Honey-Soy Sticky Chicken
Glazed thighs in a sweet, salty, garlicky pan sauce — done in 20 minutes.
Ingredients
- 500 g Chicken thighs
- 3 tbsp Light soy sauce
- 2 tbsp Honey
- 4 cloves Garlic
- 1 tbsp Ginger
- 1 tbsp Rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp Neutral oil
- ¼ tsp Black pepper
- ½ tsp Salt
Method
- Pat the chicken thighs dry and season both sides generously with the salt.
- Heat the oil in a pan over medium-high. Add the thighs skin-side down (smooth-side down if skinless) and sear without moving for 6 minutes, until deep golden.
- While the chicken sears, mince the garlic and ginger, then whisk the soy, honey, vinegar, and pepper in a bowl to make the glaze.
- Flip the thighs and cook the second side for 4 minutes, until cooked through.
- Lower the heat. Add the minced garlic and ginger and stir constantly for 30 seconds, until fragrant but not browned.
- Pour in the glaze and let it bubble until thick and sticky, about 2 minutes, spooning it over the chicken. Serve.
Tap “Start cooking” for live timers that flag what to get ahead on while something simmers.
About Honey-Soy Sticky Chicken
Honey-soy sticky chicken is a fast Chinese-style skillet main, glazed thighs done in twenty minutes with a sauce that is sweet, salty, and unmistakably garlicky. Chicken thighs are seared skin-side down without moving until deep golden, then flipped and finished before a glaze of soy, honey, rice vinegar, and pepper reduces around them into a sticky lacquer. Thighs are the right cut for this — forgiving under high heat and rich enough to carry the bold glaze — and searing them hard first builds the flavor base the sauce later clings to. The whole dish stays in one pan.
The flavor is the classic sweet-savory tension of honey against soy, sharpened by a splash of rice vinegar that keeps the sweetness from turning flat and lifted by fresh garlic and ginger stirred in just before the glaze. Cooking the aromatics for only thirty seconds, off the boil, keeps them fragrant rather than bitter, and the reduction thickens fast into a glossy coat. High in protein and quick enough for a busy night, it wants nothing more than steamed rice to soak up the extra glaze. Spoon it over the chicken and serve it hot, sticky, and glistening.
Honey-Soy Sticky Chicken: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Honey-Soy Sticky Chicken?
A serving has about 711 calories — 44.4g protein, 23.2g carbs, 48.6g fat, 0.7g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is it high in protein?
Each serving has about 44.4g of protein, roughly 25% of its calories.
Is Honey-Soy Sticky Chicken gluten-free?
As written, no — it contains Light soy sauce. You'd need a certified gluten-free swap for that ingredient to make it gluten-free.
How long does Honey-Soy Sticky Chicken take to make?
About 20 minutes start to finish, but only around 7 of those are hands-on — the rest is cooking time. In the Homecooked app the timers and parallel steps are sequenced for you so the hands-on part feels even shorter.
How many servings does Honey-Soy Sticky Chicken make?
This recipe makes 2 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.