Baked Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs – Deliciously Sticky
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When developing this honey garlic chicken recipe, I learned some tips and tricks to share to make the sauce stand out. With only five simple ingredients, it packs a ton of flavor and is guaranteed to be a winner at your dinner table.
I’ve been making these honey garlic chicken thighs for years, and it’s still my family’s favorite recipe. The sauce is so good that you’ll want to lick your fingers, the plate, and the pan it was cooked in.
It also comes together in only 45 minutes, and most of that time is spent staring at your oven, willing this mouthwatering honey garlic chicken to hurry up and cook faster.
Key Ingredients
- Chicken thighs -I love using bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs. If you’re not a fan of the skin, leave it on for cooking and then remove it before you add the sauce. Keeping it on while the chicken is in the oven will help protect the meat and keep it juicy. You can also use boneless thighs, but you’ll need to reduce the cooking time.
- Honey – I prefer runny honey for this recipe, but if you only have creamed honey, you can go ahead and use that.
- Garlic – You can’t have honey garlic sauce without the garlic! Use the small holes on your grater or a microplane so it dissolves into the sauce.
- Onion – Just a little grated onion adds so much flavor. You’ll be amazed!
Recipe tip
There’s one step that’s unique to this recipe: Dipping the chicken in the sauce. While this might seem a bit fussy, it’s for a good reason. We want the chicken to be completely covered in sauce, but if we pour the sauce into the pan, it will burn before the chicken turns deep golden. If you want to save a step, pour the sauce over the drained chicken and only broil the top side.
What to serve with HG chicken
When serving this chicken, I like to load up on the veggies to balance the sweetness. Often, it’s as simple as a big green salad like my Bacon Kale Caesar Salad with homemade croutons and some quick roasted carrots with Italian seasoning cooked in the oven with the chicken. (NOTE: If you use that recipe, cook the carrots at 425 degrees Fahrenheit, leaving them in the oven 20-25 minutes.) A side of mashed potatoes or rice makes the meal more filling.
Store and reheat
Honey garlic chicken thighs make great leftovers, so I often make extra for lunch the next day.
Store: I like to remove the meat from the bones before storing the chicken, but this step is optional. Once the chicken has cooled, place it in a covered container in your fridge, and eat it within 4 days.
Reheat: I like to reheat the chicken in a pan over medium-low heat, but you can also microwave it.
Freeze: Chicken freezes very well. Place it in a freezer-proof container for up to 3 months.
Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 chicken thighs (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon EACH: salt and pepper
Honey Garlic Sauce
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon molasses (see notes)
- 4 cloves garlic (grated with the small holes on your grater)
- 1 teaspoon grated onion (grated with the small holes on your grater)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Place one oven rack in the middle and another rack at the top. For easy cleanup, line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
- Season both sides of the chicken with the salt and pepper. Put the chicken on the baking sheet skin side up and bake for 30-35 minutes. (35 minutes for big thighs.)8 chicken thighs, 1 teaspoon EACH: salt and pepper
- While the chicken is cooking, bring the honey garlic sauce ingredients to a boil for 2 minutes in a small frying pan to thicken the sauce.3 tablespoons honey, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1 teaspoon molasses, 4 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon grated onion
- Remove the chicken from the oven and carefully drain any liquid from the pan. Using tongs, dip each piece in the sauce and then put the chicken back on the pan skin side down. Broil (on the top oven rack) for 5 minutes.
- Turn the chicken over and baste the skin with the remaining sauce then broil for 5 minutes more.
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
OMG!!! This recipe is so good!!! Baked chicken thigh and served it on top of a rose cream cheese spaghetti and all my guests loved it!!! It is a go to recipe from now on.
We definitely need these for football season around here! Can’t wait to try them!
This looks delicious. I’d like to make it but I want to know what I can use instead of molasses. Thank you. I love your recipes. <3
If you don’t have it, you can omit it. It adds an extra layer of flavor, but it’s not 100% necessary.
You are very welcome!!
I’m happy you think so, too!
How would you adjust the time, etc., for chicken drunsticks?
Bone in thighs and drumsticks cook at about the same time so the 25 mins total cooking time should do. If you have a meat thermometer, you can check to make sure the chicken is at least 165 degrees. If they’re big drumsticks you can leave them in for an extra 5 minutes or so.
It was very good. But for a diabetic , I do not know .I will soon tell. The only thing to say is have everything done ahead of time. And keep a wet cloth handy. It is a good recipe can be sticky.
but good!!!
I hope dinner didn’t throw your sugars all out of wack. I’m happy to hear you liked the recipe!
I made this tonight. It was very yummy. Two things I’ll do different next time.. First, I’ll precook for 25 minutes. I found the chicken was ‘just’ a bit underdone after the 2nd broil. I put it in the oven at 425 for 5 minutes more. Also, I will take a fork after the precook and pierce the chicken to let the yummy sauce go deeper into the chicken. The recipe is a keeper! Thanks!
I’m so happy you checked it before digging in! Sometimes exact times can be hard to give as the size of chicken breasts or thighs can vary quite a bit. Good idea to poke the chicken to let in the sauce!
Made this for dinner tonight using skin-on thighs and drumsticks and it was absolutely delicious! Excited to try with boneless, skinless chicken breaks next as I’m sure they will be delicious as well, albeit a bit lighter. Great, quick, and tasty meal for any night of the week. Thanks for an awesome recipe!
So happy you like the recipe! It’s still one of my personal favourites. 🙂
This has become one of my favorite recipes! My kids and husband love it, and it’s actually pretty easy to do. The flavor is perfect exactly as the recipe is written, but I might experiment with adding or altering the flavor components just for fun.
Thank you so much for the feedback! I’m so happy to hear you and your family love it. 🙂
This is wonderful and easy.