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.
Does it matter if i use table salt vs. sea salt??
I always use sea salt as I find table salt is too strong and has an almost bitter quality to it. If you use table salt just start with a little and add more to taste 🙂
This chicken is awesome! ❤
This is amazing!!! I make this when I want to bribe hubby to do something 🙂 haha!!!
Hi Kristen,
I stumbled upon your website while looking for recipes to boost my grandma’s immune system. I’ll definitely try this one and cook it for her! Hope it turns out well like yours! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
What can I use instead of Molasses?
I would try substituting a little brown sugar, or just omitting it 🙂
This sounds sooooo good I think I will be trying it real soon….maybe tonight
Thank you for all you work you recipes are mouth watering and your photos are amazing….great work!!!
Can this be done in the slow cooker do you think until the broil part?
Hi Kristen,
I just made this recipe for dinner & WOW, it’s so ridiculously yummy!! I used boneless/skinless breasts because that’s all I had, but will definitely use skin-on thighs next time for that extra deliciousness of fat (mmm…guilty pleasure!). I served it with a cheater-spaghetti noodle version of lo mein, and the hubs and I thought it was a perfect combo! 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing this awesome recipe. I originally found it on Pinterest, but will now be a new follower of your blog. 🙂
Thanks again!
Kas
The broiler on my oven is tiny and useless, can you just cook the chicken in the oven with the temperature turned up after adding the sauce?
I definitely think that would work. It is really just to get the sauce to ‘stick’ to the chicken a little more. Enjoy!
Just tried this recipe tonight, and it was AMAZING!!!..thank you from me and my husband 🙂
This was awesome! Thank you so much!
Thank you so much!!
Wow, made this for dinner tonight, and it was absolutely amazing.
Wow — these were soooooo good! Thanks for the recipe; the whole family enjoyed it.
Thank you so much for letting me know, Anna! And you are very welcome 🙂
Going to make this receipe ,what if I don’t have molasses can I substitute, something else or can i just leave it out, also what can i serve with this dish
Hey Martha,
You can just leave it out, it will still be delicious. I like to serve this with a big salad but you could make any kind of veggies and maybe some crispy baked potatoes 🙂
Mine too! The molasses really gives it more depth 🙂
I can’t wait to try this recipe. Here’s my question: Can I cook the chicken with the skin to add flavor, but not eat the skin and decrease the fat? Does cooking with the skin on add fat to the chicken meat per se?
Thanks,
Kelly Grace
Hey Kelly,
I would choose to do it one way or the other. The extra flavour from the skin comes from eating it directly and from the fat you add to the honey garlic sauce, not from soaking into the chicken.
It will still be delicious with the skin off since there is so much flavour in the sauce. Maybe save the skin on version for a treat and the skinless version for everyday 🙂