Hawaiian Chicken
Sweet and savory Hawaiian Chicken is made with pineapple, chicken breast, bell peppers, and an easy, homemade sweet and sour style sauce. A simple weeknight meal!
A 30-MINUTE DINNER
This Hawaiian Chicken is bursting with tropical flavor thanks to a delicious blend of pineapple, soy sauce, garlic, and honey. Hawaiian Chicken Stir Fry is something that isn’t hard to toss together and doesn’t take long to make. Hungry bellies in your house will be ready to chow down on this delicious smelling meal in no time. This Chicken Stir Fry recipe may seem familiar and may even remind you of Huli Huli Chicken which to me feels a lot like Hawaiian Chicken!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
Serve with steamed white rice, jasmine rice, or over noodles.
Yes, prep the sauce and chop all the ingredients in advance. Cook everything fresh when you’re ready to serve.
Yes, just add 1/2 cup of pineapple juice separately since fresh pineapple doesn’t come with juice.
Use gluten-free soy sauce or tamari and check that all your ingredients are certified gluten-free.
While I’m sure you can try it, I definitely think it’s going to be a lot easier, and faster to make it on the stovetop. Try these Slow Cooker Instructions:
1. Make the sauce: In a medium bowl, whisk together pineapple juice, ketchup, honey, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger powder.
2. Add to slow cooker: Place diced raw chicken, bell peppers, onion, and drained pineapple chunks into the slow cooker. Pour the sauce over the top and stir gently to coat everything evenly.
3. Cook: on low 4–5 hours or high for 2.5 – 3 hours – or until chicken is fully cooked and vegetables are tender but not mushy.
4. Thicken the sauce: About 20–30 minutes before serving, mix cornstarch and water to make a slurry. Stir it into the slow cooker. Cover and continue cooking on high until the sauce thickens.
5. Serve: Garnish with green onions if desired. Serve hot over steamed rice.
Hawaiian Chicken should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
To Reheat: Place the chicken and sauce in a skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until heated through. Or microwave on high for 1–2 minutes until hot.
To Freeze: Freeze cooled chicken and sauce in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat before serving.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- diced boneless, skinless chicken breasts – Use boneless chicken thighs or a rotisserie chicken can be used instead.
- red and green bell peppers – if you prefer a more mild tasting pepper, you could use all red peppers or orange and yellow.
- small onion – I just use a yellow onion
- pineapple chunks – drained, but reserve juice for later. You want to look for the pineapple chunks in 100% juice.
- ketchup
- honey – Use brown sugar or maple syrup if needed.
- soy sauce – I prefer a low sodium soy sauce.
- apple cider vinegar – White vinegar or rice vinegar also work.
- sesame oil – don’t like sesame oil? Just leave it out. You don’t need to replace it with anything.
- garlic – minced
- ground ginger
- cornstarch and water
HOW TO MAKE HAWAIIAN CHICKEN:
Drain pineapple chunks, reserving 1/2 cup of the juice for the sauce. In a medium bowl, whisk together the reserved pineapple juice, ketchup, honey, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger powder. Set aside.
Pat chicken pieces dry with paper towels and season lightly with salt and pepper. In a large skillet or wok, heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken pieces and cook for 5-6 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. Remove chicken to a plate.
Add remaining tablespoon of oil to the same pan. Add bell peppers and onion, and stir-fry for 3-4 minutes until vegetables begin to soften.
Return chicken to the pan and add the drained pineapple chunks. Pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables, and bring to a simmer.
In a small bowl, mix cornstarch and water to create a slurry. Add to the pan and stir constantly.
Cook for 2-3 minutes until the sauce thickens and becomes glossy. Garnish with sliced green onions and sesame seeds before serving. Serve hot over steamed rice.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES?
Hawaiian Chicken
Ingredients
- 20 ounce can pineapple chunks in 100% juice (drained and reserve juice)
- 3 cups diced boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2-3 chicken breasts)
- 2 Tablespoons oil (vegetable, olive or avocado oil)
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 small onion, chopped
For the Sauce:
- ½ cup reserved pineapple juice
- ¼ cup ketchup
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
- ½ Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 Tablespoons water
- sliced green onions and/or sesame seeds (optional, for garnish)
- steamed rice (optional, for serving)
Instructions
- Drain 20 ounce can pineapple chunks in 100% juice reserving 1/2 cup of the juice for the sauce.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the 1/2 cup reserved pineapple juice, 1/4 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup honey, 2 Tablespoons soy sauce, 1/2 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 2 teaspoons sesame oil, 2 cloves garlic, minced, and 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger. Set aside.
- Pat 3 cups diced boneless skinless chicken breasts dry with paper towels and season lightly with salt and pepper (to your preference.)
- In a large skillet or wok, heat 1 Tablespoon oil over medium-high heat.
- Add chicken pieces and cook for 5-6 minutes until golden brown and cooked through (internal temperature of 165F degrees). Remove chicken to a plate.
- Add remaining Tablespoon oil to the same pan. Add 1 red bell pepper, chopped, 1 green bell pepper, chopped and 1 small onion, chopped, and stir-fry for 3-4 minutes until vegetables begin to soften.
- Return cooked chicken to the pan and add the drained pineapple chunks.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables, and bring to a simmer.
- In a small bowl, mix 1 Tablespoon cornstarch and 2 Tablespoons water to create a slurry. Add to the pan and stir constantly.
- Cook for 2-3 minutes until the sauce thickens and becomes glossy.
- Garnish with sliced green onions and/or sesame seeds before serving.
- Serve hot over steamed rice. Enjoy!
Notes
- Please refer to my FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions) and ingredient list above for other substitutions or for the answers to the most common questions.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
absolutely wonderful recipes
thank you for sharing such awesome meals
Oh my goodness, as soon as you posted this, I knew I had to make it! It turned out so, so good! I wouldn’t change a thing. Thanks so much – this will be a regular recipe at our house!