of “sauce” which is perfect for spooning over rice or potatoes or whatever you’re serving with the chicken.
Bourbon Chicken Ingredients
Below is a list of the ingredients you’ll need to gather to make this recipe. Scroll all the way down for the full recipe card.
- Chicken – I like to use boneless, skinless chicken breasts. You can also use thighs or tenders.
- Salt & Pepper – The essentials.
- Honey
- Soy Sauce – I like to use low sodium.
- Ketchup
- Oil – I usually use vegetable oil but you could use olive oil or canola oil.
- Garlic – Use two cloves or 1 teaspoon of minced garlic.
- Onion – I usually use a yellow or white onion.
- Red Pepper Flakes – Red pepper flakes help to balance the sweetness of the honey and give the chicken a tiny kick. You can skip it if you want.
How to thicken up the sauce
It will be a thin sauce but you can make a cornstarch slurry (2 parts cold water with 1 part cornstarch) and whisk it in to thicken it up. I personally prefer it thin to spoon over my rice and veggies, but I’ve had many commenters say they’d like it thicker.
How to store leftovers
Leftovers should be stored covered in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stove top. Or, if you have enough, you can put it back in the slow cooker to heat through.
Do you call it a slow cooker or a crock pot? I asked on Facebook and it seems most people call it a Crock Pot but that’s a brand.
Like calling tissue Kleenex.
Or inline skates Roller Blades (do people still do that?? ha).
Whatever you call it, it’s good. & really easy. I served it with brown rice and roasted zucchini.
PIN SLOW COOKER HONEY BOURBON CHICKEN FOR LATER
Can you put frozen chicken in the Crock Pot?
This is a common question I get, but the safest, best answer is no, you shouldn’t put frozen chicken in the slow cooker.
Because of the amount of time it takes a slow cooker to get meat up to a safe temperature (it’s a slow cooker, after all), bacteria could contaminate the chicken.
Meat should already be thawed when you place it in the crock pot. Ideally, you’d thaw the chicken in the fridge the night before.
That said, I have used frozen chicken in a pinch and lived to tell the tale, but now that I know better, I don’t.
Can I make it in the Instant Pot?
I haven’t tested in the IP, I’m more of a slow cooker girl lol, but I’d whisk up the sauce in the instant pot, put the thawed chicken in & coat it in the sauce. Seal & cook for 15 mins, natural release for 5 mins, then quick release.
Tools to make Slow Cooker Bourbon Chicken
- My slow cooker of choice – I love that you can set the cook time then it automatically switches over to “warm” after the cook time.
- Time-saving minced garlic – I always keep minced garlic packed in oil in my fridge.
- A whisk if you’re going to make that slurry I talked about above.
Need more crock pot chicken ideas? Try these:
Click here to view my entire collection of slow cooker recipes.
Watch how easy this Crock Pot Honey Bourbon Chicken is to make:
How to make Bourbon Chicken
Crock Pot Honey Bourbon Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
- salt and pepper
- 1 cup honey
- 1 cup low sodium soy sauce
- ½ cup ketchup
- 4 Tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 cloves minced garlic or 1 teaspoon minced garlic in oil
- ½ cup onion diced
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Trim your chicken breasts, sprinkle with salt & pepper and place them in your slow cooker.
- In a medium bowl, add the honey, soy sauce, ketchup, oil, garlic, onion and red pepper flakes. Stir well to combine. Pour over the chicken in the slow cooker.
- Cook on low for 3-4 hours or high for 1½ to 2½ hours.
- When done, remove chicken from crock pot and cut into chunks.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying/pasting and/or screenshots of full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Content and photographs are copyright protected.
Or maybe you’d like…
Bourbon Chicken with Roasted Potatoes (a non-slow cooker version)
why is this called honey bourbon? I did not see how to use the bourbon.
Read the recipe prelude on how Bourbon Chicken got its name. I liked this but way too much liquid for me, will try again sometime with some adjustments
You can easily halve the recipe (or even just the sauce) if it’s too much for you. I like to pour it over my rice and veggies 🙂
Yes, not bad but I can’t justify using a whole jar of honey. Too much work and cost.
Hi Melissa,
Tried it, loved it, and use it often. Since I want to be happy, I always add Jack Daniels!
Bob T
ha, love that, I want you to be happy too 🙂
I made this with my new crockpot today and I was impressed. The honey was too much, a little too sweet but the chicken was delicious. I’ll be making this again.
Too sweet – halve the honey and add vinegar
Whoa! This recipe was good. I was a little confused about the name since it didn’t have any bourbon in it.
Still delicious!
I made this out was wonderful. Not to sweet like I thought. Well be making it again. Want to try pork loan instead of chicken that’s how good the sauce is. Thank you
Thanks, Phyllis! Let me know how the pork turns out 🙂
I want your recipe please that look so Good.
The recipe card is right above the comment box where you left this 🙂
These recipes sound so good. Can’t wait to try some!
Can I sear the chicken before putting it in the slow cooker and just shorten the cook time a little?
Absolutely 🙂 Each slow cooker runs differently so for best results, use a thermometer to check for 165° so it doesn’t dry out (if you’re able to).
I’d probably brown the chicken before putting it in the cooker. Also. It was too sweet for me.
How can this be bourbon chicken when the recipe doesn’t call for bourbon!?!
Answered above 🙂
I made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious. The sauce went so well with rice and the chicken was tender and juicy. However, I would halve the amount of sauce next time as even though we are also “rice with a lot of sauce” people, we still ended up with a lot of leftover sauce.
Thanks for the delicious recipe!
Glad you liked it! And fair enough, it does make a lot of sauce 🙂
Could this be done in the oven?
I wouldn’t do the oven but stovetop – saute the chicken, mix up the sauce in a bowl, pour it over the chicken and let it simmer for a bit.
Definitely an AMAZING recipe & super easy! My Husband said it’s the best Chicken he’s had! Definitely will make again! Thank you!
That makes me happy, thanks for letting me know!
Tasted good. The picture looks like the sauce coated the chicken pieces with what looked like a more substantial sauce. Mine was very soupy. I even tried to add some corn starch to thicken it but that didn’t work. Any ideas on how to get it thicker and stick to the chicken?
I took that pic directly out of the crockpot, I didn’t even thicken the sauce, so I think your slow cooker plays a big part. It should cook down and thicken a bit.
This was delicious! It’s going to be a new favorite!
Want to try this very soon. Was wondering how much bourbon you would add and would you cut back on one of the other ingredients.
Thanks,
I’d try 1/4 cup but I didn’t write this one with bourbon. You can try this one that does include it.
This came out so GOOD! I added pineapple and broccoli. I definitely will make this again!
Thanks, Kim!
Came out amazing!
Thanks Susan!