Honey butter chicken is an easy, hands-off and family-friendly recipe that's perfect for a weeknight dinner! It takes just a few simple ingredients but comes out with so much flavor!
A hands-off dinner is such a help on busy nights, right?
Whether you need your two hands to hold a baby, help with homework or finish up work or laundry, it’s great to have a few staple dinners that don’t require your constant attention.
This is one of those staples.
Honey butter chicken is super moist and delicious! You mix up the sauce, coat the chicken in it and stick it in the oven. Done!
No need to marinate ahead of time. You just put it all together at once and get on with your night. The sauce does all the marinating and glazing work for you in the oven.
Which leaves me free to focus on my little ones and make sure the crayons are being used on the paper, the play doh isn't getting ground into the carpet and no one's taken anyone else's truck or baby doll.
We've had some theft problems between M and J recently.
When J was little, he didn't care if his big sister took something he was holding from time to time. Now that he's almost 2 and knows the word "mine," it's a problem.
A big one with lots of tears. And sometimes, hair pulling. No good. If you have ideas, I'm open!
But back to dinner.
Let's talk about how to serve this up.
It's really versatile, but here's a few of our favorites.
Serving Ideas:
- I like serving this honey butter chicken over brown rice (which also doesn’t require attention and is ready in about the same time).
- Or sometimes I'm in the mood for a potato (who are we kidding? I'm always in the mood for a potato!) and I pair this with my 10-minute microwave potatoes or some creamy mashed potatoes.
- Pasta - can't go wrong. We prefer whole wheat and I think a long noodle like spaghetti would be nice with this chicken, but you can use whatever you like.
- You could even do polenta or quinoa here. Basically, you just want something to sop up those yummy honey-mustard-butter juices.
- For a vegetable, steam some broccoli or asparagus, sauté some spinach or just heat up some frozen peas and you’ve got a delicious meal on the table!
This also freezes well, so you can double the recipe and store some away to pull out another night.
So go and use your hands for something else -- whether it's wiping away tears and giving hugs, reading a book or pouring a glass of wine (or all 3 in quick succession) -- because dinner is taken care of.
Also, check out all of my easy chicken recipes. Or my easy chicken recipes with few ingredients - all 5 ingredients or less like this one - for more inspiration.
Enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
Honey Butter Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- ½ cup honey
- ¼ cup yellow mustard
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Melt butter in a pan on the stove (or in a bowl in the microwave). Add remaining ingredients (honey through curry powder) and stir to combine.
- Dip each chicken piece in the mixture and turn to coat both sides. Place chicken in a single layer in 9x12 pan. Pour remaining sauce over chicken.
- Bake for 45 minutes, until chicken is cooked and glazed.
- Serve over brown rice or noodles, or atop a baked potato, to soak up the delicious juices.
Notes
You also could use chicken thighs or other chicken pieces, but you may need to adjust the cooking time to make sure everything cooks through properly.
Video
Nutrition
Note: This post has been updated with new photos and a recipe video. The original post is from July 2015.
Faye Wilkerson
I love honey on my fried chicken, so I know I would like this.
Kathryn
Oh yes! It's such a good combo, Faye!
Bridget - The Recipe Wench
You had me at "honey butter." This sounds delicious and easy. Thanks so much -- I can't wait to try it!
Kathryn
Thanks Bridget! Hope you enjoy it!
Fareeha
Looks delicious ! Can't wait to try it.
Kathryn
Thanks Fareeha! It's such a great go-to dinner - hope you love it!
Priya
ooh! butter chicken looks amazing!
Kathryn
Thanks Priya! It's so easy and so tasty!
Carlee
Oh yum! We eat a lot of chicken and new recipes are always welcomed. We will have to try this for sure! Pinning to remember!
Kathryn
Thanks Carlee! It's so easy and so tasty! Hope you love it!
Maxabella
Sounds delish, Kathryn. I will give this one a go. x
Kathryn
Thanks Maxabella! It's such an easy recipe and turns out so flavorful. Hope you enjoy it!
Katy
Making this for the second time in 2 weeks. I love that I don't have to check it every 5 minutes and I have some free time. Husband and kids both eat it up! Thanks for a new and EASY recipe!
Kathryn
I'm so happy to hear you love it! Aren't hands-off recipes like this the best? No fussing and yet a delicious dinner to serve - total win!
Heaven Smiling
I love moist chicken. This sounds terrific. Pinned and following you there. 🙂
Kathryn
Thanks so much! I bet you'll love this easy chicken recipe! XO
Quinn Caudill
This sounds great. Easy and healthy. Pinned! Thanks for sharing with us at #Throwback Thursday link party. Please join us again next week and invite your friends to join.
Kathryn
Thanks so much, Quinn! Will try to help spread the word about the great party you guys have 🙂
Shinee
LOVE how easy it is!! YUM!
Kathryn
Thanks!!
Carolyn
I can't wait to try making this!
Kathryn
I hope you love it!
Lauren Taylor
This sounds so good!
Kathryn
Thanks Lauren!