Honey Garlic Baked Chicken Thighs

Name: Honey Garlic Baked Chicken Thighs
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 1 kg chicken thighs (bone-in, skin-on (note 1)); 3 tbsp honey; 1 tbsp soy sauce; 1 tbsp dark soy sauce; 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar (substitute: lemon juice); 3 cloves garlic (minced); ½ tsp sesame oil; 1 tbsp olive oil; ½ tsp salt; ¼ tsp black pepper

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For a tasty yet easy weeknight dinner with big flavours, look no further than this sticky honey garlic baked chicken thighs recipe!

Takes about 45 minutes and pairs perfectly with rice and simply prepared vegetables.

The trick in getting this honey soy chicken bake right is by reducing the perfectly balanced, lightly tangy, honey soy garlic sauce before baking (see below for exactly how). This will ensure maximum flavour and deliciousness.

Love tasty dinners? Also check out my baked honey glazed salmon, honey butter chicken bites, baked BBQ chicken thighs, 5-ingredient sticky wings or take a browse of all quick and easy dinner recipes!

5 baked chicken thigh skin-on, bone-in on a white plate topped with sliced spring onions and sesame seeds

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Ingredients
Cooking step by step (with pictures)
Serving suggestion
Useful tips and tricks
FAQs
Video
📖 Recipe

Ingredients

Chicken thighs (skin-on, bone-in) - works best for this recipe. The lightly blistered skin tastes really good! Substitute: boneless, skinless chicken thighs (reduce bake time to 30 minutes, flipping halfway).
Dark soy sauce - richer in colour and flavour compared to normal soy sauce and is also less salty. Using a mix of both provides the best result: looks and tastes great.
Rice wine vinegar - the acidity cuts through the richness of the sauce, creating a good balance of savoury, sweet, tangy and garlicky! Substitute: lemon juice.
Olive oil - helps the chicken skin blister faster (and therefore, its fat render) which will taste delicious and not too fatty.

Cooking step by step (with pictures)

This easy honey garlic baked chicken thighs takes about 45 minutes to make, with 2 core steps:

Make the honey soy garlic sauce into a glaze consistency
Bake the chicken thighs

Make honey soy garlic sauce

This step is crucial in getting the flavour of the chicken and the sauce right.

If the sauce isn't reduced before baking then it'll be too watery resulting in a rather bland chicken.

Watery sauce = won't stick onto the chicken = not as flavoursome = sad dinner

Also try my popular 25-minute baked honey glazed salmon recipe where I used this same technique for a super tasty, buttery, tender and moist salmon dinner.

Okay, now let's start.

garlic being added into a saucepan with caption

In a small saucepan, add minced garlic, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, honey, rice wine vinegar, olive oil, sesame oil, salt and black pepper.

Bubbling honey soy garlic sauce being stirred in a saucepan with caption

Bring up to a gentle boil over low heat then simmer for 2 to 3 minutes to reduce the sauce.

Stir constantly - no slacking off! This is important so that the sauce does not burn (which will turn bitter).

Close up of a teaspoonful of glaze over a saucepan with caption

The consistency of this garlicky honey soy sauce should be a little thick.

If for sauce becomes too thick (like that of caramel), then you've reduced it too much. Simple fix: add a small dash of water (about 1 tsp) and mix until the sauce is loose but not watery.

Bake the chicken

Now comes the fun part.

Honey soy garlic glaze being drizzled over chicken thighs in a lined baking tray with caption

Place chicken thighs on a large, lined baking tray, skin side down.

Spread half of the sauce over the chicken and brush evenly with a brush (or use your hand - whatever you prefer).

Sauce being brushed over chicken in a baking tray with caption

Flip the chicken and brush evenly with the remaining sauce.

Pop it into the oven and bake at 200°C in the middle shelf.

Half baked chicken thighs on a lined baking tray with caption

After 20 minutes, the chicken skin should be blistering nicely.

Chicken thigh being flipped over using a pair of tongs with caption

Glaze the chicken skin with the sauce in the pan then flip them over to skin side down.

Note: you'll find that the sauce will be rather watery at this point. This is because the chicken had released its juices (and some fat) whilst baking up to this point. Thus it is super important to reduce the sauce before baking.

No need to worry, the sauce will reduce itself during the second half of the baking time.

Trust the process.

Sauce being brushed over half baked chicken thighs with captions

Brush the second side of the chicken with the glaze.

Fully baked chicken thighs in a lined baking tray with caption

Bake for 15 more minutes or until fully cooked. Look at the colour!

Honey soy garlic glaze being brushed over cooked chicken thighs in a lined baking tray with caption

Brush the chicken one last time with the glaze on both sides.

See how nice and appetising the chicken looks? When chicken comes out looking like this you know it's going to taste great. This is why glazing is so important!

You'll also find that the sauce is no longer watery by this point and is perfect to serve the honey garlic baked chicken thighs with.

Cover loosely with foil paper (aluminium) for about 10 minutes then serve.

Love baked chicken thighs? Also try my baked BBQ chicken thighs recipe!

5 baked honey soy garlic chicken thighs on a white plate

Serving suggestion

Serve these honey garlic baked chicken thighs with rice and steamed or simply sauteed vegetables.

Vegetable suggestions: broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, zucchini, stir fried spinach, green beans, Asian leafy greens, etc. A healthy and easy bok choy soup is also a good, hearty option.

The sticky honey soy chicken sauce is the real hero here so make sure to drizzle the chicken generously before serving!

Close up of glossy baked honey soy garlic chicken thighs on a white round plate

Useful tips and tricks

Rest the honey baked chicken thighs in the baking tray with its sauces for 10 minutes before serving. This gives the sauce extra time to sip into the chicken, making it taste even better. Plus, rest time after baking meat is important in general for the meat to relax whilst the juices redistribute throughout the meat.
Constantly stir the honey soy glaze when reducing. This will prevent the sauce from burning (both honey and soy sauce burn easily if not careful).
If the honey soy glaze becomes too thick, add some water. If you got carried away when reducing (happens to all of us) and the sauce has turned caramel-like in consistency, add a teaspoon of water and mix until loose.
If using boneless, skinless chicken thighs, reduce bake time to 30 minutes. Same process, just turn and glaze the chicken halfway through baking.

Bonus tip (to impress): sprinkle with thin, diagonally sliced spring onions and sesame seeds for a beautiful presentation!

Close up of baked chicken thigh on a white plate covered in sauce

FAQs

What is the honey garlic sauce made of?

Honey, soy sauce (dark & normal), garlic, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, olive oil, salt and pepper.

What is the best temperature to bake chicken thighs?

200°C/390°F (or 400°F) is ideal.

Why are my baked chicken thighs tough?

3 possible reasons:
1. Chicken was overcooked.
2. No rest time between taking out of the oven and serving (see tip above).
3. Chicken was frozen before. Meat tends to lose its juiciness after freezing so best use fresh.

Made this recipe? Let me know your thoughts or questions by dropping a note in the comments section below.

I'd love to hear from you. 🙂

- Gen