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This honey soy chicken is as equally flavorful as its sister, holy yum chicken, but just a different flavor profile! Asian and saucy!
I came up with honey soy chicken because of the overwhelming response to my holy yum chicken.
Quick and easy chicken dinners that can be made in one casserole dish seems to be the way to your hearts!
I know it is for me because when you’re tired after a long day, the last thing you want to do is make an elaborate dinner.
Have no fear that just because this is an easy chicken recipe that it is lacking in flavor.
It is just the opposite!
Honey soy chicken has so much flavor!
The ingredients in honey soy chicken give it a lot of flavor. Here’s the run down of the ingredient list:
- Honey
- Soy sauce
- Sesame oil
- Garlic
- Ginger
How do you get it all nicely browned on top?
I stick the entire casserole dish under the broiler to get the nice golden brown color you see in the photos.
This step is absolutely optional and you don’t have to. I obviously did it because I think it looks better and I love a crispy caramelized edge on my chicken thighs.
Can you use chicken breasts?
You can but I love using dark meat/chicken thighs.
They are foolproof and don’t dry out like chicken breasts do.
They also tend to take less time to cook.
Is the sauce supposed to be thick?
No. I keep getting comments from people saying their sauce is runny.
It’s supposed to be runny like you can see in the photos.
There’s nothing in the ingredients that would make the sauce thick.
I did mention that soy sauce and honey are both sticky ingredients when cooked at high heat but that doesn’t mean the sauce is going to be thick.
I’m saying that the excess sauce that may be on the sides of your baking dish or foil will be sticky/crusty. Hope that clarifies things!
Can you make this in the slow cooker?
I mean, I guess you could but it already whips up so fast in the oven that I feel putting it in the slow cooker would be a bit of an overkill.
Here are some tips to help you make this honey soy chicken recipe a success!
- If you don’t follow directions and want to improvise, that is definitely ok! But please do not come back to yell at me for a failed dish. The instructions are laid out completely above because I have tested it myself and it works the way it’s written above.
- If you do not use the right equipment it will likely not turn out either. 8×8″ pan means 8×8″ pan. 2 layers of foil means 2 layers of foil. Why? 8×8″ pan will keep the sauce together and compact and won’t cause it to spread out over a large surface area. If you put it in a larger pan, it will spread, therefore, causing the sauce to get cooked off and you’ll end up with dry chicken and little to no sauce. Double layering the foil insulates the sauces and the chicken, it’ll keep the sauce from burning on the scalding hot pan.
- Yes, it really is cooked at 425 degrees. I’m not going to lie to you. Yes, it’s high but it also works (proof: above pictures!)
- If you’re using (thin cut) chicken breasts, reduce cooking time by 10-15 minutes or you’ll end up with dry chicken.
More chicken recipe ideas:
- Holy yum chicken
- Roasted chicken with olives and tomatoes
- Fig and rosemary glazed skillet chicken
- Coconut harissa curry braised chicken
- Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic
Honey Soy Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 5 tablespoons honey
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 ½ – 2 pounds (1 ⅗ kg) boneless skinless chicken thighs, (most of the fat cut and discarded)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 °F (218 °C). Line a 8×8" oven-proof pan with 2 layers of tin foil. I HIGHLY advise using foil in this dish because soy sauce & honey are STICKY and tend to adhere heavily on glass dishes when cooked at high temperatures. Unless you want to be scrubbing forever, use the foil!
- In small bowl, whisk together vegetable oil, soy sauce, sesame oil, honey, garlic, ground ginger, and pepper.3 tablespoons vegetable oil, 3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, 5 tablespoons honey, 4 cloves of garlic, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- Place the chicken thighs in the foil layered pan then pour the mixture on top of it. Turn the chicken around in the sauce to make sure it gets all coated.1 1/2 – 2 pounds (1 ⅗ kg) boneless skinless chicken thighs
- Bake, uncovered, for 40 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure the tops are not browning too quickly. If they are, cover with foil and resume baking until chicken is done.
- Remove from oven and let chicken sit for 5 minutes then transfer to a plate. Do NOT discard the liquid.
- Immediately after plating chicken, pour sauce over top of chicken. It’s delicious so you want all the sauce you can get!
- Serve with white or brown rice and some steamed veggies.
Notes
Nutrition
Photography by Ari Laing
I made this for my family tonight & my boys & husband enjoyed!!!! I had all the ingredients in my kitchen except th e boneless chicken thighs, it was the trip to the grocery store. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Hi Julie,
Just wanted to come and let you know just how much of a family favourite this has become! The word has spread from beyond my immediate family to extended family and I’m now regularly called on to make ‘my’ amazing honey soy chicken. So thanks for turning me into the family’s resident cook =D even my dad who’s terrible at describing food asks for it specifically! So you know it’s good!!
I just wanted to add that I’m sorry you’ve have bad comments from people regarding recipes. Like many others here I think it’s pretty obvious that if you substitute things you’ll get a dish that tastes different. Especially fundamental ingredients. I love your recipe style and find it easy to follow! Don’t change a thing!!
Thanks Kathy! :)
Awesome recipe. I’ve always struggled to cook any sort of Asian cuisine but this turned out perfect!
Hi! I am very excited to try this recipe tonight! I only have bone in thighs with skin. How long do you think I should cook them? Thanks for the ‘recipe!
Hi, I would cook it for about the same amount of time.
If I use drumsticks in addition to the chicken thighs, should I adjust the time at all?
Probably. I would take it down to maybe 20-25 minutes.
I was looking for a new way to cook chicken breast. Because there is only so many ways to cook it and not get bored. My boyfriend told me this was “THE BEST MEAL I have ever cooked for him and that is saying a lot” his words lol Thank you for sharing this recipe. I followed it to the T and it came out beautifully!
Hi, just to clarify: when using chicken breast, do I reduce the time 10-15 minutes from the suggested 40 mins for chicken breast (so 25-30 mins)? Or is it bake for exactly 10-15 minutes?
Reducing cooking time from the suggested cooking time, so 25-30 mins :)
HI Julie!
Just wanted to make sure – for chicken breast pieces – total cooking time is 10-15 minutes? Or reduce the total cooking time BY 10-15 minutes?
Thanks!
Hi! In the disclaimer, #4 says reduce cooking time by 10-15 minutes.
Rarely do I comment on recipes, but I have to say this went from my Pinterest board “dinner this week” straight to “All time favorites”. This is SO delicious. I made it exactly as written (loved your comments LOL) and it could not have been easier. This is for sure a keeper and we will have this again soon!! Thanks for sharing it! (PS: even the picky 4 year old ate it! Highest compliments!)
I’ve got this in the oven as we speak, and I look forward to great results. Julie, I just wanted to commend you on your comments about deviating from the recipe. Nothing drives me more insane than people who make 40,000 changes to a recipe, and then rate it as if they cooked what was actually posted. That kind of review gives me NOTHING to go on, especially if they then give their effort a bad review. Keep doing what you’re doing. :)
Thank you for understanding, Jill :) I hope you enjoyed the chicken!