Honey Garlic Chicken
Updated Sep 23, 2025
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This honey garlic chicken is the weeknight savior you’ve been looking for: juicy chicken breasts in a sweet, fragrant garlic-and-honey sauce that glazes the chicken. Ready in under 30 minutes and made in one pan, it’s the kind of recipe that feels indulgent but is effortless homey (and very kid-friendly)!
This honey garlic chicken is one of the best things that could happen to a simple chicken breast, and about to become your new weeknight hero recipe. Tender chicken breasts coated with a sticky glaze that is sweet, savory, and utterly addictive. Best part? It all happens in one pan and is on your table in under 30 minutes. This is comfort food at its easiest.
You can stick with the simple rice or salad side, or serve this with some kind of green vegetable; I tossed some green beans with chili crunch and it was delicious. You can also make Sautéed Haricot Verts with Red Onions and Shallots, Thai Green Beans or Sugar Snap Pea Salad.
What's In This Post?
Honey Garlic Chicken Ingredients
- All-purpose flour – Dredging the chicken cutlets in flour creates a lovely exterior texture.
- Salt and pepper
- Chicken cutlets – Try boneless skinless chicken thighs instead if you prefer.
- Unsalted butter – For cooking the chicken
- Garlic – For a rich aromatic flavor.
- Rice wine or cider vinegar– Adds a nice acidity.
- Soy sauce – For umami.
- Hoisin sauce – This potent, rich, vegetarian Chinese sauce is made from starch, sugar, soybeans, white vinegar, garlic, and chili peppers. A bit sweet, a little spicy, and a touch salty.
- Honey – Adds a sweet, glazey quality to the sauce.
Variations
Try this with tofu instead.
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How to Make Honey Garlic Chicken
- Make the coating: Combine the flour, salt, and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour, coating both sides, then shake off any excess flour.
- Cook the chicken: In a large skillet, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high heat, then sauté the chicken cutlets, making sure they are in a single layer, for about 2 minutes on each side until the chicken is just barely cooked through. Remove the chicken to a plate.
- Cook in sauce: Return the pan to medium heat and add the garlic, stirring until golden brown. Add the vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and honey and stir until combined and bubbly, and the little browned bits (the fond) on the bottom of the pan have incorporated into the sauce. Add the chicken and turn it in the sauce until it is well coated.
- Serve: Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle over the scallions. Serve hot with the rice.
For Easier Cleanup….
Give that pan a nice long spray with nonstick cooking spray before you melt the butter. Better still, pull out the nonstick pan if you have one.
The wonderful glaze gets beautifully caramelized and looks and tastes great, but there may be a little pan scrubbing involved afterward. While you eat, soak that pan.
This might not be the sexiest cooking advice you’ll ever get, but you’ll know why shortly. And, truly, the chicken is worth it.
Storage
Store leftover chicken in an airtight container in the fridge for about 5 days.
Honey Garlic Chicken Questions, Asked and Answered
The sauce might need a little more simmering time to thicken. Keep it at a simmer and stir until it coats the back of a spoon.
Absolutely. Boneless skinless chicken thighs stay extra juicy and work perfectly in this recipe. Just add a few minutes to the cooking time so they’re cooked through to 165 F.
Honey caramelizes quickly, so make sure to cook the sauce over medium heat, not high. Stir often and pull off the heat as soon as the sauce thickens.
Yes, but it’s best fresh. If reheating, do so gently on the stovetop with a splash of water to loosen the sauce. Avoid the microwave if possible, since it can make the chicken rubbery.
It’s fantastic with plain rice, sautéed broccoli, sautéed green beans, or even a crisp cucumber salad. The sauce doubles as a drizzle for veggies, too.
What to Serve With Honey Garlic Chicken
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Honey Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
- 1 ½ pounds thinly sliced chicken cutlets
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (divided)
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons rice wine or cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce (or an additional tablespoon soy sauce)
- ¼ cup honey
- Thinly sliced scallions (to serve)
- Hot cooked rice (to serve)
Instructions
- In a shallow bowl, combine the flour, salt, and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour, turning it to coat both sides well. Shake off any excess flour.
- Spray a large skillet with nonstick cooking spray, or grab a large nonstick skillet. Melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high heat, then saute about half the chicken cutlets, making sure they are in a single layer, for about 2 minutes on each side until the chicken is just barely cooked through. Transfer the chicken to a plate, and repeat with the remaining butter and chicken. Add the second batch of chicken to the plate.
- Return the pan to medium heat and add the garlic, stirring for 1 minute until it is golden. Add the vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and honey, and stir until it is combined and bubbly, and you’ve released any little browned chicken bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Return the chicken to the pan and turn it in the sauce until it is well coated and heated through. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle over the scallions. Serve hot with the rice.
