Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs are the weeknight dinner your family will love! It only takes a handful of ingredients and half an hour to make!
I’ve got a constant rotation of chicken recipes going in our house. These baked Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs are my go-to when I wanna switch it up. You only need 6 pantry staples for this sweet-and-savory weeknight dinner!
HONEY GARLIC CHICKEN THIGHS
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My honey garlic chicken thighs recipe is a simple chicken dish when you’re craving comfort food. I’d bet you already have the honey, garlic, apple cider vinegar, and chicken thighs in your kitchen!
There’s no better protein for a budget dinner than simple chicken thighs. I promise you won’t regret trying this honey garlic chicken recipe!
Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs Ingredients
CHICKEN THIGHS: Chicken thighs are great for basic chicken recipes. They bring so much flavor with or without the skin! I use bone-in, skin-on thighs for this recipe, but you can use boneless skinless chicken thighs or even chicken breasts too!
HONEY GARLIC SAUCE: I add a little apple cider vinegar to make this sweet honey garlic sauce nice and tangy. It’s a great flavor enhancer and super healthy for your diet!
All you need otherwise is a little butter, oil, salt, and pepper! This is a great last-minute dinner idea because all of these ingredients are pantry staples in my kitchen.
How to Make Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs
- First, place a cast-iron of heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Then pat the chicken thighs dry with paper towels and season both sides with salt and pepper.
- Next, sear the chicken in a hot skillet with melted butter and olive oil until golden brown. Start skin-side down for the crispiest skin. You can work in batches if you have a smaller skillet.
- Once the thighs are seared, transfer them to a baking sheet. Keep the chicken warm in a 425 degree F oven while you make the sauce. Or turn down the heat to medium and cook the chicken another few minutes, until it’s fully cooked. Always make sure your chicken reaches 165 degrees F internally!
Tip: I like to take the chicken out of the pan while I make the sauce so it’s not too crowded. - Now, add the rest of the butter, honey, apple cider vinegar, and garlic to the pan. Whisk all that together and bring the sauce to a simmer.
- Once the sauce has thickened a bit, return the chicken to the skillet and coat the chicken with the sauce using a spoon. Simmer until the sauce has thickened.
- That’s it! Use all the yummy sauce when you plate and add a little chopped parsley or sliced green onions for presentation points!
The whole thing takes about 30 minutes to cook on the stove top. It’s a quick and easy recipe my family LOVES!
If you like your sauce thicker, you can add a little corn starch slurry before putting the chicken back into the pan.
You can totally make grilled honey garlic chicken thighs in the summer, too! Since sugar burns easily over open flames, grill the chicken and make the sauce separately. Then combine the two when it’s time to serve!
What Should I Serve with Chicken Thighs?
Every side is an option with baked garlic chicken thighs. I usually crank my oven to 425 degrees F and roast some potatoes and broccoli while the chicken cooks. This also lets me make sure the chicken is cooked through while I make the sauce. Win-win friends.
Here are some other delicious options:
Keep the acid on the table with these yummy roasted Brussels sprouts! They’re fancy enough for holiday dinners with only 4 ingredients.
Garlic chicken thighs and mashed potatoes are a match made in heaven. The pillowy, fluffy carbs are the best pairing with this chicken thigh dinner if you’re skipping the pasta or rice.
I love Southern green beans with bacon! A little salty, cured meat mixed with my green veggies — what could be better?
Why Are Chicken Thighs Good Food?
I always have a pack of chicken thighs in my freezer. They’re so cheap and perfect for a weeknight dinner!
Chicken thighs get a bad reputation because they’re dark meat instead of light meat. While it does have a tiny bit more fat than chicken breasts, it’s so much juicier and more flavorful.
Cheesy Skillet Ranch Chicken Thighs are the cheesiest one-pan chicken dinner and ready in just half an hour! It’s perfect with rice, pasta, or cauliflower rice.
Trying to cut a few calories? Baked Lemon Chicken is so flavorful you’d never know it’s packed with protein and super low in saturated fat.
Sheet pan dinners are the heroes of my last-minute weeknight dinner recipes. This orange teriyaki chicken and veggies is a quick savory dish with a hint of sweetness to cure every take-out craving.
You can even use chicken thighs in a chicken pot pie! Give the creamy filling a little more flavor with some dark meat chicken.
More Easy Chicken Recipes
- Southern Oven Fried Chicken
- Creamy Wild Rice and Chicken Soup
- Chicken Marsala
- Cheesy BBQ Chicken Quesadillas
- Spicy Chicken Meatballs
- More MAIN DISH recipes…
Tools used to make this Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs recipe
Skillet: You always want a heavy bottom skillet when you’re searing chicken skin. You can use a cast-iron skillet or a stainless steel pan for the best results.
Meat thermometer: I’ve been cooking for decades, and even I check my chicken with a meat thermometer, especially bone-in chicken. Nothing is worse than cutting into a raw, pink chicken!
Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons butter divided
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (see note)
- Salt and pepper
- 5 tablespoons honey
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- Fresh parsley chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Place a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon butter and oil to skillet. Heat until butter is melted.
- Pat chicken thighs dry with paper towels and season all over with salt and pepper.
- Sear chicken in hot skillet until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. (I start with the skin side down so it finishes facing up.)
- Remove chicken from skillet and place on a baking sheet, skin side up. Keep warm in the oven while you prepare the sauce. (see note)
- To the skillet 4 tablespoons butter, honey, vinegar, and garlic. Whisk and bring sauce to a simmer. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the sauce beings to thicken. Add chicken back to the skillet. Continue cooking until sauce thickens, about 4 to 5 minutes.
- Spoon sauce over chicken and garnish with chopped parsley. Serve warm.
Notes
- You can also use bone-out, no skin thighs, or 4 chicken breasts for this recipe. For boneless thighs, you don’t need to cover and cook longer like the bone-in variety. For breasts, cook for 5-6 minutes per side before moving on to the sauce. As long as your chicken is 165 degrees F internally, you’re good to go.
- I like to finish these thighs in the oven since I usually have preheated to roast some potatoes and broccoli to go with our meal. (They take just as long as the chicken so everything finishes together.) If you want to skip the oven, reduce stove heat to medium, and cover the skillet. Cook chicken for another 5 minutes, until cooked through. Then remove the chicken to a plate or baking sheet while you start the sauce.
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