Honey chilli chicken is crisp coated chicken tossed in a sticky glaze of honey, chilli, soy and vinegar. The whole dish takes about 30 minutes in one pan. The sauce goes on off the heat at the very end, which is the only way to keep the coating crunchy under all that syrup.
Sweet, hot and glossy, and better than the version that arrives in a foil tray twenty minutes after you order.
Honey chilli chicken
- 500 g chicken thigh, diced
- 1 egg white
- 3 tbsp cornflour, plus extra for coating
- 3 tbsp clear honey
- 2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 cm ginger, grated
- 1 tsp dried chilli flakes
- 1 tsp cornflour mixed with 1 tbsp water
- oil, for frying
- Toss the chicken in the egg white, then coat in the 3 tbsp cornflour.
- Heat oil for frying and cook the chicken in batches for 4 to 5 minutes until golden and cooked through. Drain on a wire rack.
- In a separate pan, fry the garlic and ginger for 30 seconds.
- Add the honey, sweet chilli sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar and chilli flakes, and simmer for 1 minute.
- Stir in the cornflour slurry and simmer until thickened.
- Take the pan off the heat, then toss the fried chicken through the sauce and serve straight away.
Why this recipe works
Honey burns fast and turns bitter. Reduce the sauce on its own first, then kill the heat before the chicken goes in. The chicken meets a thick glaze rather than a boiling pan, so the coating stays crisp for the five minutes it takes to get to the table.
- Thigh meat holds up to high heat and stays juicy. Breast dries out.
- Egg white plus cornflour makes a thin shell that shatters, not a thick batter.
- Rice vinegar cuts the honey. Without it the dish is cloying.
- The sauce thickens with a cornflour slurry so it clings instead of running off.
What is Chinese honey chilli chicken?
Honey chilli chicken is a British Chinese and Indo Chinese takeaway dish of fried chicken pieces in a sweet, spicy glaze built on honey and chilli. It sits between sweet and sour and salt and pepper chicken: saucier than one, sweeter than the other. Most versions also carry garlic, ginger and soy.
How to make the honey chilli sauce
Whisk honey, sweet chilli sauce, light soy sauce and rice vinegar with grated garlic and ginger, then simmer for a minute and thicken with a cornflour slurry. Three parts honey to two parts sweet chilli sauce is the balance to aim for. Add chilli flakes or sriracha for real heat.
The sauce works on its own as a dip, and keeps in a jar in the fridge for a week.
Getting the heat right
Sweet chilli sauce is mild, so it sets the sweetness rather than the burn. The chilli flakes are where the heat comes from, and you can move them without breaking anything else.
- Mild: leave the chilli flakes out entirely.
- Medium: 1 tsp chilli flakes, as written.
- Hot: 2 tsp flakes plus a sliced red chilli in with the garlic.
- Numbing: half a teaspoon of ground Sichuan pepper stirred in at the end.
Air fryer version
Coat the chicken as written, spray with oil and cook at 200C for 12 to 14 minutes, shaking the basket halfway. Make the sauce in a small pan on the hob while the chicken cooks, then toss the two together off the heat. The coating is drier than fried but holds a glaze well.
What to serve with honey chilli chicken
The dish is sweet and heavy, so it needs plain starch and something sharp alongside.
- Steamed jasmine rice, or egg fried rice for a fuller spread
- Plain chow mein noodles
- Stir fried pak choi with garlic
- Cucumber slices in rice vinegar, to cut through the sugar
Storage and reheating
Leftovers keep in a sealed box in the fridge for up to two days. Reheat in a hot oven or air fryer for six to eight minutes. Skip the microwave, which turns the glaze watery and the coating soft. For the best result, store the sauce and chicken separately and combine on reheating.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use chicken breast?
Yes. Cut it into slightly larger pieces and fry for about 4 minutes a batch. Breast overcooks quickly at the heat needed to crisp the coating, so watch it closely. Thigh is the more forgiving choice.
Why did my sauce turn bitter?
The honey caught. Honey scorches at a much lower temperature than sugar syrup, so keep the pan at a gentle simmer and never walk away from it. If the sauce darkens past a deep amber, start again.
How do I stop the coating going soggy?
Drain the fried chicken on a wire rack rather than kitchen paper, so steam escapes underneath. Then take the pan off the heat before the chicken meets the sauce, and serve within a few minutes.
Can I make it without sweet chilli sauce?
Yes. Use 2 tbsp of tomato ketchup plus an extra teaspoon of chilli flakes and a teaspoon of sugar. The result is a little less fruity but close enough that most people will not notice.
