By:Nagi
1,331 Comments
Honey Garlic Chicken is an epic 12 minute chicken breast recipe with a magic 5 ingredient Honey Garlic Sauce! This is a terrific back pocket quick dinner idea for busy nights that’s made with pantry staples. It’s quite amazing how so few ingredients can transform into such a tasty sauce for chicken!
BONUS: This can be made with any protein – beef, pork, lamb, shrimp/prawns, even tofu!
Honey Garlic Chicken Breast
This sauce for chicken breast isa variation of my Honey Garlic Salmon which has been popular with readers for many years.
If I were ever to do a summary of my top 5 Most Used Sauces, Honey Garlic Sauce would probably be right at the top of the list. I love it because it requires so few ingredients that are pantry staples, and when simmered with a seared protein in a skillet so it becomes all bubbly and syrupy…. oh WOW.
It’s just DA BOMB!!! ( <– Who talks like that at my age???! I do. Only in extenuating circ*mstances. Excitement over crazy delicious secret-weapon sauce falls under this category. 😎)
Terrific quick chicken breast recipe
Though I personally have a preference for chicken thighs over chicken breast (better flavour, juicier!), I find myself putting chicken breast in my shopping trolley week after week.
Thus over the years, I’ve built up a wide variety of quick and easy chicken breast recipes – and this Honey Garlic Chicken is one of my favourite quick dinners that I find myself making over and over again.
What you need
See? I told you that you’d have everything! 😉
How to make Honey Garlic Chicken Breast
Split chicken breast in half – so 2 breasts makes 4 pieces;
Dust chicken with flour (gives the chicken a slight crust so the sauce clings to it better!)
Sear chicken, add butter, garlic, vinegar, soy sauce, honey.
Simmer until the sauce thickens. Turn chicken to coat in the amazing honey garlic sauce.
And THAT’S IT!
Want to BBQ it?Use this Grilled Honey Soy Chicken recipe instead.
Notice how the sauce is clinging to the surface? That’s because we dusted the chicken with flour so when it’s pan fried, it creates a crust.
What to serve with Honey Garlic Chicken Breast
There’s enough sauce to drizzle over veggies and soak into rice or whatever you serve it with. The flavour is strong enough such that you don’t need loads – a bit goes a long way!
It’s pictured above with Cauliflower Rice(tossed with a squeeze of lemon, parsley, salt and pepper) with Cucumber Salad on the side.
Even though it’s got soy sauce in the Honey Garlic Sauce, this doesn’t taste specifically Asian-y. But it’s versatile enough that it will go just as well with Fried Rice as it will with a Macaroni Salador even Mac and Cheese. Yes really! Try it once and you’ll understand (it only takes 12 minutes, you’ve got the time!!)– Nagi x
Honey Garlic Chicken breast recipe
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.
Honey Garlic Chicken Breast
Author: Nagi
Prep: 4 minutes mins
Cook: 8 minutes mins
Total: 12 minutes mins
Mains
Western
4.97 from 600 votes
Servings4
Tap or hover to scale
Recipe video above. An incredible quick and easy way to serve up chicken breast – seared then simmered in the most amazing honey garlic sauce. Don't be deceived by the short ingredient list! It's absolutely worth the extra step of dusting the chicken with flour because it creates a crust for the sauce to cling to.BONUS: See notes for how to make this with any protein – beef, pork, lamb, prawns/shrimp, tofu!
Ingredients
- 500g / 1 lb chicken breast , boneless and skinless (2 pieces)
- Salt and pepper
- 1/4 cup flour (Note 1)
- 3 1/2 tbsp (50g) unsalted butter (or 2 1/2 tbsp olive oil)
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar (or white or other clear vinegar)
- 1 tbsp soy sauce , light or all purpose (Note 2)
- 1/3 cup honey (or maple syrup)
Instructions
Cut the breasts in half horizontally to create 4 steaks in total. Sprinkle each side with salt and pepper.
Place flour in a shallow dish. Coat chicken in flour and shake off excess.
Melt most of the butter in a large skillet over high heat – hold back about 1 tsp for later.
Place chicken in skillet and cook for 2 – 3 minutes until golden. Turn and cook the other side for 1 minute.
Turn heat down slightly to medium high.
Make a bit of room in the pan and add garlic and top with remaining dab of butter. Stir garlic briefly once butter melts.
Add vinegar, soy sauce and honey. Stir / shake pan to combine. Bring sauce to simmer, then simmer for 1 minute or until slightly thickened.
Turn chicken to coat in sauce. If the sauce gets too thick, add a touch of water and stir.
Remove from stove immediately. Place chicken on plates and drizzle over remaining sauce.
Recipe Notes:
1. Gluten free– use cornflour / cornstarch instead. It won’t brown quite as evenly but once covered in sauce, you won’t know the difference.
2. Soy Sauce – Light or all purpose soy sauce is suitable for this recipe. I don’t recommend using Dark Soy Sauce (flavour will dominate, bottle label will say if it is Dark Soy Sauce).
3. Other proteins:This sauce is ideal to use for any protein that is suitable for searing in a pan. Use chops, steaks, cutlets! Follow the recipe as written, including dusting the protein with flour. Just adjust the cook time – the trick is to add the garlic and other sauce ingredients before it is fully cooked through, so the meat finishes cooking as the sauce reduces down into a syrupy consistency.
Tofu –Use FIRM tofu. Cut “steaks” about 0.75cm / 1/4″ thick. Pat dry, spray or rub with oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, THEN lightly coat with flour. Coat base of skillet with oil over medium high heat, then cook tofu 1 min each side until crispy, then remove onto paper towels. Then make the sauce in a small saucepan or skillet using just 2 tbsp (30g) butter (instead of 3.5 tbsp), following recipe from Step 5. Serve with crispy tofu!
Prawns/shrimp – use large prawns (thaw, drain well and pat dry if using frozen). Lightly coat prawns with flour per recipe and sear for 1 minute on the first side, then just 30 seconds on the other side before proceeding with Step 5.
Fish – cook per recipe for chicken breast. This sauce is very, very good with fish! This is a good sauce for economical fish because it’s a strong flavoured sauce. For expensive fish, I think it’s better to let the flavour of the fish come through and serve with an elegant sauce like this Lemon Butter Sauce.
4. Nutrition per serving, assuming you scrape every drop of Sauce from the pan, and why wouldn’t you? 🙂
Nutrition Information:
Serving: 166gCalories: 323cal (16%)Carbohydrates: 23g (8%)Protein: 28g (56%)Fat: 13g (20%)Saturated Fat: 7g (44%)Cholesterol: 107mg (36%)Sodium: 400mg (17%)Potassium: 486mg (14%)Sugar: 21g (23%)Vitamin A: 350IU (7%)Vitamin C: 2mg (2%)Calcium: 12mg (1%)Iron: 1mg (6%)
Keywords: Baked Chicken Breast, chicken breast recipe, honey chicken, Honey Garlic Chicken, sauce for chicken
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @recipe_tin.
Honey Garlic Chicken breast recipe originally published February 2018, it has since been improved with new photos and video but no change to recipe (I wouldn’t dare, readers love it as it is!).
More quick and easy chickenbreast recipes
Life of Dozer
The fish down at the beach taunt Dozer endlessly, splashing around and leaping out of the water. Sometimes he’ll be in the water swimming non stop chasing fish for an hour! It’s brilliant – no effort required on my part!
Hi, I'm Nagi!
I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!
Read More
Free Recipe eBooks
Join my free email list to receive THREE free cookbooks!
Related Posts
Chicken Cacciatore (Italian chicken stew)
One pot chicken risoni with crispy salami
Thai Turmeric Chicken
More Chicken
Reader Interactions
Leave a Comment
1,331 Comments
Linda says
This was very good. Had it along with Nagi’s buttery seasoned rice for dinner this evening. Even my husband, who has got to the point that he dislikes me trying something new (which I love to do) said it was good. So flavorful.Reply
Kaylee says
AMAZINGReply
Alex Henry says
I know anything from Nagi is going to be a slammer. This was so easy and was AMAZING! I used cornstarch to make gf and doubled the sauce as I had a lot of chicken. Will be added to the rotation. Thank YOU!!Reply
LF says
I made this honey garlic chicken breast tonight. Everyone in family enjoyed. Made as per recipe, but cooked a bit longer. Some of my chicken thicker and some thinner, just put thicker pieces in first and in hottest part of frying pan – all were cooked well and tender. Probably cooked bit longer than recipe. Served on bed of rice then broccoli then chicken breast, sauce drizzled over and around all. Will make again. Very quick and easy, and had everything on hand. Thank you Nagi 😊Reply
Emma lisa Whinnery says
I can’t believe how easy and quick this was to make and it is GOOOOOOOD! We had it with noodles and peas which I added to the pan and cooked for a minute at the end. Even my 5 year old picky eater said he liked it. Winner, winner, chicken dinner 🤤Reply
Dani says
Has anyone turned this into a stir fry?
Reply
Katrina Macmillan says
I just made this with chopped up chook boneless thighs, and it was deeeelish! I added chili sauce as well.Reply
Bev Power says
Just made this for the first time, it was so easy and so, so good. It will be a regular meal for my family and friends for sure. I have made your Brisket recipe, I’m not a big beef fan but this is on of my favorite meals also. Thank you.Reply
Grace says
2nd time serving this to my partner and it’s truly chef-approved! Paired this with your fried rice recipe, Nagi. So so good! The honey garlic sauce was spot on. Huge thanks for this! xReply
Courtney says
I made this tonight in no time and it was so delicious! I want it to be known, this is where I go for all of my meals 90% of the time and I always makes something new and it is always so good! Nagi is the best! I also want to say, I hope Dozer is healing well. He has been in my thoughts and prayers 🙏 ❤️
Reply
Jess says
Best chicken recipe ever! Can’t believe I haven’t found this earlierReply
Nancy says
Amazing! I made this with pork and my husband ate every bit of it. He just kept saying “this is amazing” and the best part is that it’s so easy to make. Thank you!
Reply
Maxine M says
O. M. G absolutely delicious! I’ve just finished making and devouring this, but I made it with pork chops instead, served with boiled rice and carrots and broccoli and it went down a treat! So much so I want to eat the other half I saved. Yum yum thank you, Nagi. I’ll definitely be making it again soon. Oh and my teen daughter liked the sauce so I’m sure she will enjoy it aswell.Reply
Mikki lynn says
This was really good and easy to make, I swapped out the chicken for boneless Porkchops and the sauce works really well with them. Paired with some white rice this was a quick and delicious mealReply
Ace says
Made this last night and my family loved it. My son, who is an aspiring chef said it tasted like it had come from a restaurant. Thank you for the easy and delicious recipe!Reply
E R says
Thank you for this recipe! I have a ton of chicken breast and a picky husband and daughter. They both ate this up. I did add more spices to my husband’s and my portions because we like spice, but now I know how to prepare chicken breast without a ton of work. You’re the best. ❤️Reply
Tina says
I chose this recipe because I needed a chicken recipe without some overnight marinade. I made wild rice to eat with it. It was amazing! I did end up eating it until 11:30 pm because I started late but it was a great meal and my dad and sister loved it too.Reply
Joan Swiftman says
I swapped out chicken breasts for chicken nibbles and gave them a double coating of 00 flour. The result? A wonderfully crispy exterior on the chicken, and the flavor was absolutely delicious—finger-licking good!Reply
Dionysia Knight says
I’ve cooked your dish tonight and I found it very tasty!!
I followed your instructions and the results were exactly as expected!! It will definitely become a staple!! Thank you for this simple recipe. NoniReply
Amanda Jett says
I don’t usually comment on recipes (good or bad), but I HAD to leave a note about this one.I’m always nervous about chicken recipes because they either all taste the same, or come out dry, but this one was absolutely delicious!
Thank you for this new quick and easy dinner option!
Reply
Rob B. says
Used this recipe tonight for diner and it was excellent.Reply