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 fork resting in a bite of a slice of a chicken breast cooked in a honey butter sauce in a baking dish.

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!

Close up of honey butter chicken in a white casserole dish with a bunch of parsley on the side and a bowl of rice in the background

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.

Overhead shot of honey butter chicken in a white casserole dish before being cooked

Four chicken breasts in a baking dish with a honey butter sauce and fresh parsley to the side as garnish.

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!

Honey butter chicken served over brown rice with snow peas and asparagus on a white round plate

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

Close up of a fork with a cut piece of honey butter chicken on top of a baking dish with the chicken and sauce.

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4.25 from 8 votes

Honey Butter Chicken

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!

Prep Time10

Cook Time45

Total Time55

Yield: 4 servings

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

The chicken freezes well, so you can pack the extras in a freezer bag to have on hand for a busy night.
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

Tried this recipe?Leave a comment below or follow me on Instagram @familyfoodonthetable and tag me in your photo!

Note: This post has been updated with new photos and a recipe video. The original post is from July 2015.

Comments

Faye Wilkerson

July 23, 2015 at 10:08 pm

I love honey on my fried chicken, so I know I would like this.

- Kathryn
  
  July 24, 2015 at 8:47 am
  
  Oh yes! It's such a good combo, Faye!
  
Bridget - The Recipe Wench

July 24, 2015 at 1:30 am

You had me at "honey butter." This sounds delicious and easy. Thanks so much -- I can't wait to try it!

- Kathryn
  
  July 24, 2015 at 8:47 am
  
  Thanks Bridget! Hope you enjoy it!
  
Fareeha

July 26, 2015 at 4:56 am

Looks delicious ! Can't wait to try it.

- Kathryn
  
  July 26, 2015 at 7:52 pm
  
  Thanks Fareeha! It's such a great go-to dinner - hope you love it!
  
Priya

July 31, 2015 at 11:22 pm

ooh! butter chicken looks amazing!

- Kathryn
  
  August 02, 2015 at 9:08 am
  
  Thanks Priya! It's so easy and so tasty!
  
Carlee

August 07, 2015 at 9:41 am

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
  
  August 07, 2015 at 2:40 pm
  
  Thanks Carlee! It's so easy and so tasty! Hope you love it!
  
Maxabella

August 13, 2015 at 5:57 am

Sounds delish, Kathryn. I will give this one a go. x

- Kathryn
  
  August 13, 2015 at 6:19 am
  
  Thanks Maxabella! It's such an easy recipe and turns out so flavorful. Hope you enjoy it!
  
Katy

September 02, 2015 at 8:45 pm

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
  
  September 03, 2015 at 6:24 am
  
  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

October 08, 2015 at 9:33 pm

I love moist chicken. This sounds terrific. Pinned and following you there. 🙂

- Kathryn
  
  October 09, 2015 at 3:57 pm
  
  Thanks so much! I bet you'll love this easy chicken recipe! XO
  
Quinn Caudill

October 13, 2015 at 10:00 am

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
  
  October 13, 2015 at 1:28 pm
  
  Thanks so much, Quinn! Will try to help spread the word about the great party you guys have 🙂
  
Shinee

March 15, 2018 at 3:09 pm

LOVE how easy it is!! YUM!

- Kathryn
  
  March 18, 2018 at 12:30 pm
  
  Thanks!!
  
Carolyn

March 16, 2018 at 6:05 pm

I can't wait to try making this!

- Kathryn
  
  March 18, 2018 at 12:30 pm
  
  I hope you love it!
  
Lauren Taylor

March 16, 2018 at 8:52 pm

This sounds so good!

- Kathryn
  
  March 18, 2018 at 12:31 pm
  
  Thanks Lauren!