Irresistibly sticky, this gorgeous mahogany brown baked honey garlic chicken is meltingly tender. It's hard to believe that something so good and so beautiful is so easy to make. Make a big batch to meal prep lunches all week!
Equipment
large cast iron or everyday pan
Ingredients
1cuphoney
3tablespoonsSriracha or your favourite hot sauce
1tablespoonapple cider vinegar
8clovesgarlicpeeled and minced
1 1/2teaspoonskosher salt
3/4teaspoonfreshly ground black pepper
1/2teaspoonsmoked paprika
1/4teaspoonmsgoptional
4poundschicken drumsticks or bone-in, skin-on thighs, or a mixture of the two.
1tablespoonlight olive oil
3green onionstrimmed of their roots and thinly sliced
1tablespoonfresh cilantro or parsleyminced
Instructions
Add the honey, hot sauce, apple cider vinegar, garlic, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and msg (if using), to a gallon zipper top bag. Squeeze to combine the ingredients.
Add the chicken drumsticks and/or thighs, squeeze as much air out of the bag as possible, and zip shut thoroughly. Shake around to evenly coat the chicken. Lay this in a bowl or container and refrigerate for at least 4 hours but up to 24 hours.
To Bake the Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs in the Oven or on a Pellet Grill
Place your cast-iron or everyday pan in the oven or on your pellet grill. Preheat the oven or grill to 375ºF.
Drizzle the olive oil in the preheated skillet. Arrange the drumsticks and/or thighs in a single layer in your pre-heated skillet. Pour the marinade over the chicken. Bake for 45 minutes, flipping the chicken every 15 minutes, or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165ºF.
Place pan over a medium high burner and bring the honey garlic sauce to a boil. Lower the heat to medium and let the sauce bubble until it is reduced by about half, about 5 minutes. You can either garnish with thinly sliced green onions and cilantro or parsley now, or go on to the optional glazing step.
Optional Glazing Step
Preheat the broiler in your oven with a rack placed about 8 inches below it.
Slide the pan under the broiler and broil until you see some light charring at the edges of the chicken, about 3-5 minutes. Be sure to watch the chicken carefully as honey glazes can go from pretty to scorched very quickly under a broiler!Flip all of the pieces of chicken and repeat to brown the other side. Garnish with thinly sliced green onions and minced parsley or cilantro.
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.