honey butter chicken

honey butter chicken pieces with a crispy, golden crust tossed in a glossy honey garlic butter glaze. warmth and comfort in its most straightforward form, perfect with a bowl of fluffy rice.

Prefer a little heat? My sweet-spicy yangnyeom chicken has the same crispy coating with a bolder, stickier sauce.

why you will love this crispy honey butter chicken recipe:

• simple and easy recipe – this honey butter chicken recipe is so easy and involves just one bowl instead of the traditional breading methods with egg and dipping in flour and breadcrumbs. and the chicken still turns out perfectly crispy. you could easily whip this up in minutes and with minimal washing up to do after!

• easy delicious chicken with the perfect balance of sweet and savoury flavours – this honey butter chicken is made with simple ingredients and no complicated techniques involved but still manages to have a unique flavour. you could also add some spice to make it a bit more spicy-sweet.

• versatile – this honey butter chicken could easily be served as a main dish with some sides, or as an appetiser on its own. you could also add this to a sandwich or wrap for a quick lunch. there are so many ways you could serve this honey butter chicken.

learn how to make these honey butter chicken bites

for this honey butter fried chicken recipe, we’re going to start off by cutting boneless chicken breast into small, bitesized pieces. then, to the chicken, vinegar and some yoghurt to keep the chicken tender and soft. then we’ll add a mixture of spices to the chicken. once the chicken is coated in the honey butter chicken marinade, we’ll add flour and cornstarch to the chicken for our coating. add water to loosen up the honey butter chicken batter. then, we’ll fry the honey butter chicken popcorn until golden and crispy.

once the chicken is fried, we’ll make the honey butter chicken sauce. the honey butter chicken sauce recipe involves cooking fresh garlic in butter, adding a mixture of seasonings and then adding honey and lemon juice. once we’ve made the honey butter sauce, we’ll add the crispy chicken to the sauce, mix it in until coated and we’re done!

honey butter chicken ingredients

• chicken – i like to use boneless chicken breast for this honey butter chicken recipe, cut into small, bitesized pieces. you can also use chicken thighs if you like.

• vinegar -adding a small amount of white vinegar to the chicken will help tenderise it.

• yoghurt – adding some yoghurt to the chicken marinade will also help keep it soft. i like use a thick yoghurt, but you can use any yoghurt that you like.

• spices – in this honey butter garlic chicken recipe, we’re going to be using a mixture of seasonings. for the chicken marinade, we’ll be using a mix of garlic powder, red chilli powder, paprika and salt. for the honey butter chicken glaze, we’ll be using paprika, red chilli flakes and dried parsley. you can adjust these to your taste.

• flour – coating the honey butter chicken in plain flour or all purpose flour is going to give us our crust

• cornstarch- i like to use a mix of flour and cornstarch to keep this honey butter chicken crispy.

• water – just a small amount of cold water in the honey butter chicken batter will help loosen it and ensure that it’s the right consistency.

• butter – for the honey butter chicken sauce recipe, we’re going to be using butter as the base. i used salted butter for this, but you can also use unsalted butter and add some extra salt.

• garlic – we’re going to be using fresh minced garlic, and we’re going to cook it in the butter for the honey butter lemon chicken sauce.

• honey – we’re going to add honey to the sauce at the end. you can adjust this depending on how sweet you’d like the sauce to be.

• lemon juice – this honey butter chicken recipe uses a bit of lemon juice in the sauce for some added freshness.

• oil – use any neutral oil such as sunflower, safflower, canola etc. for frying the honey butter chicken.

tools:

• large bowl – we’re going to be adding everything (the chicken, spices, flour, water etc.) in one bowl, so you want to make sure that it’s large enough for everything to fit in it.

• wire skimmer – use a wire skimmer to drain any excess oil after frying the honey butter chicken.

• deep pan or pot – for deep frying the honey butter chicken.

• small pan or pot – for making the honey butter chicken sauce.

step by step instructions

for full measurements, keep scrolling down to the recipe below.

step one: in a large bowl, add chicken breast, cut into bitesized pieces, and then add the vinegar. mix this into the chicken and let the chicken rest at room temperature for about 20 minutes.

step two: then, add yoghurt to the chicken and then add all of the seasonings: garlic powder, red chilli powder, paprika and salt. mix this into the chicken until all of the pieces are coated.

step two: then, to the same bowl, add flour and cornstarch. mix this into the seasoned chicken until completely coated.

step three: add a small amount of water to the honey butter chicken batter and mix this in.

step four: heat up oil in a pot or pan to medium-high heat. once the oil is ready, gently add the honey butter chicken one by one to the oil, taking care not to overcrowd the pan (fry in batches if necessary). once you’ve added the honey butter chicken to the oil, turn the heat down to medium.

step five: let the honey butter chicken fry in the oil for about 2 minutes, undisturbed. then, gently stir the chicken pieces in the oil a little so that all sides fry in the oil.

step six: continue to let the honey butter chicken fry for another 2-3 minutes over medium heat until they look golden and crispy. you’ll want to fry for about 5-6 minutes in total.

step seven: using a wire skimmer, gently remove the honey butter chicken from the hot oil and drain any excess oil.

step eight: make the honey butter chicken sauce. heat up a small pan or pot over medium heat. add butter to the pan, and let it melt.

step nine: add garlic to the pan. cook the garlic in the butter over medium heat until the garlic becomes a light golden colour.

step ten: turn the heat off and immediately add the seasonings: the dried parsley, paprika and red chilli flakes, and mix them into the garlic butter mixture.

step eleven: add honey and mix this into the sauce.

step twelve: add lemon juice and mix this into the sauce.

step thirteen: add the crispy chicken pieces into the sauce and gently mix them in until completely coated in the honey butter sauce.

step fourteen: serve, and let’s eat!

tips and notes

• cut chicken into even, bite-sized pieces. make sure you don’t cut your chicken into chunks that are too thick or big. thick/big pieces of chicken will take longer to cook and be harder to fry.

• i prefer to use chicken breast for this recipe, but chicken thighs are usually a bit juicier, so you can use thighs if you like.

• adjust any spices and seasonings to your taste – i tried to keep this honey butter chicken recipe pretty balanced in terms of spice, and i didn’t find it spicy. but if you’RE WORRIED that this honey butter chicken MIGHT BE TOO SPICY for you (or if you’D prefer it to be spicier), I WOULD recommend adjusting some of the seasonings (like the red chilli powder).

• feel free to adjust the seasonings in the honey butter sauce as well. or adjust the amount of honey if you prefer a sweeter sauce.

• thoroughly mix the seasonings and spices into the chicken before adding the flour and cornstarch. this will ensure that the chicken is evenly coated with the spices, and the flavour is consistent throughout.

• do not overcrowd the pan when frying the chicken. if necessary, fry the chicken in batches.

• make sure your oil is not too hot or too cool when frying. oil that is too hot will cook the outside too quickly and won’t cook the inside enough, and oil that isn’t hot enough will make the chicken greasy.

• when it comes to deep frying, use any neutral tasting oil. the oil should come about 2-3 inches up the pot with a good amount of space left so that there’s room for the oil to bubble up.

• to test oil temperature to ensure that it’s hot enough to start frying your honey butter chicken, you can dip the end of a wooden spoon or chopstick in the oil. if bubbles form steadily around it, the oil is ready for frying. if the bubbles are vigorous, it means that the oil is too hot.

• alternatively, you can drop a breadcrumb into the oil to test it as well. when the oil is ready, the breadcrumb should sizzle and rise to the surface in about 30 seconds. if the oil is too hot, the breadcrumb will burn quickly. if the oil isn’t hot enough, the breadcrumb will sink, with minimal bubbling.

• if not serving immediately, drain any excess oil when removing the honey butter chicken from the oil, then place on a wire rack to prevent the chicken from becoming soggy.

• for the honey butter chicken sauce, i’m using salted butter. if you’re using unsalted butter, i would recommend adding some extra salt to the sauce as well.

• make the honey butter sauce once the chicken is done, and add the chicken to the sauce just before serving for the best texture.

• for honey butter hot chicken, add a splash of hot sauce to the honey butter sauce to make it spicier.

• there are so many serving options when it comes to this honey lemon butter chicken recipe! have honey butter chicken and waffles or honey butter chicken sliders. they would also be great in a honey butter chicken sandwich or you can simply serve this honey butter chicken with rice. it would be great as a snack or as part of a proper meal!

frequently asked questions

1. what is honey butter chicken ?

   – honey butter chicken is fried chicken coated in a sweet, rich sauce made from melted butter and honey as the main ingredients. it’s inspired by korean honey butter chicken but has become popular worldwide because of it’s perfect balance of sweet and savoury and it’s wonderfully crispy texture.

2. what does honey butter chicken taste like ?

   – honey butter chicken has a really nice contrast of flavours and textures – crispy, juicy chicken with a sweet, buttery coating. the honey adds a lovely sweetness and the butter adds some richness.

3. can i use chicken thighs instead of chicken breast ?

   – yes, you can absolutely use boneless chicken thighs instead of chicken breast. in fact, chicken thighs tend to be juicier and more tender, with more flavour too. just make sure they’re cut into small, bite-sized pieces to make frying easier.

4. can i make this honey butter chicken in the air fryer ?

   – while i have personally never tried this, to keep this honey butter chicken easy, you can try making it in the air fryer instead of frying in oil. spray with oil and air fry at 200°C (400°F) until golden and crispy. keep in mind that the chicken won’t be as crispy as chicken that is deep-fried.

5. can i make this honey butter chicken in the oven ?

   – again, i haven’t personally tried this and also, keep in mind that the chicken won’t be as crispy as chicken that is deep-fried. if you’d like to try this, just spray the honey butter chicken with oil and bake at 200°C (400°F) until golden and crispy.

6. how can i make this honey butter chicken quickly ?

   – this method is already a pretty quick way of making honey butter chicken! however, if you want to speed up the process further, you could buy pre-cut chicken so that you don’t have to spend time cutting it. you can also make a larger batch of the honey butter chicken at once, then freeze some of it so that you can fry it up whenever you feel like it! the honey butter sauce is best made fresh, but you can make it up to an hour ahead of time and then gently rewarm it before coating the chicken.

7. how do i know if my oil is hot enough for frying ?

   – if you’re not sure whether your oil is hot enough, and you don’t have a thermometer, dip the handle of a wooden spoon or a chopstick in the oil. once you see bubbles start to form around the spoon/chopstick, and they start to float up, it means that your oil is hot enough for frying. if the oil is bubbling up really fast, it might mean that your oil is too hot.

8. my coating keeps falling off – what do i do ?

   – this usually happens if the oil isn’t hot enough and if you move the chicken too much. make sure your oil is hot enough before you add the chicken, and don’t move the chicken around too much while frying. let it fry undisturbed for the first two minutes, before stirring it gently in the oil a little, and then letting it fry again.

9. how do i know when the chicken is cooked through ?

   – cut into the largest piece of chicken – it should be white throughout with no pink. small pieces will usually take about 4-5 minutes to cook through.

10. my oil got too hot/cold – what do i do ?

    – you want to make sure to let your oil come back to the right temperature between batches. if you think it’s too hot, just remove from the heat for a bit. if it’s too cold, wait for it to heat up to the right temperature. before starting with the next batch of chicken, test with a small piece to ensure that the oil is hot enough.

11. can i make this honey butter chicken ahead of time ?

    – this honey butter chicken is best served fresh, but if made in advance, the chicken can be reheated in the oven or air fryer until hot and crispy again. the sauce can be gently rewarmed on the stove before you add the chicken to it.

12. can i freeze this honey butter chicken ?

    – you can freeze the fried chicken bites without the sauce and then make the sauce fresh when needed. freeze fried chicken pieces on a baking sheet or tray in a single layer, then transfer the chicken to a freezer bag and store in the freezer. they can then be reheated from frozen in the oven or air fryer.

13. can i make this honey butter chicken without honey ?

    – yes, you can. while substitutes will give you a different flavour profile, they should still be able to create that sweet-savoury balance. you can use something like maple syrup or agave nectar instead of honey.

14. can i make honey butter chicken wings with this recipe ?

    – yes, you can, but be sure to adjust frying times. wings will take longer to cook than small, bitesized pieces. you could also make honey butter chicken tenders or honey butter chicken strips instead.

15. is this honey butter chicken healthy ?

    – this honey butter chicken is definitely more of an indulgence than a health food due to the deep-fried coating and the buttery sauce. for a lighter version, you could try baking or air frying the chicken.

16. what are some good sides to serve with this honey butter chicken ?

    – if you’re looking for a good way to incorporate this honey butter chicken into your lunches are dinners, some great ideas would be:

    • honey butter chicken and rice

    • honey butter chicken and potatoes

    • add to a salad as a crispy chicken topping

    • serve with mac and cheese

    • honey butter chicken with mashed potatoes

17. what kind of oil do i use for frying?

    – for frying the honey butter chicken, you will need to use an oil with a high smoke point so that it’s able to withstand the high temperatures needed for deep frying. i also recommend using an oil with a neutral taste so that it doesn’t impart any of its flavour on the chicken. some good options are sunflower oil, safflower oil or vegetable oil (which is a mix of different plant oils).

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