Slow Cooker Asian Chicken

This Slow Cooker Asian Chicken is a delicious bowl meal that includes Broccoli, and this dinner might be a hit with the whole family. We loved the flavors in this recipe from sugar-free apricot preserves, soy sauce, Chili Garlic Sauce, garlic, ginger, and Tamarind concentrate. See notes in the recipe if you don’t have Tamarind!

PIN the Slow Cooker Asian Chicken to try it later.

Slow Cooker Asian Chicken is a recipe that was partly inspired by thinking about how take-out Chinese food often comes with broccoli. The idea was slightly spicy Asian chicken cooked in the slow cooker and then served over steamed broccoli in a bowl. But it took Kara and I a few different tries to come up with a version we thought was a winner.

The keeper version uses Sugar-Free Apricot Preserves, and we used the lowest carb apricot preserves we found. The finished chicken does have some carbs, but for sure this is lower in carbs than takeout Asian chicken that’s loaded with sugar.

Kara did try this out on her kids the day we made it. And even though we thought it was slightly spicy, she reported back that the kids gobbled it up. You could use less Chili Garlic Sauce if you’re making this for kids. But I bet most families are going to love this dinner idea; I hope you try it soon!

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe with ingredient amounts.)

• boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• broccoli
• Sesame Seeds (affiliate link), for garnish
• Polaner Sugar-Free Apricot Preserves with Fiber (affiliate link)
• soy sauce or Gluten-Free Soy Sauce (affiliate link)
• sesame oil (affiliate link)
• Chili Garlic Sauce (affiliate link)
• Garlic Powder (affiliate link)
• ginger puree from a jar
• Tamarind Concentrate (affiliate link)
• Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link) other sweetener of your choice

Can you make Slow Cooker Asian Chicken with chicken thighs?

We first made this recipe with trimmed and cut-up boneless, skinless chicken thighs, and if you don’t mind the work of trimming them, they’ll work great in the recipe. But we experimented with cut-up boneless, skinless chicken breasts and decided they were so much easier and worked well if you don’t stir too enthusiastically (that will make the chicken shred apart).

How we kept the Asian Chicken recipe relatively low in carbs:

It’s hard to make a sweet apricot tamarind flavored chicken recipe that doesn’t have some carbs. But for this recipe we used Polaner Sugar-Free Apricot Preserves with Fiber (affiliate link) for the orange flavor. We also looked for a brand of Tamarind Concentrate (affiliate link) with only 3 net carbs per tablespoon. And we sweetened the sauce with Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link). With those ingredients the recipe has 15.5 net carbs and 53 grams of protein in the complete bowl meal.

Is Tamarind Concentrate a must for Slow Cooker Asian Chicken?

One thing we used in this recipe that some people may not be familiar with is Tamarind Concentrate (affiliate link). I have been a fan of that flavor for a long time, and buy it at an Asian market. I always get one without added sugar, but if you can’t find that (or don’t want to buy it), just replace with a little more apricot preserves.

How to make Slow Cooker Asian Chicken:

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

1. Cut up chicken breasts into largish bite-sized pieces.
2. Mix Sugar-Free Apricot Preserves, soy sauce, sesame oil, Chile Garlic Sauce, Garlic Powder, ginger puree, Tamarind Sauce (or more preserves), and sweetener of your choice.
3. Put chicken and sauce in slow cooker and cook on high about 2 1/2 hours, or until chicken is cooked through.
4. Be prepared for the mixture to look a little unappealing when it’s done because there will be some bits of cooked protein from the chicken.
5. Gently drain chicken in a colander placed in the sink, catching the sauce. (I strained it through a fine strainer.)
6. Put chicken back in the slow cooker and turn to low.
7. Put the sauce in a small pan and reduce over low heat until it’s as thick as you’d like it, about 15-20 minutes.
8. Gently combine reduced sauce and chicken in the slow cooker.
9. When the sauce is just about thickened, steam or microwave the broccoli to the level of crispness you prefer. (We microwaved it for just barely over a minute to keep the broccoli slightly crisp.)
10. Divide broccoli between the bowls and spoon some chicken and sauce over each.
11. Serve Slow Cooker Asian Chicken hot, sprinkled with sesame seeds.
12. You might serve with a sauce like Sriracha Sauce (affiliate link) to add at the table for those who’d like more heat.

Make it a Carb-Conscious Meal:

The Asian chicken cooked in the slow cooker and served in a bowl with broccoli could be a one-dish meal. But if you’d like something more, serve with one of these side dishes:

• Air Fryer Asian Green Beans
• Chinese Cucumber Salad 
• Asian Green Salad with Soy-Sesame Dressing
• Garlicky Green Beans Stir Fry
• Thai Cabbage Salad

More Slow Cooker Dinner Ideas:

Check out Keto Crock Pot Recipes for lots more ideas for tasty slow cooker meals without too many carbs!

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Yield: 6 servings

Slow Cooker Asian Chicken

Prep Time 50 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours 30 minutes

Total Time 3 hours 20 minutes

This Slow Cooker Asian Chicken is served as a bowl meal with broccoli for a dinner the whole family will love! And if you're careful to choose sugar-free apricot preserves and tamarind concentrate that aren't too high in carbs, this bowl meal isn't that much of a splurge on carbs.

Ingredients

Ingredients

• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (see notes)
• 8 cups cut up broccoli florets
• sesame seeds, for garnish

Sauce Ingredients

• 3/4 cup sugar-free apricot preserves (see notes)
• 3 T soy sauce (see notes)
• 2 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 T Chili Garlic Sauce (more or less to taste)
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. ginger puree from a jar (see notes)
• 3 T Tamarind Sauce (see notes)
• 2 T Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (see notes)

Instructions

1. Trim fat and any undesirable parts from the chicken breasts and cut into largish bite-sized pieces.
2. Spray slow cooker with non-stick spray and put the chicken into the slow cooker.
3. Whisk together the Sugar-Free Apricot Preserves (affiliate link) , soy sauce, sesame oil, Chile Garlic Sauce (affiliate link), garlic powder, ginger puree, Tamarind Sauce (affiliate link) or more apricot preserves, and Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link) or sweeteners of your choice.
4. Pour the sauce over the chicken and stir so all the chicken pieces are coated with sauce.
5. Cook on HIGH for about 2 1/2 hours, or until the chicken is done. Don’t be alarmed if the dish looks rather unappealing when it’s first finished cooking, because there will be some bits of cooked protein floating in the sauce.
6. Drain chicken in a colander, catching the sauce. (I strained the sauce again with a fine strainer.)
7. Put the chicken back into the slow cooker and turn to low to keep it warm.
8. Simmer the sauce over low heat until it’s as reduced and thickened as you’d like, about 20 minutes.
9. Pour thickened sauce back into the slow cooker and VERY GENTLY stir so the chicken is coated with the sauce. (If you stir too vigorously the chicken will shred apart.)
10. When the sauce is nearly thickened, steam or microwave the broccoli until it’s as crisp as you prefer. (We put the broccoli in an 8-cup glass measuring cup and microwaved on high for a little over a minute.)
11. Divide the broccoli among bowls and top each with some of the chicken and sauce.
12. Serve Slow Cooker Asian Chicken hot, garnished with sesame seeds and with Sriracha Sauce (affiliate link) on the side for people who want a little more heat.

Notes

You will need 4-6 chicken breasts, depending on how big they are.

I recommend Polaner Sugar-Free Apricot Preserves with Fiber (affiliate link) which is the lowest brand I found. I bought Tamarind Concentrate at an Asian Market to get one without added sugar. I would use Golden Monkfruit Sweetener (affiliate link) for the sweetener.

Use Gluten-Free Soy Sauce (affiliate link) if needed.

Ginger Puree is sold near the produce in most stores and also called ground ginger in Asian markets; do not confused with dried ground ginger.

I would use a 3 to 4 Quart Slow Cooker (affiliate link) for this recipe.

Nutritional information is calculated with the sugar-free apricot preserves and sweetener I used. If you're figuring carbs, subtract the fiber to get net carbs.

Recipe created by Kalyn and Kara, after quite a few experiments that weren’t quite the one!

Nutrition Information

Yield

6

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 345Total Fat 7.8gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 4.8gCholesterol 129mgSodium 685mgCarbohydrates 28.5gFiber 13gSugar 3.4gProtein 53g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

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Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This recipe for Slow Cooker Asian Chicken has only 15.5 net carbs if you’re careful to use the Sugar-Free Apricot Preserves and Tamarind Concentrate that I recommend. Even with those ingredients, it’s too high in carbs for Keto diet plans but might work for some carb-conscious eaters. It would be limited to phase 2 or 3 for the original South Beach Diet. 

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Slow Cooker Recipes or Bowl Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to Follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest or on Facebook to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for This Recipe:
This Asian Chicken that’s cooked in the slow cooker and served as a bowl meal with broccoli was first posted in 2016. The recipe was last updated with more information in 2026.