In a saucepan, add the honey, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, sriracha and season to taste with black pepper.
Bring the mix to a boil, then lower the temperature and simmer for 5 minutes (until the sugars have dissolved and the sauce is beginning to thicken).
Remove from heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.
Spray the crock pot with nonstick cooking spray and place the chicken inside.
Pour the sauce over the chicken and move the chicken around a bit with tongs so that it is completely coated with sauce. Put the lid on and cook on high for 4 hours, flipping chicken a couple of times during the cooking process.
Once finished cooking, remove the chicken pieces and place on a plate.
In a small bowl, mix together the cornstarch and water, then pour into the crock pot with the leftover sauce. Mix together well, place chicken back into the slow cooker, and let cook for about 10 minutes (or until the sauce starts to thicken up*).
Just before serving, sprinkle with torn cilantro leaves and sesame seeds.
If you want to speed up the sauce thickening process, pour the sauce into a saucepan and cook on the stovetop for just a couple of minutes, until the sauce thickens.
The purpose of cornstarch in the recipe is to help thicken up the sauce for the chicken wings. So, I would say it is kind of important to the recipe. If you can get some for this recipe that would be ideal. However, if you are trying to work with what you already have in your pantry, take a look at Healthline’s article for the 11 best substitutes for cornstarch, and see if you have anything that will work!