Honey Lime Chicken

Plate of glazed chicken thighs with white rice, steamed asparagus, lime wedges, and green onion garnish on a table with a striped napkin and salt and pepper shakers.

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🍯🍋‍🟩 So juicy with a sticky glaze that strikes the perfect balance between tart yet sweet! Made with just a handful of common ingredients, this EASY family-favorite chicken recipe will brighten up any weeknight dinner doldrums in no time!

Prep Time5

Cook Time12

Marinating Time1

Course: 30-Minute Meals, Chicken, Dinner

Cuisine: Chicken

Diet: Gluten Free

Keyword: honey and lime chicken, honey lime chicken, lime honey chicken, skillet chicken with honey and lime

Servings:

Calories: 405cal

Equipment

Ingredients

¼ cup honey
1 tablespoon lime zest or to taste (from about 2 average/medium limes; I use regular limes but you may sub with key limes)
3 tablespoons lime juice freshly squeezed (from about 2 average/medium limes)
4 tablespoons olive oil divided in half
2 tablespoons soy sauce (I use regular but reduced sodium is fine; use coconut aminos or tamari to keep gluten-free)
2-3 cloves garlic finely minced; or to taste (1 teaspoon garlic powder may be substituted)
1 teaspoon salt (you may want to add more if you used reduced sodium soy sauce)
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs boneless skinless chicken breasts may be substituted making sure to pound them to uniform thickness
fresh cilantro to taste; optional, but recommended for garnishing
1 green onion sliced into thin rounds; optional but recommended for garnishing
lime wedges optional for serving

Instructions

Marinade: To a small bowl, add the honey, lime zest (make sure you zest the limes before you juice them), lime juice, 2 tablespoons olive oil, soy sauce, garlic, salt, pepper, and whisk to combine the marinade.
To a medium bowl or large ziptop plastic bag, add the chicken and pour HALF the marinade over it, stir to coat or seal and squish it around in the bag.
Set the other HALF aside. You can refrigerate it if you plan to marinate longer than an hour or so; otherwise it's not necessary and I just keep it on my countertop.
Marinating: Place the chicken in the fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes, or up to 8 hours. For me the sweet spot is 1-4 hours.
When you're ready to cook the chicken, take it out of the fridge about 30 minutes beforehand so you're not working with fridge-cold chicken because the results aren't as good.
Cooking: To a large skillet, add 1-2 tablespoons olive oil, the chicken, discard the marinade that it was marinating in, and cook chicken over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes per side, or as necessary so it's cooked through to 165F as measured with a digital thermometer; don't guess - take the temperature!
When the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the skillet and set it aside on a plate momentarily.
Chicken Cooking Tips - Once you place it in the skillet, it's best to just leave it alone for 3-5 minutes so it can get a nice sear. When it's properly seared, it will release easy and without much struggle (even in a stainless steel pan rather than a nonstick pan). Flip, and sear the second side. The second side usually cooks faster than the first. Chicken thighs are generally thinner than most chicken breasts so they cook a bit quicker. If using breasts, make sure they've been pounded to a uniform thickness.
Sticky Glaze: Using the reserved marinade (the half of the marinade that never touched the raw chicken that you set aside), give it a quick stir, and add it to the skillet.
Allow the marinade to simmer over medium-low or low for 1-2 minutes, just until it thickens up a bit; whisk nearly constantly until it's reduced and is sticky looking.
Glaze Tips - There's not much quantity so it'll bubble and thicken quickly. And because of the natural sugars in the honey, make sure to not let it burn which it can be prone to, so whisk nearly constantly and control the heat.
Coat: Add the chicken back into the skillet.
Toss it around a few times to coat it in the sticky glaze, spooning or brushing the glaze over the chicken as desired.
Garnishing, optional: Evenly sprinkle with freshly minced cilantro and green onions, as desired.
Serve with extra lime wedges if desired. We like adding green salsa like tomatillo avocado salsa or your favorite store bought.
Serving Suggestions: Serve with Spanish Rice, Coconut Rice, Parmesan and Herb Roasted Potatoes, or your favorite sides.

Notes

Nutrition Stats: I personally think the stats skew a bit higher in fat on paper than in reality since 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in the marinade are ultimately discarded. And at 14g per tablespoon, it's significant (28g fat). But it's calculated by computer and nothing I can tweak.

Storage: Leftover chicken will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat gently in the microwave as desired.

Nutrition