Honey Garlic Chicken Bites – Crispy & Sticky Homemade Dinner

Some dishes are simply destined to be a regular part of my weekly meals. And honey garlic chicken bites are one of them! They’re fast, tasty, require only easily available ingredients, and taste like restaurant food. If you need a quick meal that’s both sweet and savory and doesn’t require ordering takeout, this recipe is for you!

When I tried making honey garlic chicken bites for the first time, I crowded too much chicken in the pan trying to save time. As a result, it steamed in the pan and turned pale and unappetizing. From then on, I’ve been aware that if you want crispy edges while preserving juiciness, you’d better cook chicken in two separate batches.

In today’s post, we’ll learn how to make delicious crispy honey garlic chicken bites with homemade sauce. Let me show you how easy it actually is!

Ingredients for the Chicken

• 1½ lbs (680 g) boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 tablespoon (8 g) cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon (6 g) salt
• ½ teaspoon (1 g) black pepper
• 1 tablespoon (14 g) butter
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) avocado oil or any other vegetable oil

Cornstarch – An ingredient that makes it possible to create a crispy crust without deep frying.

Ingredients for the Sauce

• 4 cloves of garlic (12 g), minced
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) soy sauce
• ¼ cup (85 g) honey
• ¼ cup (60 ml) chicken broth
• ¼ teaspoon (0.5 g) red pepper flakes (optional)

Honey – A main ingredient of the sweet and sticky sauce.

Ingredients for Serving

• Cooked white or brown rice
• 2 green onions, sliced
• 1 tablespoon (9 g) sesame seeds

Sesame seeds are a nice addition that adds nutty, crunchy flavor.

Prepping the Chicken

Start by cutting the chicken into pieces roughly the same size. It allows them to cook evenly.

Add the pieces of chicken into a mixing bowl and season them with salt and pepper. Give everything a good mix.

As a result, each piece should get a small layer of salt and pepper. At this stage, the chicken doesn’t have to be entirely coated by spices.

Pro Tip: It’s best to make sure that pieces of chicken are about 1 inch wide. Otherwise, they’ll take too much time to cook and won’t crisp.

Coating the Chicken

It’s time to coat pieces of chicken with cornstarch. Give them another good toss to coat everything evenly.

Now, there shouldn’t be any visible layer of cornstarch on the pieces of chicken. Its purpose is to create a light coating that will crisp up once heated in a pan.

There’s one great benefit of this step. You don’t need to set up any special station, apply egg wash, and prepare a flour-based breading. All you need is a minute to coat everything properly.

As a result, pieces of chicken should feel dry rather than sticky or wet.

Pan-frying Until Golden

Let’s preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of avocado oil.

You can already smell the yummy buttery aroma. At the same time, the oil prevents the butter from burning and helps to create flavor.

Once the butter is melted and lightly foamy, it’s time to add half of the chicken pieces to the pan. Don’t try to fit everything at once!

The chicken needs plenty of space.

Otherwise, excess moisture gets locked up inside, and the meat starts steaming instead of crisping.

Cook the pieces on one side for about three minutes. Listen carefully, and you’ll be able to hear constant sizzling noise.

Turn the chicken pieces over and check for golden-brown edges. This is where the flavor forms.

Continue cooking for 3–5 more minutes or until fully cooked. Then, transfer the chicken into a bowl.

Repeat the process with the rest of the chicken.

Pro Tip: Please, never put cooked chicken into a bowl with uncooked chicken pieces. It may causecross-contaminationn.

Making the Honey Garlic Sauce

Let’s turn down the heat to medium.

Now, we need to add minced garlic to the pan. Remember that the pan should still have enough oil and butter inside.

Stir the minced garlic for about a minute.

Once you start stirring the minced garlic, it becomes fragrant and fills the kitchen with its smell. But it’s important not to burn it; otherwise, the sauce will acquire an undesirable bitterness.

Afterwards, add soy sauce, honey, chicken broth, and optional red pepper flakes.

As soon as everything is combined, the sauce will look glossy and thin.

Give it a good stir.

Now, you can smell an amazing combination of sweet honey, savory soy sauce, and fragrant garlic. That’s what makes this dish so irresistible!

Pro Tip: Red pepper flakes are optional, but I always include them. The subtle heat balances nicely with the sweetness of honey.

Reducing the Sauce

Let’s leave the sauce to simmer gently for about 3–5 minutes.

As it simmers, the sauce will become gradually thicker. One of the easiest ways to make sure that it’s ready is to run a spatula along the bottom of the pan.

If the sauce doesn’t merge into one lump, it has reached the desired thickness.

By this point, it should look shiny and have a little bit of a syrupy consistency. Also, you can smell the reduced sauce, which means that all the aroma components were successfully concentrated.

Coating the Chicken

We need to add all the chicken back to the pan.

Once again, turn down the heat to low and mix everything. Make sure that every piece of chicken is coated with the sauce.

The pieces should acquire golden glazing.

While stirring the chicken pieces in a sauce, you’ll notice that there’s no free sauce left in the pan. That’s exactly how they should be.

The first time I tried cooking this recipe, I didn’t reduce the sauce properly. As a result, once I mixed everything, the sauce got super thick. Therefore, it’s essential to simmer it a little bit longer than usual.

Pro Tip: Please, do not continue cooking for too long after adding pieces of chicken. Overcooking will only ruin their juicy texture.

Serving and Garnishing

Now, spoon the honey garlic chicken bites onto a plate with rice.

Jasmine rice tastes amazing in this dish, but brown rice will also work great. In addition, you may want to add slices of green onions and sesame seeds on top.

The result looks absolutely gorgeous! Juicy and crispy chicken bites with a gorgeous glaze are now topped with crunchy green onions and aromatic sesame seeds.

Every bite offers crispy edges, juicy pieces of chicken, sweet honey, savory garlic, and just enough richness to make you crave another spoonful.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Overcrowding the Pan

• The mistake: Adding everything to the pan at once.
• Reason: Saving time.
• Solution: Cook the chicken in two separate batches.

Burning Garlic

• The Mistake: Cooking garlic over high heat.
• Reason: Garlic cooks very quickly.
• Solution: Preheat the pan over medium heat.

Not Reducing the Sauce Long Enough

• Mistake: Adding chicken back too early.
• Reason: Impatience.
• Solution: Leave the sauce to simmer for a few more minutes.

Skipping Cornstarch

• Mistake: Thinking that it’s unnecessary.
• Reason: Simplification.
• Solution: Always use cornstarch. It makes the dish even more amazing.

Overcooking Chicken

• Mistake: Cooking chicken for too long.
• Reason: Trying to make sure that chicken is well-done.
• Solution: Stop cooking at 165°F (74°C).

Ways to Change the Recipe

Using Chicken Thighs

Boneless skinless chicken thighs will also work great in this recipe. Their flavor is rich and juicy even if they’re cooked for some time.

Adding More Heat

It would be nice to add some extra red pepper flakes or a little bit of sriracha sauce. This way, the balance between honey and garlic will be perfect.

Adding Vegetables

Any veggies such as broccoli, snap peas, bell peppers, or carrots can be added for a complete one-pan dish. Cook the vegetables separately until they become tender-crisp.

How to Prepare & Store the Meal

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

If you plan to store the dish for longer, it’s better to freeze it for up to 3 months.

To reheat, warm up the chicken either on low heat in a pan or in the microwave.

To me, the dish tastes most amazing when it’s freshly cooked and served with hot rice. However, even leftovers still taste delicious.

Frequent Questions About Honey Garlic Chicken Bites

Why Doesn’t My Sauce Thicken?

Simply wait for a couple more minutes. The sauce needs time to reduce and thicken.

Can I Use Chicken Thighs Instead of Breasts?

Sure. Chicken thighs are also very juicy and perfectly work in this dish.

Can I Prepare the Dish Ahead of Time?

Of course. Follow the instructions above and store in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Is the Recipe Spicy?

Nope. You may add some red pepper flakes, but it won’t make the dish spicy.

What Should I Serve With Honey Garlic Chicken Bites?

Any of the following options will go perfectly well with this dish: rice, noodles, roasted veggies, steamed broccoli, or simple salads.

It’s amazing how easily you can make a delicious restaurant-worthy dish out of pantry ingredients and one pan. Every time I make this recipe, the dish gets devoured really quickly.

Hope this post helped you to create another amazing meal in your family menu. I’m sure you’ll make these honey garlic chicken bites every week as soon as you try this recipe.