The Best Chicken Breast Recipe
This chicken breast recipe is very easy to make, It’s juicy and so delicious. This honey garlic chicken breast is cooked in one pan and no special ingredient is required. This recipe takes only 15 minutes to make and the result is amazing!
Some recipes work like magic—they’re so easy yet so delicious, just like this honey garlic chicken. Or, as my subscribers call it, the best chicken breast recipe. And there’s a reason for that: my video recipe has almost gained a million views 😲 and fed thousands of hungry people. Chicken breast is one of the most versatile ingredients—you can make, from healthy chicken salad (which you must try) to comforting chicken pasta bake.
Why You’ll Love Honey Soy Chicken
If you’re looking for the best chicken breast recipe that’s both easy and delicious, honey soy chicken breast is the perfect dish. This recipe stands out for its flavorful glaze, tender chicken, and simple preparation. Here’s why you’ll love this honey soy chicken breast recipe:
- Quick and easy: With minimal ingredients and a straightforward process, this easy chicken breast recipe can be ready in no time.
- Versatile: This scored chicken breast with honey and soy sauce is perfect for weeknight dinners or special occasions.
- Tender and juicy: Scoring the chicken breast helps it cook evenly and absorb all the delicious flavors from the honey and soy chicken glaze.
- Sweet and savory: The combination of honey, soy sauce, and garlic creates a perfect balance of sweet and savory flavors that everyone will enjoy.
- High Protein: Using boneless, skinless chicken breast makes this a lighter option while still being satisfying.
- Customizable: Add more garlic, spice it up with chili flakes, or garnish with parsley for extra flavor and presentation.
Ingredients
- Chicken breast: The star of this recipe. Boneless chicken breast is lean, tender, and absorbs the flavorful honey soy sauce beautifully. It’s perfect for a healthy and versatile meal.
- Salt and pepper: These essential seasonings enhance the natural flavor of the chicken breast and add a simple, classic touch to any dish.
- Flour: Coating the chicken in flour creates a light, crispy exterior when seared, helping the chicken breast turn golden brown and lock in moisture.
- Butter: Adds richness and depth to the dish, giving the chicken breast a beautiful golden color while enhancing the flavor of the honey soy sauce glaze.
- Garlic: Minced garlic infuses the dish with a rich, aromatic base, perfectly complementing the honey and soy sauce.
- Honey: The key ingredient for the sweet component of the glaze, balancing the savory soy sauce and creating that irresistible sticky coating.
- Soy sauce: Adds a savory, umami flavor that contrasts the sweetness of the honey, making this a standout honey soy chicken breast recipe.
- Apple cider vinegar: A touch of acidity helps balance the sweetness and saltiness, brightening the overall flavor of the honey soy chicken breast.
- Parsley (optional): A fresh garnish that adds color and a subtle, herby flavor to the finished dish.
How to Make Honey & Soy Chicken
- Prepare the Chicken: Begin by scoring the chicken breast to help it cook evenly and absorb the flavors. Season the chicken with salt and pepper to enhance its natural taste, then coat each piece with a light layer of flour for a crispy exterior.
2. Cook the Chicken: Melt butter in a large pan and cook the chicken breast over medium-high heat until golden on both sides. This creates a delicious, crispy texture on the outside while keeping the chicken juicy.
3. Make the Glaze: In the same pan, add garlic, honey, soy sauce, and apple cider vinegar to create a flavorful glaze. Cook the mixture for a minute to blend the flavors.
4. Simmer the Chicken: Return the cooked chicken to the pan, allowing it to simmer in the honey and soy sauce glaze. This step ensures the honey soy chicken breast is coated in a sticky, savory-sweet sauce.
5. Garnish and Serve: Finish with chopped parsley for a fresh touch.
Best Served Wih
Pair this honey soy chicken breast with sides that complement its sweet and savory flavors:
- Garlic Naan for a soft, warm bread to soak up the sauce.
- Tabbouleh Salad adds a fresh, zesty contrast to the rich chicken.
- Beetroot and Chickpea Salad offers a crunchy, nutrient-packed side.
- Mashed Potato Fries for a crispy and comforting option.
- Roasted Eggplant with Tahini brings a smoky, creamy complement to this delicious chicken breast recipe.
Substitutes and Variations
This honey soy chicken breast recipe is versatile and can easily be adapted to suit different dietary needs and preferences.
- Gluten-Free Version: To make this dish gluten-free, simply replace the flour with a gluten-free flour blend or cornstarch. This will still give the chicken a crispy exterior without using wheat flour.
- Different Chicken Cuts: While chicken breast is lean and tender, you can also use other cuts like chicken thighs for a juicier result. Bone-in thighs or even chicken drumsticks can work well, but you may need to adjust the cooking time for thicker cuts.
- Honey Alternatives: If you’re looking for a lower sugar option, you can substitute honey with maple syrup or agave nectar. For a less sweet version, you can reduce the amount of honey or add more vinegar for a tangy twist.
- Apple cider vinegar: If you don’t have apple cider vinegar on hand, or prefer a different flavor profile, here are a few alternatives: White wine vinegar, Rice vinegar, Lemon juice or any other vinegar that you like.
How to Store
This honey soy chicken breast is best enjoyed fresh and hot on the day of preparation, as that’s when the chicken is at its juiciest and the glaze is perfectly sticky. If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat gently on the stovetop or in the microwave to preserve the flavor and texture. For the best results, avoid freezing, as the sauce may lose its consistency.
More Chicken Breast Recipes
Looking for more ways to enjoy chicken? Check out these delicious chicken breast recipes for even more inspiration:
The Best Chicken Breast Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 (600 g) Chicken breast
- Salt
- Pepper
- ½ cup (65 g) Flour
- 3 + 1 tablespoons (60 g) Butter devided
- 4 Garlic cloves minced
- 3 tablespoon Honey
- 1 tablespoon Soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon Apple cider vinegar
- Parsley chopped optional
Instructions
- Score chicken breast as shown in the video.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Coat each breast with flour.
- In a large pan, melt 3 tablespoons of butter over medium heat.
- Place floured chicken in the pan and cook over high heat, until golden on both sides.
- When chicken is golden on both sides, remove from the pan and set aside.
- Add 1 tablespoon of butter, crushed garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add honey, soy sauce and apple cider vinegar.
- Place the chicken in the pan and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 1-2 minutes, until slightly thickened.
- Turn the heat off and sprinkle chopped parsley.
Video
Notes
- Watch the Video: For a better understanding of the recipe, I always recommend watching the video recipe, which includes a step-by-step guide to help you succeed.
- FAQs: Make sure you read the FAQs for this recipe which are located below the recipe box for additional tips and troubleshooting! For extra tips and variations read the article.
Nutrition
Common Questions
Absolutely! Chicken thighs will make the dish juicier. Just adjust the cooking time as thighs may take a bit longer to cook through.
You can substitute it with white wine vinegar, rice vinegar, lemon juice, or balsamic vinegar for different flavor profiles.
This dish is best served fresh and hot, but leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Scoring the chicken breast helps it cook evenly and absorb more of the flavorful honey soy glaze.
Yes, you can reduce the amount of honey or replace it with a lower-sugar alternative like maple syrup.
I just made this and the flavors were perfect. Healthier than fried but still has a super flavorful crust and juicy on the inside I exchanged chopped jalapeno peppers for the garlic and it turned out great. Next, will make it for guests.
I use unsalted French,Irish, Icelandic or Land O Lakes Butter, Naked Wild Raw Honey, Coconut Liquid Aminos,Wegmans Organic Chicken Breast,White Vinegar,Served with Basmati Rice, Steamed Broccoli, Prior to the Aminos, I used lower Sodium Tamari. Lovely Dish
Well to me you changed the whole recipe….Hope you renamed it. I’m trying it next week and will be back with how my family enjoyed it….. Thank for the original recipe don’t think I’ll be making your special way of making it.
Today,9/11/22 we fixed this & it’s really good & very easy to prepare! Yes, we’ll be having this again.
I just made this recipe and I can belive how delicious it is!! Tobe honest, I didn’t expect it to taste this good because the preparation is very simple. It was a very nice surprise♡!
Aon top of that it looks very fancy!
Thanks for another amazing recipe 😀 .
This chicken was fantastic! Loved the flavors and how moist it was. Used the pan drippings to sauté some rice I had already cooked and served along side the chicken with some fresh green beans, my husband couldn’t say enough how much he enjoyed the meal!
Sounds quite delicious! So, I’m thinking fried rice to go with it as a side. Do you or anyone else have any other suggestions for good side accompaniments?
We had stir-fried veggies. Everything was so good.
Sounds great! Thank you.
I’m going to Boil egg noodles to al dente. Strain noodles and sauté noodles in butter, garlic, Parmesan cheese and season to taste. You can add fresh minced parsley or dried. Or for a pop of flavor sauté the noodles in Sun Dried tomatoes oil, Parmesan and season to taste.
I made this, it was delicious. After frying breasts, the butter looked bitter, so I removed all liquids, then added the butter to a fresh pan., etc.
I’m going to double the sauce, very flavorful.
Broccoli 🥦 or asparagus with cilantro rice
Wow,it was delicious! I served it with Mexican rice and scalloped potatoes. Combination might sound weird, but there were no complaints.
Sounds yummy!
This was to die for, it was so flavorful, juicy and tender. I had to substitute boneless/skinless thighs, that’s all I had, and it still turned out delicious. This is a recipe which can be put together very quickly if you have all your ingredients ready. THIS IS A MUST TRY Y’ALL.
I made this exact recipe tonight for dinner. I will be making this chicken again! Easy and delicious!!! Fresh carrots, peas and curly fries!
Perfect!
Made this chicken last night, was so good and easy. The family couldn’t believe how good it was for such a fast prep/cook time. 5 star rating!!!
What a wonderful recipe and it’s a new family favorite. I double the sauce and add steamed broccoli after the chicken is cooked and serve over rice. Versatile enough to add orange peel for orange chicken or hot peppers to kick it up.
Just tried this. This was AMAZING. I had all the ingredients except 1T honey. I used golden syrup instead. It turned out fantastic. Not dried out inside, very juicy! This is going in the rotation!
What sides do you recommend to go with the best chicken breast recipe? The tomato cucumber as pictured looks great. Is there a dressing for it?
I’ve made this four times now and it’s one of my family’s favorites. It’s been really good every time. The chicken was not dry at all… definitely reccomend.
What’s the alternative for apple cider vinegar? I wanna make this tonight but I cant get hold of the apple cider vinegar
Loved this recipe. Will be making it again. Can’t understand why it only got a 3.5 star rating.
Do you have to use apple cider vinegar
I am planning on making this recipe. I am single and only cooking for myself. It would be helpful to have the ingredient size for smaller or larger serving sizes.
I used one cutlet and halved the ingredients in order to have enough sauce to put over rise as a side.
Honestly I was a little hesitant about the apple cider vinegar, but this was really good and quick. This will be a great go to recipe for me! Served it with coconut rice yummy.
this is excellent. great flavor profile.
Second time making this recipe and it is delicious! My husband says the chicken is as tasty as a filet. I double the sauce because it is so good. Tonight the sides were mashed potatoes with skin and baby carrots. The sauce was good on the carrots. I changed nothing about the recipe. Thank you for this post.
I am going to give it a try this weekend. Looks delicious
I am nowhere near a chef and made this last night. Wow! Love the flavors! My wife now thinks I am a master chef lol
OMG! I just made this and it is out of this world! So tasty and tender. I could eat this every day!
This sounds delicious but I have just one question. When it says 3 chicken breasts it means both sides of the breast right? So actually 6 servings?
Usually it means boneless skinless chicken breast halves so it would be three servings. I wish I knew how big the breasts are so I could plan the timing better
Why score the chicken?
loved it my house they all want this recipe again. Perfect it is easy and tasty. thanks 🙂
This is a delicious quick meal. I will be making this for family gatherings at my house.
My husband raved about the chicken and how good the flavor was.
Terrific!! Definitely 5 STAR WORTHY!
Simply, yet elegant.
Thank you 🙂
My husband and I really enjoyed this recipe. Super yummy! Thanks for sharing.
This was the best chicken I have ever made. I doubled the sauce and added onion powder, garlic powder and paprika to the flour before coati g the chicken. Having extra sauce was wonderful as I served with mashed potatoes and the sauce was a nice addition. I highly recommend this. This will be in my line up. Thank you!!!!!
Glad you liked it 🙂
I wonder if you could use teriyaki sauce instead of soy sauce…?
Absolutely delicious. Looking at the ingredients you wouldn’t think that it was sooooo good. A lovely surprise. Thank you for sharing.
Making it for dinner tonight. Can’t wait to taste it. My house smells so good.
I notice that the flavor profile is very similar to Filipino adobo – braised chicken with soy sauce, vinegar, garlic and black pepper. Sugar/honey is an optional ingredient in that dish.
Wow! Super easy, but the taste…. I can’t say enough about how freaking delicious this was!
Just made this for dinner and WOW- delicious! I followed the recipe, doubling the sauce. I added broccoli florets to rice and fried it in the extra sauce before serving.
Why is this 3/5 stars? It was perfect. I used Kickn Chicken for the seasoning. Followed everything else as written. Juicy, flavorful – my reputation is on the upswing. I routinely over cook chicken breasts.
no words can describe how good was this dish.
really good! I use white wine instead of apple cider vinegar, and I usually double the sauce to put over potatoes or noodles. We like a little heat so I add red pepper flakes too