Crock Pot Teriyaki Chicken

Ingredients:

• 12 boneless skinless chicken thighs (about 3 pounds) *you can also use breasts
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup soy sauce
• 6 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 3/4 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• Hot cooked long grain rice

Directions:

1. Place chicken in a 4 qt. slow cooker.  
2. In a large bowl, combine the sugar, soy sauce, cider vinegar, ginger, garlic and pepper.  Pour over chicken.  
3. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours or until chicken is tender.  
4. Remove chicken to a serving platter; keep warm.  Skim any fat from cooking liquid.  
5. Place liquid in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  
6. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth.  Gradually stir into liquid and stir until sauce is thickened.  
7. ***Shortcut: I removed chicken, combined cornstarch and water and poured them directly into the sauce which I left in the crock pot (turned on high).  I whisked until thickened. Chicken just fell apart when I removed it, and then I just added it back into the crock pot with the thickened sauce.
8. Serve with chicken and rice.
9. Serves about 8 people.

This is a recipe I slightly modified from the Lake Luke Cottage Kitchen blog.  I was very happy with the end result and will definitely make this again.  We served it with fresh steamed broccoli.  Fresh pineapple slices would also be delicious mixed in or as a side.  Big hit with the family, very kid-friendly!  I read a comment that you can half this recipe, but you'd likely want to cut down a bit on the cook time.