Honey Garlic Chicken
This honey garlic chicken is so flavorful! The chicken can be grilled or air-fried for perfectly juicy chicken and a super easy meal.
You won’t believe how delicious this smoky, savory chicken is! We are eating it on repeat (and hoarding the leftovers for easy lunches). It’s so good!
Why You’re Going to Love This Easy Chicken
Aside from the fact that we literally cannot stop making this chicken and my kids fight over the last of it, here are several other reasons you’ll want to add it to your meal plan ASAP:
- This recipe is quick and easy to put together. The marinade adds tons of flavor without a lot of prep time. You can marinate the chicken for two hours or up to 12 hours (and psssst: no one will fire you if you cook it right away).
- The chicken gets a double boost of flavor from the marinade and also the sticky, irresistible honey garlic sauce. Oh gosh, my. mouth is watering just thinking about it.
- It is a versatile recipe! Use chicken thighs or chicken breasts and cook them on the grill or in the air fryer.
- The tasty, familiar flavors make this a slam dunk dinner everyone will enjoy.
Notes About Ingredients
- Olive oil: This is a key ingredient in the marinade for flavor and also to help the chicken not stick while cooking.
- Soy sauce: This versatile ingredient brings a lot of flavor with just a small amount. I always use low-sodium soy sauce, but full-sodium soy sauce can also be used. It is used in both the marinade and the sauce.
- Vinegar: This is also used in both the marinade and the sauce and the acidity helps balance the sweet, smoky flavors. I recommend using apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar.
- Garlic: In the recipe below, there are amounts given for fresh garlic and for garlic powder. I recommend using fresh garlic in the honey-garlic sauce, if possible.
- Smoked paprika: This spice adds amazing flavor. You can use sweet paprika in a pinch, but I highly recommend smoked paprika if you have it.
- Chicken: This recipe works great with boneless, skinless chicken thighs or chicken breasts. If using thicker chicken breasts, I think it helps to pound them to an even thickness or cut them in half lengthwise for thinner cutlets.
- Honey: This is a key ingredient for the sauce that is brushed on the chicken while cooking. If the honey is too thick to combine well with the other ingredients, lightly warm it for 5 to 10 seconds in the microwave and then whisk again.
Pro Tip: Trim the chicken thighs of excess fat before using.
How to Serve This Honey Garlic Chicken
Assuming you have more control than I do and don’t just snag pieces of chicken straight off of the cutting board, there are a million ways to serve this chicken:
- Bowl-Style Meal: Serve the chicken as a bowl-style meal with garlic butter rice, rice pilaf, coconut rice or quinoa. Add grilled veggies or fresh vegetables, pineapple, pickled onions, avocados, and whatever other add-ins you like.
- Dinner Salad: Slice the chicken and serve atop greens for a delicious dinner salad. Add fresh veggies, avocados, cherry tomatoes, shaved Parmesan, sliced almonds or other nuts, and a light balsamic drizzle.
- Main Spread: Pair the grilled or air-fried chicken with toppings of choice, like smashed potatoes, drop biscuits, veggies and ranch, skillet green beans, fruit salad, pasta salad, etc.
- Wrapped Up: Use freshly cooked chicken or leftover chicken for these wraps or these wraps or any other type of wrap or burrito that calls for cooked chicken.
This chicken has become a huge family favorite for us. So much so, that some of us are consistently hiding and hoarding the leftovers (even after making a double batch!).
It might be one of the best chicken recipes on my entire site. I hope you love it as much as we do!
Honey Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
Chicken:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar
- 4 to 5 cloves garlic, finely minced or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt (use half for table salt)
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- Pinch black pepper
- 1 ½ to 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs (trimmed) or chicken breasts
Sauce:
- ⅓ cup honey
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar
Instructions
- For the chicken, in a small bowl whisk together the olive oil, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic or garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, onion powder, and pepper.
- Place the chicken in a shallow dish or ziploc bag. Pour the marinade over the chicken, scraping out every last bit, and toss the chicken until evenly coated. It's not a large amount of marinade, but it should easily coat the chicken in a thin layer.
- Cover the dish/seal the bag and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 12 hours.
- Preheat a grill or air fryer to medium heat (about 375 degrees F).
- For the sauce, in a small bowl, whisk together all of the sauce ingredients until smooth. If the honey is too thick, lightly warm in the microwave for 5 to 10 seconds and then whisk to combine. Measure out about 3 tablespoons of the sauce and set aside for later to serve with the cooked chicken.
- Cook the chicken for 5 to 6 minutes per side for chicken thighs and 3 to 4 minutes per side for chicken breasts (exact time will depend on thickness of the chicken).
- During the last minute of cooking, brush the sauce liberally on both sides of the chicken.
- Let the chicken rest for 4 to 5 minutes before slicing or serving. Drizzle the chicken with the reserved sauce. Serve warm.
Notes
Chicken: If using chicken breasts, I recommend pounding to an even thickness or cutting thick chicken breasts in half lengthwise to form two thinner cutlets.
Serving: 1 serving (about 4 ounces chicken), Calories: 203kcal, Carbohydrates: 13g, Protein: 25g, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 73mg, Sodium: 856mg, Fiber: 0.3g, Sugar: 12g
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
Disclaimer: I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
This was absolutely delicious! I doubled the recipe, hoping to have leftovers for the week, and there was not a morsel left in sight! I only had an hour to marinate it, and it was still just divine! I’m going to make it again for a huge birthday dinner celebration on Sunday!
This is so good! Made it exactly as written and it was delicious. I used thin sliced chicken breasts which I think amplifies the flavor. Served it bowl style with Mel’s garlic butter rice, which is to die for, and roasted veggies.
Love, love the bowl-style way of serving!
So good! The whole family was a fan of this!
Thanks, Katie!
As a long time follower, I agree that this may be one of the best chicken recipes on your site and that’s saying a lot! We doubled it for my husband and I and 5 hungry mouths in their teens/late twenties, and it got rave reviews all around. I’m already looking forward to it for lunch tomorrow! We only had about an hour to marinate the chicken it was still full of flavor.
Yay, Shaynee! So happy it was a hit with everyone! Thanks for letting me know.
Do you think this could be done on a Blackstone?
I haven’t ever used a Blackstone, but I definitely think it is worth a try!
Yes! This is delicious! Definitely have the pieces on the thinner side – the flavour is fantastic and you want it throughout. So, so good, and not too sweet. Love it!
Thanks, Darlene!
I’m not understanding the hype. Followed recipe, exactly. Even bought smoked paprika. I’m not saying the chicken wasn’t good. It was just average. I much prefer your teriyaki chicken recipe. I anticipated it having a delicious sticky, sweet coating. But it was just lackluster. Maybe because I have such high expectations for your recipes and your reviews made it sound like it was just The Best. Still appreciate all your effort and most of what I make from your si Ute is wonderful.
Sorry this one was a miss for you!
Made this last night and it’s a keeper! Everyone ate it and said they’d eat it again, so it’s a win! Plus there were no leftovers which was sad for one of my kids who asked if there was leftover chicken this morning for breakfast. I airfryed it, definitely needed longer than 4 min per side but that was probably due to the thickness of the meat. I just got a meat tenderizer and tried to pound it with the flat side to make it thinner but I guess I didn’t do it enough or correctly? I thought they got flatter but after they cooked in the air fryer they seemed as thick as before, like they just plumped right back up. Any tips on pounding chicken?
Hi Nancy – glad this recipe was a hit with your family! I usually put chicken breasts one at a time inside a gallon-size freeze ziploc bag and then pound with the flat side of my meat mallet. Thanks for the note on the air frying time – that might help others plan more time for the air fryer, if needed.
Mmmm this really was SOO delicious. That sauce! Next time I’m going to try cooking it in the stove. My arifryer doesn’t do family portions and grilling isn’t always an option. Thanks for another winner!
Thanks for the review, Melissa!
We were so excited to try out this recipe that my husband volunteered to go out into 100 degree Texas heat to grill these up! And they were worth it! We all raved about how moist and flavorful both the thighs and the breasts were, due to the marinade and the honey sauce glaze. We will definitely be making these again soon! We are always on the lookout for new ways to use chicken and this one is now at the top. Thanks Mel, for all the work you do to develop and find new recipes to share with the world!
I loved reading this, Mary! Thank you! And glad the foray into the heat was worth it to grill up this chicken!
I didn’t give this any stars since I changed so many things out with what I had available. Regardless, this was very tasty! I used peanut oil instead of olive, teriyaki sauce instead of soy, garlic and onion powder, smoked paprika, and rice wine vinegar. I didn’t know how the small amount of marinade was going to handle 4 thighs, but it was perfect! Great coverage and very little waste left in the bag! I marinated it for exactly 2 hours due to time. Can’t wait to see what a longer time would do to the flavor. Air fried at 400 for 18 minutes turning halfway and drizzling the glaze on the last 2 minutes.I made the glaze with rice vinegar and added a little brown sugar and sambal. So good! It was juicy, held up to slicing, and not gamey at all. Served with Lundberg Rice blend and sauted cabbage. Thanks for a great recipe base, Mel. I have had this tab open on my phone for days and am looking forward to trying your OG recipe and using chicken breasts as well!
Great review, Kasey! I love hearing how others change up the recipes, and this was great! Glad it worked out with the changes – sounds delicious with the rice and cabbage.
P.s. sorry, I’ve had the tab open for days, not weeks. Gosh, my peri-menopausal brain is saying what it wants.
The chicken was so good! I tried cooking it in the air fryer and it was tender and juicy. I think it would carmelize better on the grill, but this worked in a pinch. Roasted some veggies and did chicken and veggie rice bowls. We all loved it!
I love the idea of making this chicken into a bowl-style meal, Ann! Thanks for the report back!
We loved this recipe. It is a keeper and will be on repeat. Thanks Mel!
So happy to hear that, Nancy! Thanks for letting me know!
Great recipe! I made it last night and doubled the recipe- I did half in the oven(400) and the other half in the air fryer. The airfried was better, in my opinion. I’m so happy I have leftovers-so delicious! Thanks Mel.
Hi, Tami! Thanks for giving a review of oven-baked vs air-fried. Happy you liked this one!
You did not oversell this one bit! It’s SO delicious! I used chicken thighs and grilled them!
I haven’t gotten an air fryer yet, but when I make this in the winter, I’ll broil it in the oven! I feel like that would work great.
Thanks for the review, Becky!
Made this tonight and it turned out great!! Will definitely keep this on the rotation. I should have made more to have extra. Will be great in salads or on its own!
I’m so glad you liked this chicken, Melissa! I agree…I have started to double it because we fight over the leftovers.
Made it for dinner tonight and the vote was “1000% delicious”
Oh, that’s fantastic! Thanks for letting me know, Jenny!
About the lack of air fryer or grill. . . . Same here.
Would a stovetop cast iron reversible griddle/grill pan work as well? THANKS!
Hi Sharron – I think trying a stovetop cast iron grill pan would work great!
Do you have a time and temperature for an air fryer?
Hi Kelsey – the recipe has instructions for air frying (same time and temp as the grill). I preheat my air fryer to 375 degrees and use the times given in the recipe. Hope that helps!
Hola! Love your recipes! Can these chicken breast cutlets be pan fried or baked? Gracias!
I just bought chicken breasts to air fry in my new slide in range (so nice! AND with induction top thanks to your praise for yours!) and now instead of just sprinkling them with a few spices I have a much more flavorful way to cook them!! Thank you!!
This sounds yummy, and I’m wondering, if I use my air fryer, what temp should it be on and would the time be roughly the same amount of time as given with the recipe? Thank you!
Hi Liz – the instructions are in the recipe but I’ll copy and paste them here for easy reference (yes, I use the same temperature and time for grilling or air frying). Step #4: preheat a grill or air fryer to 375 degrees. Steps #6 and #7: Cook the chicken for 5 to 6 minutes per side for chicken thighs and 3 to 4 minutes per side for chicken breasts (exact time will depend on thickness of the chicken). During the last minute of cooking, brush the sauce liberally on both sides of the chicken.
I really want to make this chicken, but I don’t grill or air fry. Is there any chance this can be baked in the oven?
I have the same question.
Hi Jean and Julie – you could definitely try baking in the oven. I haven’t tried it myself, but I’d suggest lining a pan with foil and then spraying with cooking spray or brushing with oil and baking at 375 or 400 degrees (maybe follow the time in the recipe as a general guideline, but watch closely). If you have a oven-safe cooling rack that fits inside a baking sheet, you could try baking the chicken on that so air can circulate underneath.