This Asian honey soy chicken has that sweet-salty-spicy flavor profile which I find totally irresistible. Chicken thighs are baked, cut into bite-sized pieces and finished with a quick stir-fry to glaze them in honey-soy-chili deliciousness!
The most frequent request I get from my followers is for quick and easy dinner recipes. So here you go. This Asian honey soy chicken recipe is fast and full of great flavor. In 30 minutes you can get dinner on the table, including rice and a simple side, like stir-fried snow peas or sliced cucumber salad.
It's is so irresistibly good I had a hard time photographing it without sneaking tastes.
LET'S MAKE DELICIOUS HONEY SOY CHICKEN!
- The first step in this recipe is to bake the boneless skinless chicken thighs in a 425ºF preheated oven for 20 minutes.
- While the thighs are baking in the oven you'll have plenty of time to make the honey soy glaze.
- To make the honey soy glaze, whisk up a mixture of honey, soy sauce, water, unseasoned rice vinegar and sesame oil. Simmer the glaze for 10 minutes or so, until it's thickened and deep brown. Add ginger and crushed red pepper flakes.
- When the chicken comes out of the oven, cut it into bite-sized pieces and add it to the skillet with the honey soy mixture.
- Glaze the chicken by stirring and tossing it in the honey soy mixture, until it's coated with delicious honey soy glaze.
SERVE HONEY SOY CHICKEN WITH RICE AND SCALLIONS!
Scoop some rice into a bowl with a generous heap of honey soy chicken on top.
Sprinkle generously with chopped scallions.
Dinner!
WHY I LOVE THIS RECIPE
- It's got the exciting flavor punch of Chinese takeout without all the grease.
- It's a great recipe for the whole family. Bite-sized and boneless chicken means even the fussy eaters are happy.
- I can cook a dinner that everyone loves in a half hour!
If you're craving more delicious dinners on the table fast, here's how to see all the quick and easy recipes on Panning The Globe. Keep clicking on "next page" to see them all
Here are a few of my personal favorite quick and easy family friendly dinner recipes:
- Chinese Orange Chicken (better and healthier than take out)
- Tex-Mex Tortilla Casserole (vegetarian)
- Quick Turkey Ragu (turkey meat sauce that tastes like bolognese)
- Quick Cuban Black Beans (with bacon - serve with rice for a full meal)
- Cuban Picadillo: Ground beef stew (scrumptious!)
Now here's the recipe for Asian honey soy chicken. Please let me know what you think - your comments are greatly appreciated!
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Asian Honey Soy Chicken
- Total Time: 30 mins
- Yield: 5 1x
Description
A quick and easy chicken dinner: baked chicken thighs finished in a hot pan with honey soy glaze. Delicious with fluffy white rice.
Ingredients
- For the Chicken:
- 2 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs (10-12 depending on size)
- Olive oil
- Kosher salt
- Fresh ground black pepper
- For the Glaze:
- ¼ cup honey
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ⅓ cup water
- 1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Asian sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger root
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- Sides and Garnish:
- Rice to serve alongside, optional
- 6 scallions, trimmed and sliced crosswise, to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425ºF. Spread a tablespoon or two of olive oil over the bottom of a large glass baking pan or jellyroll pan. Lay the chicken thighs out in a single layer in the pan, making sure to unfold them fully. It's fine if the pan is crowded. They'll shrink when they cook. Drizzle or brush another couple of tablespoons of oil over the tops of the chicken, using the back of a spoon or a pastry brush to coat them. Sprinkle the tops of the thighs with a few pinches of salt and pepper. Cook in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes. When done, transfer to a cutting board and slice into bite-sized pieces.
- While the chicken is baking prepare the glaze and cook the rice, if using. Add the honey, soy sauce, water, vinegar and sesame oil to a large skillet and bring to a boil over high heat. Turn down to medium and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until it reduces by about half and gets deep brown.
- Add the ginger and red pepper. Give it a stir. Add the chicken and turn the heat to high. Cook, stirring frequently, for 4-5 minutes, until the chicken has a beautiful amber glaze and almost all the sauce is absorbed.
- Serve over rice, if you like, with a generous sprinkle of sliced scallions.
Notes
[This post first appeared on Panning The Globe in Nov 2015. It was updated in Sept 2019 with added nutritional information and more clarifying details in the written post.]
Nutrition Information: The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and is not a substitute for a the advice of a professional nutritionist.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Dinner
- Method: skillet
- Cuisine: Asian
Keywords: Asian honey soy chicken thighs, skillet chicken, honey soy chicken thighs
Jacqueline
Could this recipe be converted to a slow cooker?
Lisa
I bet it could however you may want to keep the chicken thighs whole - they'll fall apart on their own after a while in the slow cooker. If you do try this in the slow cooker I'd love to hear back about exactly how you did it and how it turned out.
Barb
Simply delicious prepared just the way the recipe reads. Also good with a little "crunch"...with celery added to the chicken and cooked so it still is somewhat firm and dressed with toasted sliced almonds on top when plating.
Even a little orange zest added would be good too!
★★★★★
allie @ Through Her Looking Glass
I love fast, easy and delicious and I can just tell how addictive this glazed chicken is. I also appreciate all the real ingredients and fresh ginger root!!! Mmmm...We are on school vacation this week and I can't wait to try this new recipe.
Phyllis luberg
this recipe was very delicious. Nice combination of spicey and sweet. The perfect amount of heat. My whole family enjoyed it.
★★★★★
Lisa
Thanks Phyllis! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.
Matt K
I made this last night and it was excellent! Quick and straightforward. We served it over white rice, will try the leftovers tonight over brown. With the Red Pepper flakes it had a nice little kick. I'd say don't skip the scallions, they rounded this off nicely. Will definitely do this again, and with the rice every time.
One thing I really like about your site is the way your recipes print to one page. So many web sites don't manage that and I end up with a second page that's 3/4 blank and a first page with extra space. You seem to have figured out how to control that, and I appreciate it.
I also appreciate all the delicious goodies you create and share here!
★★★★★
Lisa
I'm so glad you enjoyed the Asian honey chicken Matt! Thanks for your comment and all the positive feedback - made my day! 🙂
Laura @MotherWouldKnow
Great idea. I might just stir fry the pieces of chicken (instead of baking them), then add in the sauce to coat at the end. Either way, it's a great weeknight dinner.
Dani {CaretoPair.com}
This is such a refreshing recipe! I feel like I've been spending way too much time in the kitchen and seem to have forgotten that dinner can be made in a pinch. Thanks for the recipe!