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Sticky Honey Soy Chicken - baked

Recipe video above. This is still the best, EASIEST sticky honey soy chicken recipe I have come across. And I've tried many over the years! Marginally adapted from this recipe by Sprinkles and Sprouts. The sauce is very thin when you put it together and gets even thinner while baking, but miraculously, it suddenly thickens into an incredible glaze to squidge the chicken in. It's salty and sweet with a lovely hit of sesame.Please do not double the recipe or sauce, this will prevent the sauce from reducing down to the sticky glaze you see pictured.

Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
5 mins
Total Time
55 mins
Servings: 5 - 6 people
Calories: 492 kcal
Course: Main Course , Dinner

Ingredients

  • 1.2kg / 2.4lb bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs OR drumsticks (5 - 6 pieces) (Note 1)
  • 1 red onion , peeled, cut into wedges
Glaze
  • 3 cloves garlic , minced
  • 3 tbsp honey
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce (Note 2)
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar or ordinary white vinegar
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
Garnish (optional)
  • sesame seeds
  • Fresh coriander/cilantro leaves (or other green things like green onion, parsley, chives)

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Preheat oven to 200°C/390°F (180°C fan).
  2. Line pan: Line a baking dish with foil then baking paper. The baking tray should fit the chicken comfortably, not too spaced apart (glaze will dry out), not too snug (glaze won't thicken enough). (Note 3)
  3. Glaze: Mix the Glaze ingredients together.
  4. Pour glaze over chicken: Place onion and chicken in the baking dish skin side down, then pour the Glaze over.
  5. Bake 50 - 60 minutes: Bake for 25 minutes, then turn and bake for a further 25 to 35 minutes, until the chicken is browned and the glaze is sticky. If the glaze is not syrupy, remove the chicken to a plate and put the pan back in for a few minutes (it will reduce quickly).
  6. Squidge/coat chicken - Turn chicken and squidge in the glaze, then also spoon it over.
  7. Serve! Serve with rice and steamed greens, sprinkled with sesame seeds and fresh cilantro/coriander leaves.

Notes

  • Chicken - Bone in, skin on thighs work best because the sauce should reduce down to a syrup in the same time it takes for the chicken to cook. Drumsticks also work, without any alteration to the recipe.
  • Boneless skinless thighs and breast - Pour sauce over onion, bake 15 to 20 minutes until syrupy. Place boneless thighs in, turn to coat. Bake at 220°C/425°F for 20 minutes, basting once or twice, until chicken is cooked through. Caramelisation won't be as good as pictured (need skin).
  • Soy sauce - Use ordinary, all purpose soy sauce. Sub light soy sauce (though sauce colour will be slightly paler).
  • Do not use dark soy sauce or sweet soy sauce. 
  • Sauce thickness - Factors such as pan size, space around chicken, how much juice the chicken leaches in the oven (sometimes chicken is injected with brine, frozen is more watery etc), how evenly you oven circulates heat will all affect exactly how thick the sauce is at the end of the bake time. 
  • However, it's an easy fix - just take the chicken out then return the pan into the oven. It reduces really quickly.
  • This recipe doesn't make a lot of sauce, which is the way it is supposed to be because it is quite strong in flavour. It reduce to a jammy sticky glaze, enough to coat the chicken. That's all you need!
  • Nutrition per chicken, assuming all sauce is consumed.

Nutrition Information

Serving 207g Calories 492cal (25%) Carbohydrates 12g (4%) Protein 34g (68%) Fat 34g (52%) Saturated Fat 9g (45%) Trans Fat 1g Cholesterol 196mg (65%) Sodium 658mg (27%) Potassium 471mg (13%) Fiber 1g (4%) Sugar 10g (20%) Vitamin A 157IU (3%) Vitamin C 2mg (2%) Calcium 26mg (3%) Iron 2mg (11%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 5- 6 people

Amount Per Serving

Calories 492

% Daily Value*

Serving 207g
Calories 492cal 25%
Carbohydrates 12g 4%
Protein 34g 68%
Fat 34g 52%
Saturated Fat 9g 45%
Trans Fat 1g 50%
Cholesterol 196mg 65%
Sodium 658mg 27%
Potassium 471mg 10%
Fiber 1g 4%
Sugar 10g 20%
Vitamin A 157IU 3%
Vitamin C 2mg 2%
Calcium 26mg 3%
Iron 2mg 11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.