Slow-Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken

Yield: 4 servings;   Prep Time: 20 min;   Cook Time: 5 hours

Ingredients:

• 3 large bone-in, skinless chicken breasts (2 1/2 to 3 pounds total)
• 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/4 cup blackberry jam
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 lb fresh pea pods
• Sliced scallions, for garnish
• Sesame seeds, for garnish (optional)

Directions:

Arrange the chicken breasts in the slow cooker so that they are not overlapping.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the honey, soy sauce, blackberry jam, olive oil, garlic, onion and crushed red pepper flakes (optional), and then pour the sauce over the chicken. Cover the slow cooker and cook the chicken on LOW for 4 to 5 hours until the chicken is fully cooked.

Using tongs, remove the chicken from the slow cooker (reserving the liquids) and place it on a cutting board. Remove the bones then use two forks to shred the chicken into smaller pieces. Place the shredded chicken in a large bowl.

In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch with 3 tablespoons of cold water to make a slurry.

Transfer the liquids from the slow cooker into a small saucepan set over medium-high heat and whisk in the slurry. Bring the sauce to a boil and cook it until it reduces and has thickened slightly, about 3 minutes. Pour the sauce over the chicken, tossing to combine. Add pea pods to slow cooker and cook on low for 20 minutes.  Serve the chicken topped with sliced scallions and sesame seeds.

Notes:

To make this dish kid-friendly, simply leave out the crushed red pepper flakes.

Using bone-in chicken breasts, rather than boneless chicken breasts, is key to guaranteeing moist, tender shredded chicken.