cooking glazed chicken in skillet

Why This cooking glazed chicken in skillet Beats Every Other Version

Restaurant versions of this usually come out dry. I ordered one at a chain place last month for $15.47 and the chicken was tough and the glaze was watery. Garlic flavor was missing.

Online recipes add too many spices or extra liquid that turns it into soup. This stays simple. Chicken. Honey. Soy. Garlic. The skillet does the work so the outside gets sticky and the inside stays juicy.

I tried it with chicken breast once. Dried out in ten minutes. Thighs are the only way. Medium-high heat. About 20 minutes total in a 12-inch skillet.

And cleanup is one pan. I used to hate scrubbing. This fixed that.

What You Need

1.5 lbs chicken thighs (the pack from Costco is usually $8.47)
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons soy sauce
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon water (for the glaze if it gets too thick)

Don’t use pre-cooked chicken. It never takes the glaze right. And skip the low-sodium soy if you want real flavor. Regular is fine.

I tried maple syrup once instead of honey. Too thin and it never stuck. Honey only.

External link for chicken safety: USDA poultry guidelines

How I Actually Make cooking glazed chicken in skillet

Pat the chicken thighs dry and season both sides with salt and pepper.
Heat the olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat.
Place the chicken skin side down if it has skin. Cook 6 minutes without moving it.
Flip the chicken and cook another 5 minutes until the outside is golden.
Lower the heat to medium. Add the minced garlic and stir for 30 seconds.
Pour in the honey and soy sauce. Let it bubble and coat the chicken.

Add a splash of water if the glaze gets too thick. Spoon it over the chicken for 3 more minutes.
Pull the pan off the heat. Let the chicken rest 2 minutes so the juices settle.

The sound of the glaze bubbling is the best part. Smell of garlic and sweet soy hits first. Texture of the chicken is sticky on the outside and juicy inside if you didn’t overcook it.

First time the glaze burned on the bottom of the pan. I scraped it and added water and it recovered. Second time I stayed at medium and it stayed glossy.

Mid-article CTA

If you make this tonight leave a comment with how sticky the glaze got. I keep track of stove differences.

Leftovers, Storage, and Random Stuff

Day-two cooking glazed chicken in skillet is still solid if you reheat it right. Fridge it in a sealed container. Next day warm in a skillet on low for 5 minutes with a splash of water. Microwave makes the glaze gummy.

I usually slice the leftovers and stuff them into a tortilla from my basic quesadilla post. Or pile them over leftover rice from my rice method.

The chicken holds up better than expected. Just keep a little glaze with it so it doesn’t dry out.

External link on leftover chicken: FDA leftover rules

Another solid reference: Wikipedia chicken