Baked Honey Garlic Chicken

Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 4 servings

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These Baked Honey Garlic Chicken Breasts are sweet and savory with a bit of kick! They come together with a few minutes prep and one pan!

See the step by step recipe video down in the recipe card.

overhead image of honey garlic chicken breasts in baking dish

Honey garlic is one of our favorite sauces for pouring over chicken!

That sweet, savory, tangy combination is just so good, and I love how easy it is to make from scratch. (We use the same sauce in this Instant Pot Honey Garlic Chicken, this Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin and Potatoes, and these Sheet Pan Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs!)

With April being all about these perfect Baked Chicken Breasts, I wanted to come up with a few ways to take our 6 Ingredient Staple to the next level.

First up were these Tuscan Chicken Breasts — rich and creamy and perfect over pasta!

Naturally, a honey garlic version had to happen next ๐Ÿ˜‰

This Honey Garlic Chicken is made with just a few ingredients and takes only a few minutes to prep! Plus, since it’s baked instead of pan-fried, there’s no babysitting, which is maybe my favorite part.

Even though this recipe is simple, I wanted to share a few tips and tricks to make sure your chicken is perfectly cooked and flavorful!

How to make Baked Honey Garlic Chicken:

  1. Flatten your chicken breasts slightly so they are roughly the same size: this will ensure they cook evenly and that one side doesn’t end up completely dried out! Simply cover in plastic wrap and use a rolling pin or a small frying pan to flatten the thick end slightly. If you skip this step, you may require a longer cook time.
  2. Dry your chicken with paper towels. Drying them will make sure there isn’t excess moisture in the pan, which prevents browning.
  3. Drizzle and rub: rub your chicken all over with canola oil and then sprinkle on the seasoning. I like to give it a chance to cook and brown slightly on the outside before adding my sauce.
  4. While your chicken is cooking, stir together the sauce. Because there’s a good amount of sugar in the sauce, I like to add it to the chicken just for the last half of the cook time so that it doesn’t burn.
  5. Finish cooking: your chicken breasts are done when the thickest part of the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Do not cut them open to check for doneness — if you don’t have a meat thermometer, get on over to Amazon and buy one. It’s the only way to really know when it’s cooked and protect against overcooking!
  6. Rest: Cover and let your chicken rest for at least 10 minutes or up to 20. This ensures the juices stay inside the chicken and don’t leak out when you slice them.
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Ingredients and Substitutions:

  • Chicken breasts: you could swap these for boneless, skinless chicken thighs, and the cook time will remain the same. You can double the amount of thighs or use the same total weight.
  • Seasoning: I kept the seasoning simple so that it wouldn’t overpower the sauce. You can always adjust slightly if desired, just don’t go too crazy here!
  • Honey: you want plain, clear, liquid honey here and not flavored or creamed. For sweetness! Since this is honey garlic chicken, you probably shouldn’t swap for another sweetener ๐Ÿ˜‰
  • Garlic: I usually have a big jar of minced garlic stashed in my fridge, but finely chopped or even sliced works great! If you like the flavor but not the chunks, then opt for sliced garlic and you can pull it out later.
  • Soy sauce: I always, always use low sodium soy sauce. If you’re using regular soy sauce, you may want to adjust the amount of salt in the seasoning or swap some of the soy sauce with water to reduce the saltiness.
  • Apple cider vinegar: for a punch of flavor! You can use regular white vinegar if you must, but I really like using apple cider vinegar in this recipe.

Want to make this recipe your own? Add some heat! A pinch or two of red pepper flakes goes a long way in the sauce if you like things spicy.

close up image of sliced honey garlic chicken breast

How to prep this recipe ahead:

  • You can flatten your chicken breasts and store them in your baking dish until you’re ready to bake.
  • Stir together your seasoning (and you can always make a jumbo batch and store it in your spice cupboard!) and store for a day or for several months
  • Whisk together your sauce and refrigerate it up to 1 week before using — just be sure to give it a good whisk before you pour it on the chicken

How to store leftover honey garlic chicken breasts:

Got leftover Honey Garlic Chicken? Lucky you!

It doesn’t happen often around here, but I love how versatile this recipe is and we love the leftovers.

You can store any leftover chicken in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

You can also place in a freezer safe container or zip-top freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.

sliced honey garlic chicken on plate with rice

What to serve with this Honey Garlic Chicken:

We absolutely love serving this chicken over rice to soak up all of that delicious sauce!

This Instant Pot Brown Rice is our go-to (it could not be easier!), but any rice will do.

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Baked Honey Garlic Chicken

4.90 from 47 votes
These Baked Honey Garlic Chicken Breasts are sweet and savory with a bit of kick! They come together with a few minutes prep and one pan!
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Cuisine American
Course Main Course
Servings 4 servings
Calories 327cal

Ingredients

  • 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (breast halves)
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper

Honey Garlic Sauce

  • cup clear honey
  • ¼ cup low sodium chicken broth (or sub water)
  • 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch
  • red pepper flakes (optional – for a bit of heat!)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
  • Place chicken breasts on a cutting board and cover with a piece of plastic wrap. Use a smooth meat mallet, rolling pin or small frying pan to flatten the thick ends of the breasts so that they are roughly the same thickness.
  • Place chicken breasts in a 9×13" baking dish (or larger — you don't want them to be squished together or they will take longer to bake) and season with salt and pepper.
  • Bake for 10 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, whisk together the sauce ingredients: honey, broth, soy sauce, garlic, vinegar, salt, corn starch, and pepper flakes if using.
  • After the chicken has cooked for 10 minutes, remove the pan from the oven and pour the sauce over top. (*Note: I tested adding the sauce from the beginning, and it does work, but with the high amount of sugar you do risk the sauce burning around the edges if you add it for the full 20 minutes).
  • Bake for another 10-12 minutes, until the thickest part of the chicken registers a temperature of 165 degrees F. If your sauce has not thickened yet (it should have!), you can place it back in the oven for a couple of minutes.
  • Cover the chicken and allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

*1 serving is 1 chicken breast with roughly ¼ cup sauce (you may have more sauce depending on how many juices are released from the chicken)

Nutrition Information

Calories: 327cal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 72mg | Sodium: 842mg | Potassium: 509mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 47g | Vitamin A: 35IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 26mg | Iron: 1mg
Keywords baked chicken, honey garlic chicken

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Meet Ashley

My name is Ashley Fehr and I love creating easy meals my family loves. I also like to do things my way, which means improvising and breaking the rules when necessary. Here you will find creative twists on old favorites and some of my favorite family recipes, passed down from generations!

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Comments

  1. teachermrw says

    I cooked this tonight for my brother and me. We thought it was delicious, and would not change ANYTHING. Thank you!

  2. marcy smith says

    I made the baked honey garlic chicken with rice on the side and ooooh sooooo yummy thank you so much for this recipe I will be making again and again

  3. Brooke says

    Overall, the chicken was good. As I was reading the reviews I resonated with one in relation to the apple cider vinegar. I wouldnโ€™t say it ruined the chicken, but I could taste it more than I would like. I think next time Iโ€™ll half the apple cider vinegar!! My husband absolutely loved it, and didnโ€™t complain!!

  4. Vicki says

    Omg this was delicious Thank you for sharing So tender and loved the flavor I used clover honey and rice vinegar in place of apple cider vinegar because i was out

  5. Megan B says

    I made this tonight with the chicken breasts I had thawed out and like every other recipe Iโ€™ve tried on here, this one was amazing too! Will definitely be making it again!

  6. Karen says

    Yum! Didn’t use corn starch or chicken broth. Did in skillet and browned with butter first, then added sauce for remainder of cooking time. Flattening is key! Was quicker but just as yummy! Thanks for the recipe!

  7. Kylie says

    The Apple cider vinegar completely ruined this dish, unfortunately. No one in the family could eat it and it went in the trash ๐Ÿ™

    • The Recipe Rebel says

      Hi Kylie, I’m sorry to hear you had problems with the recipe. Not sure why such a little amount of the vinegar would ruin the recipe for you, but I know we all have different taste. Next time you might be able to just reduce it based on your taste.

  8. Michele says

    OMG! Ashley, this recipe is delicious. I used boneless, skinless thighs, and it came out so perfect. It is tasty with just enough spice from that optional pinch of red pepper flakes. Definitely one for the โ€œkeep and make againโ€ file ๐Ÿ˜Š

  9. alicia says

    Hello Ashley, I made the honey garlic chicken and it came amazing. I used rice flour instead of the corn starch. Thank you!

  10. Danielle says

    Your recipes are always a hit in my house, and this one is no exception. Thanks for making cooking easy and fun!!

  11. Isabel says

    Made this today together with your honey glazed carrots, so delicious! Probably too much honey for somebody else but not for me. Haven’t eaten a meal this good in a while. Thank you so much!

  12. Samantha S. says

    Seriously, soooo good! I double the sauce recipe because my family just loves it! I’ve made this with steamed broccoli and rice, and even my kids (3&5)gobble it up! Thank you for such awesome (and easy) recipes!!!

  13. Karen says

    Am I able to swap the chicken for boneless pork chops in this recipe? (Just trying to use up whatโ€™s in the freezer!)

  14. Bri says

    So yummy, my goodness my whole family loved it. Next time I make it though, I’ll probably put the sauce in from the start because I like it a bit thicker, but every one needs to try this!

4.90 from 47 votes (29 ratings without comment)

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