This 5-ingredient, 15-minute honey garlic chicken with an addictively delicious sauce is a perfect quick and easy weeknight dinner recipe!
It uses on hand ingredients, is simple to make and tastes fantastic. Serve with rice and a vegetable for a complete meal.
"My husband and my son love this recipe and ask me to make it almost every week since I discovered it a few months ago. It’s so easy and so good." - Hannah
This post has been updated with new photos and a new recipe video.
You might know by now that quick and easy is the name of the game most nights at my house.
This honey garlic chicken recipe fits the bill perfectly.
Just 5 ingredients and 15 minutes are all you need to whip up this dinner.
No dredging needed, no specialty ingredients or sauces and we're taking the shortcut of cubing the chicken so it's small and cooks up quickly.
In fact, you probably have all of the ingredients on hand already to make this tonight.
And just wait until you taste the sauce. Oh that sauce!
It’s got sticky sweet honey, the salty rich soy sauce, a kick of garlic and a hint of spice from the red pepper flakes.
It gets glazed on to the chicken and simmered down and concentrated slightly so it’s ready to drip and drizzle all over your plate. Please, put it ALL over your plate!
I also use this sauce in my slow cooker honey garlic chicken recipe, if you want to check that one out for a hands-off dinner you can start earlier in the day.
There's also this 15-minute honey garlic pork chops if you're always looking for more pork chop recipes like me.
Back to today's recipe. Let's get cooking.
Recipe Notes:
Be careful not to overcook the chicken. We are cubing the chicken into small pieces so they cook fast, which is kinda the point with this dinner. But you don't want them to go too far and be overdone.
On the other hand, that sauce is seriously so good, it’ll disguise your chicken if it gets a little overdone. It's a forgiving dish!
You could substitute boneless, skinless chicken thighs in place of the chicken breasts if you prefer, but the cooking time might be a little longer.
I use and recommend low-sodium soy sauce so you can control the amount of sodium in this recipe. You could also substitute a gluten-free tamari if you need this recipe to be gluten-free.
Thickening: If your sauce doesn't seem thick enough, try adding a quick cornstarch slurry in the last 1-2 minutes. Mix 1-3 teaspoons of cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of water and add it to the pan to help thicken the sauce. I don't ever need this but it's a nice option and better than having to dredge the chicken in flour beforehand.
To make a complete meal for dinner, just add some steamed rice and a veggie.
I use brown rice, which takes a little longer, so I get that started first then I prep my chicken and get it cooking. While the chicken is going, I get a veggie ready to steam. For us it's usually broccoli, green beans or snow peas. You could also use a steam-in-the-bag veggie.
And voila, dinner is ready and on the table in no time!
Finally, let's finish this off so we can eat.
Topping Ideas:
- Sliced green onions
- Chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
- Chopped peanuts
- Lime wedges to squeeze over the chicken
- An extra sprinkle of red pepper flakes
- Drizzle of sriracha for a spicy kick
I hope you give this a try soon for your new favorite go-to weeknight dinner!
Enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
15-Minute Honey Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil (or canola oil)
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small cubes (about ½ inch)
- Salt and black pepper
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional, adjust for heat)
For serving (optional):
- Brown or white rice, sliced green onions, sesame seeds, chopped peanuts, lime wedges to squeeze over chicken
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Lightly season the cubed chicken with salt and pepper. (Go easy because the soy sauce has plenty of sodium.)
- Add the chicken to the skillet and brown on one side, about 3-4 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the glaze. Whisk the honey, soy sauce, garlic and red pepper flakes, if using, in a small bowl until well combined.
- Turn the chicken pieces over to begin cooking on the other side. Add the sauce to the pan and toss to coat the chicken pieces. Cook until chicken is cooked through, 4-5 more minutes. (The small pieces cook quickly, which is the point, so be careful not to overcook them.)
- Serve with steamed rice and top with green onions, sesame seeds and a squeeze of lime juice, if desired.
Notes
Video
Nutrition
You can also check out my easy chicken recipes for more dinner time inspiration, like this easy cream cheese chicken or quick chicken curry. Dinner doesn't have to be hard!
And if you love easy, delicious and healthy recipes like I do, sign up for my free e-newsletter to get more meal-time inspiration sent straight to your inbox.
Here's one of the older photos of this recipe:
Tree
So delicious and simple. Made it with steamed rice and the lime was a great suggestion.
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it!
Steph
How do i know if the chicken is cooked? Kind of new to cooking here.
Kathryn Doherty
Cutting the chicken up like this helps it cook more quickly but you can either use a thermometer (the chicken should be at 165) or you can cut one of the chicken pieces in half and make sure it looks cooked through in the middle (all white, no pink). I hope that helps!
Shmellycat
I was googling what to do with some chicken breast I had already boiled yesterday. And I found this. It was amazingly delicious!!!! Thank you for the recipe 🙂
ashley
how much garlic if i am using minced garlic from a jar?
Kathryn Doherty
Hi Ashley! I usually figure about a teaspoon of minced garlic from a jar per clove of garlic, so I'd say use about 3 teaspoons for this recipe. I hope that helps!
Alisha
Made this meal for dinner tonight. It was spicier than I expected, but very good. Thank you so much!
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy you enjoyed it Alisha! Thanks for sharing! 😊
Michael
My variation: I added an additional tbs of honey, used GF soy sauce, and added 2 tbs cornstarch to thicken up the glaze. Thank you for the recipe! A very delicious gluten free meal.
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it Michael! Thanks so much for sharing! 😊
Neets
Hi there.. I'm relatively new to cooking chicken at home, why do you say 'brown on one side'. Should we not flip it over once that side is done? Or does the other side get cooked with the sauce? Sorry for the dumb question! Thanks for the recipe , gonna try soon!!
Kathryn Doherty
Not a dumb question! So what that means is to add the cut chicken pieces to the pan and then leave them there, without stirring or moving, to let them start to cook and get browned on the side that's against the bottom of the pan. After 3-4 minutes, once they are starting to get brown on that bottom side, you're going to stir the chicken, add the sauce and let the chicken finish cooking on the other side in the pan for the next 4-5 minutes of cooking time. You can check a larger piece of chicken for doneness by cutting it in half in the pan (use your spoon or spatula) if you want to make sure everything has cooked through all the way. I hope that helps!
Kelly Christine Tolson
OMG! This is so good! This will definitely be a regular at my house. Thank u so much!!
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you loved it Kelly! (And I've actually got it on the menu for us tonight!) Thanks so much for sharing! 😊
Annebakerim
What a wonderful recipe, it looks appetizing, I showed it to my husband, he made me promise to prepare it for the next Thanksgiving
Kathryn Doherty
I hope you enjoy it! It's great for a quick weeknight dinner! 😊
Sergio70903
To put such a chicken on a plate with rice is delicious. Today I will immediately send a link to your post to my young wife and copy this recipe for myself. Come in handy
Sergio Fishreeler
The aroma of this chicken flew to the neighbors, they asked me what I cook there? Yes, we drooled the whole family before the chicken was served. It is very tasty, thanks!
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it! 😊
Bernie
My 9 years old grandson made this that’s how easy it was added broccoli and rice was absolutely yummy
Kathryn Doherty
That's so great! Thanks so much for sharing Bernie!
Jessica
I just tried your recipe today and it was great! My picky daughter loved it. I served it with rice and green beans. I will try again adding in broccoli as some others suggested. Thank you for sharing!
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it Jessica! 😊
Anne
Just made this as a ”quick quarantine” dinner. Used sesame oil as opposed to olive, increased the red pepper a bit and served it on basmati rice with sesame seeds. It was very good, not too spicy and a nice hint of nuttiness.
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it Anne! It's a great one during these crazy quarantine times; I've got it on the menu for next week. Love the sound of those sesame additions - yum! Take care! 😊
Carol Huffman
would this recipe be good adding sauted mushrooms?
Kathryn Doherty
Oh my goodness, yes! I'm a mushroom lover and I think they'd be great here! Just give them a few minutes in the pan to soften and let off their liquids before you add the chicken. Would love to hear how it turns out!
Reelsin Fisher
I loved this recipe! made it for my kids today 🙂
Thanks Kathryn
Kathryn Doherty
Yay, I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing! 😊
Geoffrey
I made this with a 1/2 teaspoon of dried ginger added. I did not regret that decision. Good eats 😁
Kathryn Doherty
That sounds like a great addition - yum! Thanks for sharing!
Stacey Watson
Will this be okay without the red flakes?
Kathryn Doherty
Oh sure, it's fine to skip the red pepper flakes. Hope you enjoy it!
Emily
Is the calorie amount including the rice? With just the chicken and seasoning, I only came up with about 150 calories per serving.
Kathryn Doherty
Hi Emily! The stats are without the rice. Nutrition calculators can, unfortunately, vary widely. I pay for a subscription to provide these stats for my recipes and while it's very good, it can be off. However, I just hand-checked a different calculator and using the chicken, olive oil, honey and soy sauce I got to 358 calories per serving. Feel free to go with the one you use for other things for consistency. Hope that helps!
Shawn K.
I just made the chicken and it was AWESOME! Btw p, I want to marinate before cooking next time, how much time should I marinate it and in the fridge or outside?
Shawn K.
There is not supposed to be a “p” after btw
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so glad you loved this dish Shawn! I haven't marinated this in advance, but I think you could for up to 2-3 hours if you'd like. (You don't need to go much longer than that because the chicken is already cut.) Marinate that in the fridge. Or, you could do a quick 30-minute marinade before you cook it and that's fine to just let it sit on the counter. Hope that helps!
Shawn K.
I did exactly that, and it made the awesome recipe into an AMAZING recipe. Thanks!
Kathryn Doherty
Yay, so glad to hear it! I'll have to try it that way next time too 😊
Jenny
This was great and allergy friendly. My allergy kid is picky and he actually ate this and asked for seconds. I put my chicken cubes in a bag with flour before putting them in the pan and it came out perfectly crisp and it also made the sauce just a touch thicker so I made a little more. I also sauteed a little garlic and onion before adding the chicken. It went great over a bed of rice pilaf. I just wish I had some broccoli to go with it, will add it next time. Definitely a keeper in our kitchen. Thanks for the great recipe!
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you all enjoyed it! (And yes, I love Asian-style dishes for being allergy-friendly!) Love those tweaks you made and a big yes to broccoli; it goes great here! 😊
Ali
Hello! Do you think the sauce/chicken would be good over some noodles? My kids have been asking for Asian style noodles!
Kathryn Doherty
Oh yes, I bet that would be delicious! The sauce from the chicken would help flavor the noodles too. 😋
Jimmy
Super fast and easy to follow. Just need to make step by step, you could get the great dinner!
Margie
Amazing! Probably the quickest, most tasty meal I’ve ever made. I doubled the sauce, and sautéed some broccoli with the chicken. Definitely will make again.
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you loved it Margie! Thanks so much for sharing! 😊
Blanca
So easy to make, so fancy looking and delicious!!! I’m very happy with this super tasty meal!!
Thanks for your recipe.
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it Blanca! 😊