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Hawaiian Chicken -tender and juicy chicken stir-fry with bell peppers and chunks of pineapple in a sweet and sour sauce.
Easy dinners you can get on the table in under 30 minutes, are the best kind of meals. And they are a must, pretty much every day of the week. This one is full of so much flavor, it is anything but a boring chicken dinner.
The really nice thing about Asian Recipes is how quickly they come together. You really just prep all the ingredients and a few minutes later dinner is ready.
This Hawaiian Chicken is about to become your new weeknight go-to. Everything comes together in one skillet in under 30 minutes, but the flavors are anything but ordinary. A simple sauce of pineapple juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, and garlic creates the most incredible sweet and savory glaze as it cooks down. It is the kind of dinner that makes everyone at the table think you put in way more effort than you actually did.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Be sure to scroll to the bottom of the post for the FULL PRINTABLE recipe card.
- Chicken Breasts – can use chicken thighs if you prefer
- Salt & Pepper
- Olive Oil
- Bell Peppers – really any color works, use whatever you have
- Pineapple Chunks – you can use fresh pineapple or canned. I prefer canned for this because you need juice as well.
- Pineapple Juice
- Soy Sauce
- Brown Sugar
- Rice Vinegar
- Fresh Ginger
- Garlic
- Barbecue Sauce – your favorite store bought sauce works great. But if you have any Homemade Barbecue Sauce on hand, it is even better.
- Cornstarch
Hawaiian Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
- 2 Tablespoon olive oil, divided
- Salt & Pepper
- 2 bell peppers, chopped
- 1 20 oz can pineapple chunks
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
Sauce
- 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
- 3 Tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
- 2 Tablespoons light brown sugar
- 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1/2 cup pineapple juice
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 cup cooked white rice
Instructions
- Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper evenly on both sides. Heat the oil in a large skillet and add the chicken pieces. Brown them for 4-5 minutes until they are evenly browned, but not completely cooked through. Remove from the pan and cover with foil to keep arm.1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, Salt & Pepper, 2 Tablespoon olive oil
- Add the remaining 1 Tablespoon of the oil to the pan, stir in the bell peppers, chunks of pineapple, chopped fresh ginger, and minced garlic. cook for about 5 minutes, until the veggies are soft. Remove the veggies from the skillet.2 bell peppers, 1 20 oz can pineapple chunks, 3 cloves garlic, 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
- Next mix the barbecue sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, and rice vinegar together and add to the hot pan. Bring to a simmer.1/2 cup barbecue sauce, 3 Tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce, 2 Tablespoons light brown sugar, 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
- Whisk together the cornstarch and pineapple juice until it is smooth. Stir into the barbecue sauce mixture. Cook for a few minutes, until it starts to thicken.1/2 cup pineapple juice, 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- Add the chicken and bell pepper mixture back to the pan and cook for about 5 more minutes until everything is hot and the chicken is cooked through.
- Best served immediately over rice.3 cup cooked white rice
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
How To Make Hawaiian Chicken
- Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper evenly on both sides. Heat the oil in a large skillet and add the chicken pieces. Brown them for 4-5 minutes until they are evenly browned, but not completely cooked through. Remove from the pan and cover with foil to keep arm.
- Add the rest of the oil to the pan, stir in the bell peppers, chunks of pineapple, chopped fresh ginger, and minced garlic. cook for about 5 minutes, until the veggies are soft. Remove the veggies from the skillet.
- Next mix the barbecue sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, and rice vinegar together and add to the hot pan. Bring to a simmer.
- Whisk together the cornstarch and pineapple juice until it is smooth. Stir into the barbecue sauce mixture. Cook for a few minutes, until it starts to thicken.
- Add the chicken and bell pepper mixture back to the pan and cook for about 5 more minutes until everything is hot and the chicken is cooked through.
- Best served immediately over rice.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- I like to use boneless skinless chicken breasts for this recipe, but you can also use chicken thighs if that is what you have. Just cut them into bite sized pieces, and the cooking time is pretty much the same.
- Canned pineapple works great in this, because you can have it on hand at all times. But if you happen to have fresh pineapple, you need about 1 cup of chopped fresh pineapple.
- Veggies – bell peppers work great in this recipe with the sweet and sour sauce. But you could definitely use broccoli, snap peas or any other veggies that you like in this stir fry.
- Like this spicy? You can add red pepper flakes or even some chopped jalapeno to this dish to up the heat level.
- Garnishes help brighten the flavor and texture of a stir-fry. I like to use a few sesame seeds and green onions or parsley over this.
Storage
This is great as leftover the next day for lunch. Store in an airtight container for 4-5 days. You can microwave or even reheat in a skillet to warm it through.
How To Serve Hawaiian Chicken
This is best served over rice. Instant Pot Jasmine Rice works really well, but you could use cauliflower rice or brown rice if you prefer.
And if you are looking to add more veggies, Roasted Edamame makes for a great side dish!
Super easy and quick. Love the combo of BBQ sauce and pineapple the sauce is drool worthy
Hawaiian flavors are always the best! It’s a must make dinner idea!
One of my favorite chicken recipes!! Thank you so much for sharing!
This looks so delicious and flavorful! What a perfect week night meal!
A great dinner for busy weeknights! Can’t wait to try this!
I love the flavors in this dish!! I can’t wait to try it!!
This sounds incredibly delicious! The perfect weeknight meal!
I just printed the recipe, plan to make it. When I get a recipe off the computer i do not need 4 pieces of paper, just the list of what of what it takes,
You can adjust the font size and how many pages it takes up in your printer settings. I just doubled checked and it was 2 pages, 1 full page and a couple lines on page 2 that could easily be shrunk down to get onto just 1 page or print front and back if you have that ability
This is a very good meal. My husband loved it. I will make again. It’s a keeper. The sauce gets thick.
I wish that I could leave a great review for this recipe like others did. I’ve used a few different recipes for Hawaiian Chicken over the years. Unfortunately I can’t find my go-to recipe online, so I decided to try this. This was disappointing. It tastes more like barbecue chicken and rice. I think the barbecue sauce as the base is a bit too much. This isn’t a terrible recipe, but it’s not the best Hawaiian chicken recipe.