Family Food on the Table

Recipes and resources for making it happen

15-Minute Honey Garlic Chicken

By

This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read my disclosure policy

This 5-ingredient, 15-minute honey garlic chicken with an addictively delicious sauce makes a perfect quick and easy weeknight dinner recipe!A dark skillet with cooked cubed chicken pieces in a sauce and a bowl of rice in the background

We are somehow back to Monday and this will be M’s first full, 5-day week of kindergarten. 😬

We’ve also got fall activities ramping up and both my husband and I have busy work schedules this time of year.

So quick and easy is the name of the game most nights! (Though, yes, that’s pretty much always the case 😉 )

This honey garlic chicken recipe fits the bill – just 5 ingredients and 15 minutes are all you need to whip up this dinner.

And just wait until you taste the sauce. Oh that sauce! I literally eat it from the pan with the spoon.

I also drizzle it over everything on my plate – the chicken, the rice, the veggies… All of it gets coated in this delectable 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!

So freakin’ good!

Chicken cubes in a honey garlic sauce in a dark skillet with a wooden spoon to the side, lime wedges nearby and a bowl of rice for serving

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. 👍 Or try this Instant Pot honey garlic chicken for a different version.

And sometimes I take this dinner a step further and make honey garlic chicken stir fry. It’s loaded with veggies and ready in about 25 minutes.

But back to today’s recipe.

Now, I’ve got some notes, tips and substitutions coming up below on how to make honey garlic chicken. Just tryin’ to be helpful.

If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.

Close up of saucy honey garlic chicken in a dark skillet

Notes on making honey garlic chicken:

  • Be careful not to overcook the chicken. The pieces are small 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 nice to have a forgiving dish!
  • You could substitute boneless, skinless chicken thighs in place of the chicken breasts if you prefer, but the cooking time will be longer.
  • I do 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. 
  • To make a complete meal, 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 (broccoli, green beans or snow peas usually – you could also use a steam-in-the-bag veggie) and dinner is ready and on the table in no time!

You could also keep it low-carb and serve it with some of my easy cauliflower rice.

Or serve over quinoa or some rice noodles or a long, thin noodle like angel hair. Anything to sop up more of that sauce!

Honey garlic chicken topped with sesame seeds and served with rice and green beans on a white round dinner plate

Want some topping ideas? You know I’m all about it.

Toppings for honey garlic chicken: 

  • 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 🌶

Mix and match and choose your favorites.

Hope you have a great week and hope you give this a try soon!

Enjoy!

XO,

Kathryn

Yield: 4 servings

15-Minute Honey Garlic Chicken

A 5-ingredient, 15-minute honey garlic chicken with an addictively delicious sauce - a perfect weeknight dinner recipe!

This 5-ingredient, 15-minute honey garlic chicken with an addictively delicious sauce makes a perfect quick and easy weeknight dinner recipe!

Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil (or canola oil)
  • 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small cubes (about 1/2 inch)
  • Salt and black pepper
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional, adjust for heat)

For serving (optional):

  • Brown rice, sliced green onions, sesame seeds, chopped peanuts, lime wedges to squeeze over chicken

Instructions

  1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
  2. Lightly season the cubed chicken with salt and pepper. (Go easy because the soy sauce has plenty of sodium.)
  3. Add the chicken to the skillet and brown on one side, about 3-4 minutes.
  4. Meanwhile, make the glaze. Whisk the honey, soy sauce, garlic and red pepper flakes, if using, in a small bowl until well combined.
  5. Add the sauce to the pan and toss to coat the chicken pieces. Cook until chicken is cooked through, 4-5 more minutes.
  6. Serve with steamed rice and top with green onions, sesame seeds and a squeeze of lime juice, if desired.

Notes

Tip: Be careful not to overcook the chicken. The pieces are small 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.

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 do 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. 

For serving: To make a complete meal, just add some steamed rice and a veggie. Or serve this over quinoa, cauliflower rice or a thin noodle.

Leftovers, once cooled, can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave or in a skillet on the stove until warmed through.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 360Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 145mgSodium: 665mgCarbohydrates: 15gFiber: 0gSugar: 13gProtein: 54g
© Kathryn Doherty
Cuisine: Asian / Category: Chicken
Honey garlic chicken in a dark skillet with plenty of sauce and a text overlay on the photo

Related Posts

Comments

  3. Michael says

    I was born with a cookbook in my head , believe or not I made this recipe from my head years ago ! That’s how I cook ! Blows me away to see it in print ! You must of got into my head while dreaming ? As you must already know, there so many variations to this Quick ricipe , the greatest thing about it is quick it to make ‘ Great for people who can’t stand at the stove because of back problems ! I always wake up and the the thing in the morning my thoughts go to what can cook tonight ! And the recipe is right there, maybe I’m sneaking into your dreams at night, ha !

    Reply

    • Bernard Schyvie says

      haha I also made this from my head years ago! crazy how we all had the same idea. I have back problems too. maybe this chicken is the answer that my doctors haven’t given me on how to cure my back pain. I feel connected. to you.

      Reply

  5. Elsa says

    Kathryn… I’m not a great chef but I follow your recipe easily. This food is very delicious! My whole family loves this dish. Great. Thanks! Fast and simple.

    Reply

  6. Chelsea says

    Okay – well the photos looked amazing. But it tastes even better than I imagined it would. SO SO divine! This is now on repeat at our home. Family gave it 10 out of 10!!

    Reply

  9. Jake says

    I’d agree about the “quick and easy is the name of the game” especially during these days that the kids’ classes and my work days are getting earlier. so I have to be able to cook recipes fast without sacrificing the taste. Thanks for this! Although I did use a bit less of some ingredients to balance out the taste haha

    Reply

  11. ray merk says

    WHOOOOO HOOO this chicken dish is absolutely amazing and only cooks in 15 minutes!!! The hubby, dogs, and my boys were left salivating in the kitchen. It left my twin sister begging for more! I will definitely add this to my weekly schedule. mmm mmm mmm

    Reply

  15. Danielle says

    Very good flavor, but not enough sauce. The chicken soaked it all up right away (I had my burner completely off at the time I poured the sauce in). It would be nice to have some to drizzle on the rice. From the sounds of the recipe, it wasn’t supposed to work out that. It’s a simple recipe, so I have no clue where I went wrong.

    Reply

  19. Jess says

    This looks so good! I wonder why the calorie count is so high though if it’s only a few tbsps of everything and then divided by 4?

    Reply

    • Kathryn Doherty says

      Hi Jess! I just re-ran the numbers through the nutrition calculator that I subscribe to for my site and they came out a bit lower. I also made sure to delete the optional serving ideas, which may have thrown the numbers off earlier. Thanks so much for checking! 😊

      Reply

  20. Sierra says

    Hi! This meal is so delicious. My favorite restaurant is Panda Express and it’s almost exactly like their glazed chicken:) I’m not good at cooking, at all, but each time I make this I get more confident. I made it tonight and it’s still my favorite! I love the tangy glaze that has a sweet and salty hint to it. Thank you for posting such a wonderful dish that’s so easy to make!! It’s currently my comfort food for a long, stressful day:D

    Reply

    • Kathryn Doherty says

      Oh I’m so happy to hear you love it Sierra! Thanks so much for sharing! I’m all about some easy meals, and I feel like every little kitchen success helps build that confidence. 😊

      Reply

  23. Rosy says

    I have a question.. do you really need to use low sodium soy sauce? Would it make a huge difference in taste if you just use regular soy sauce? I’m asking because low sodium soy sauce are expensive in my country. I also wanna ask if it’s ok to cook this with other parts of chicken.. with bones and skin and how much salt and pepper did you use to season the chicken? 1/4 teaspoon each? Sorry for so many question.

    Reply

    • Kathryn Doherty says

      Hi Rosy! I prefer low-sodium soy sauce because it’s much less sodium overall. It has less of a salty flavor, but yes, you can use regular. I would recommend going light on using salt on the chicken in that case. Otherwise, for seasoning, you just want to sprinkle all of your chicken evenly with salt and black pepper. And yes, you can substitute other types of chicken, but the cook time will be different. Hope that helps!

      Reply

  25. Richard Pooldaily says

    AMAZING! My family LOVED this recipe. I made 1.6 pounds of chicken, so I doubled both the cornstarch mix and the sauce. It was perfect. The extra sauce was great for my hubby and kids (served theirs on a bed of white rice). 5 STARS ALL THE WAY.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Food & Recipes

Follow me!

Baby Food Cookbook

Sign up and get my FREE e-cookbook, Easy Weeknight Dinners!

Skip to Recipe