Sweet and Spicy Recipes
Lately I have been craving sweet and spicy recipes, like these Honey Sriracha Pork Chops that I made the other day and I just made a Honey Sriracha Salmon!
Something about that sweet, sticky and spicy combination is so addictive! I love it.
So, I'm back today with chicken. Not just any chicken, but sweet, spicy Thai chicken. All your favorite Thai flavors in an easy one pan chicken dinner!
You don't even have to marinate the chicken, with a sauce this flavorful you don't have to! I served it with Coconut Cilantro Rice though it would also be great with these Peanut Noodles.
Click here to pin this Sticky Thai Chicken now!
Ingredients
- Chicken Thighs - bone in, skin on. You could use skinless thighs or breasts (just decrease the cooking time by about 15 minutes) but the bone in thighs stay so moist and have such good flavor. If they're on sale, buy extra and make these Harissa Chicken Thighs with Olives!
- Soy Sauce - try to buy organic since soybeans are usually a GMO product.
- Fish Sauce - smells funky, but adds such a depth of flavor to your dish. I find mine at the Asian market or on Amazon - I like to get large bottle of The Red Boat Fish Sauce (affiliate link), we go through a lot of it.
- Cilantro - love it or hate it! You're only using it as a garnish, so feel free to substitute parsley if you don't like it.
- Ginger - store it in the freezer, it stays fresh and it's so easy to grate right from the freezer. Save some of that grated ginger and make these Sticky Sesame Ginger Pork Meatballs!
- Brown Sugar - light or dark.
- Red Pepper Flakes - I used one teaspoon, which is the perfect level of heat for us. Feel free to use less or more depending on your heat tolerance.
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425. You want a high heat to brown the chicken as it roasts.
In a small bowl, combine the red pepper flakes, brown sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce and grated ginger.
Trim the excess fat and skin from the chicken thighs. Chicken thighs tend to have larger globs of fat that can easily be trimmed off. Pat dry and season with salt and pepper.
Lightly spray an oven proof skillet with cooking spray (optional, but I wanted to make sure nothing stuck!).
Place the chicken in the skillet and pour the sauce over it. Turn to coat and leave the chicken skin side down.
Roast in the oven skin side down for 30 minutes.
Remove the skillet from the oven, turn the chicken over and roast for 15 more minutes.
If you want even more color and caramelization on your chicken, switch the oven to broil and broil for 2-5 minutes. Do not walk away, this happens quickly!
I didn't actually broil these, I have a convection oven and when I turned the chicken over for the final fifteen minutes, I switched to convection and got all of that gorgeous browning.
Garnish with cilantro for serving, if desired.
Oh my, these Thai chicken thighs were so good! They are going into my easy weeknight dinner rotation! I just love recipes that are so full of flavor, with hardly any work! Check out my Chicken Recipes for more easy chicken dinners!
If you love the ginger flavor in these thighs, try serving them with this Instant Pot Sesame Ginger Rice. Add a Mango Mint Salad and you have an easy and delicious dinner!
Click here to pin this Delicious Chicken Recipe now!
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Recipe
Sticky Thai Chicken
Ingredients
- 8 chicken thighs bone in, skin on
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup fish sauce
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 1 tbsp ginger grated
- ¼ cup cilantro for garnish
- Cooking spray optional
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425. Optional - spray oven proof skillet with cooking spray.
- Trim off excess fat and skin from the thighs. Pat dry and season on both sides with salt and pepper. Place in the skillet.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the red pepper flakes, brown sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce and grated ginger. Pour over the chicken and turn the chicken to coat.
- Place the skillet in the oven and roast skin side down for 30 minutes. Turn the chicken over and roast for 15 more minutes.
- Optional - for more color and caramelization you can broil the chicken for 2-5 minutes, but do not walk away!
- Serve garnished with cilantro.
Notes
Equipment
Video
Nutrition
The was originally published in 2013 and has been updated for 2020.
Jeb Clarke says
I appreciate the ease of making this dish, but it was waaay too salty. 1/4 cup of fish sauce was too much. I think a tablespoon or a teaspoon would be more appropriate. I followed the instructions exactly and even used low sodium soy sauce. The saltiness of the fish sauce completely overpowered all the other flavors like the brown sugar and ginger flavors. My whole family agreed, it was just too salty. I guess if you like really salty sauces, then this would be good? I think the recipe would be better if most of the fish sauce were substituted for teriyaki sauce or some other less salty sauce.
Nancy says
Instead of chili flakes I used an 1/8th tsp garlic chili paste. I also added a splash of lime juice and some cilantro paste. I cooked it in my cast iron skillet and when it was done I garnished with Thai basil and cilantro.
Robin Read says
Delish! I paired it with my pad thai. I was too lazy to debone the thighs and cut up to put into the pad thai so did these roasted on parchment paper in the oven to have along side. Drizzle with a little siracha and a generous squeeze of fresh lime, a super easy and tasty meal. A keeper, thank you
Robin de Grosbois says
I used a cast iron skillet & not the oven. I also used Ketcap Manis sweet soy sauce instead of brown sugar & soy sauce. Caramelised beautifully. I need to learn to just put a pinch of chilli flakes & not b too heavy handed. Dish was delish!! Thku
Pam Greer says
So glad you enjoyed it!
Xina says
Yummy, but it’s begging for the addition of garlic!
Lily says
What can I substitute for fish sauce.
Pam Greer says
Soy sauce, coconut aminos, Worcestershire sauce or oyster sauce.
Scott says
Loved it, but 4 stars because it really messed up my cast iron skillet! The brown sugar just burned deep into the pan. The burn abatement was very difficult. I guess I'll try a nonstick next time.
Pam Greer says
I'm sorry to hear that! Mine still had enough liquid to keep the brown sugar from burning in the pan. Did you use a bigger skillet?
Kacey Perez says
Oh my gosh this looks delicious! And so easy! This one is for sure going on my list of go-to weekly meals!
Mary Bostow says
My husband absolutely loves Asian food, this is a must try!
Denise says
When the word sticky is in the title of a recipe, I know I will love it! This chicken looks absolutely incredible!
Veronika says
I love sweet and spicy chicken! It's perfect for a comfy night and when you crave a take out. Will put on my to-do list and will try it next week!
Tammy says
Ooh that sticky glaze is calling to me and making my mouth water! What a delicious and flavorful dish...I wish I had this right now.
LaKita says
This recipe for sticky chili chicken looks amazing! Love the flavor combination that you used and I cannot wait to give this recipe a try soon!
Nicoletta says
Just look at that glaze! My husband is a fan of Thai flavors and when it comes to chicken, he loves to buy chicken thighs. This is perfect!
Bernice Hill says
Look at the sheen on those thighs. The sticky sauce is so perfectly coating it, I bet it's delicious. Pinning for later, I love recipes like this!
Kushigalu says
Sweet and spicy - best combo ever and this looks delicious too. Must try
Chef Dennis says
This Sticky Thai Chicken looks really scrumptious! I love that it's sweet and at the same time, spicy! I will serve this to my family!
Elaine says
Temptingly spicy is just the perfect way to describe this delicious chicken recipe. Love it from the first sight! And great to know you don't need to marinate - makes it the perfect recipe to hold on to.
Cheryl Crotty says
This sounds so good Pam, and so easy. I don't usually make my own sauce lately but I'm definately going to give this a try...thanks so much.
Pam Greer says
You'll have to let me know what you think!
Andrea Metlika says
The flavors in this sticky sauce are fantastic. The chicken thighs look perfect. Can't wait to make this for my family.
Ashley says
Out of this world flavor!!! Just delicious!
Carrie Robinson says
This sounds so flavorful! Definitely looks like a must-make to me. 🙂
Tisha says
Sweet and spicy is one of my favorite combos! I can't wait to make this recipe!
Jenn says
I love Thai flavors and sweet, sticky chicken, so this looks like a double-win for me, and I love that you've used thighs for extra flavor. Can't wait to make these!
Chris says
I just love the Eat Your Books site, it is so helpful. I still need to finish indexing a book for them :/
grace says
running out of cilantro is sacrilege, pam! regardless, this sounds quite tasty. 🙂
Jennifurla says
delightful!
Joanne says
It really is a bit sad that these significant others never get to see a recipe repeat...but what can we do?
Mary says
What a fabulous way to prepare chicken thighs. That sauce sounds fantastic. I hope your week is off to a good start. Blessings...Mary