Hot Honey Chicken Recipe (4 Ingredients, 20 Minutes)

Name: Hot Honey Chicken
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders; Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste; 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar; 1/3 cup hot honey; 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce; 2 thinly sliced green onions, for serving, optional

Why Make This

• Hot Honey Chicken features sautéed chicken tenders coated in a simple sauce of cider vinegar, hot honey, garlic, and Worcestershire.
• The recipe comes together in just 20 minutes.

Sometimes, you make food because other people love it. For example, I don’t love spaghetti, but my husband does. That’s why I occasionally toss a bottle of marinara sauce and a box of pasta in the cart when I’m feeling nice.

Luckily, my daughter’s palate is similar to mine, so anything I like, she seems to like, too. We both love spicy things and have a sweet tooth, so it makes sense that hot honey has become a staple in our house.

Inspired by our love of the condiment, I leaned into an old French technique to upgrade our usual chicken tenders to hot honey chicken tenders, and now it’s a family favorite.

A Simple Technique With Delicious Results

When I went to culinary school a thousand years ago (yes, I’m a dinosaur—extinct, but magically still here) I learned how to make a gastrique. It sounds fancy and French, but it’s a simple technique that yields delicious results.

The simplest version involves sautéeing an aromatic like shallot in oil or butter and adding an acid and something sweet like sugar, honey, or fruit. The mixture simmers for a small amount of time until it is slightly thickened and coats the back of a spoon, and then it’s ready to serve.

My hot honey recipe begins with sautéing chicken tenders in a non-stick pan. Once they’re browned, I transfer them to a plate and work on the sauce. I cook up a few cloves of garlic and add apple cider vinegar and hot honey and bring to a simmer. Once it thickens a bit, I add a bit of Worcestershire sauce for a dose of umami.

I nestle the tenders into the sauce and spoon it over top. Right before serving I garnish with thinly sliced green onions and sit back and watch everyone enjoy my cooking.

hot honey tenders served on two plates with broccoli and rice at a table setting with glasses of beer, a small bowl of sliced scallions, and more hot honey sauce in a small bowl — Simply Recipes / Sara Haas

How I Serve Hot Honey Chicken Tenders

My preference is to serve the tenders with white rice, but brown rice or another whole grain would also be delicious. I also love to serve them over cold soba noodles or even cooked ramen noodles. Stir-fried broccoli is a fast and easy vegetable side, but I love carrots and bok choy, which can also be stir-fried or sautéed as a quick accompaniment.

Make Your Own Hot Honey

If you don’t have hot honey available at your local grocery store, or you want to save a bit of money, you can make your own. Place honey in a small saucepan and add a pinch or two of crushed red pepper. Let it simmer for 10 minutes, then strain (if desired) and let cool. That’s it!

For this recipe, simply add 1/8 teaspoon (or more, depending on how hot you like things) of crushed red pepper when you make the sauce.

Skillet Chicken Recipes

Hot Honey Chicken

Prep Time 5 mins

Cook Time 15 mins

Total Time 20 mins

Servings 4 to 6 servings

Cook Mode (Keep screen awake)

1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup hot honey
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 thinly sliced green onions, for serving, optional

Cook the chicken:

Pat chicken dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper.

Set a large nonstick skillet over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of oil. Once hot, add chicken and cook until golden brown on the bottom, about 4 minutes. Flip and cook until golden brown on the other side and the internal temperature reaches 165°F, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and tent with foil.
Make the sauce:

Add the remaining tablespoon of oil and the garlic to the same skillet and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the apple cider vinegar and honey and bring to a low boil over medium-high heat.

Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the mixture has thickened slightly, about 5 to 8 minutes.
Finish the sauce and add the chicken:

Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and add the cooked chicken back to the skillet. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and garnish with green onions, if desired.

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

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Nutrition Facts (per serving)
360	Calories
19g	Fat
33g	Carbs
16g	Protein

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4 to 6
Amount per serving
Calories	360
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 19g	24%
Saturated Fat 3g	16%
Cholesterol 39mg	13%
Sodium 888mg	39%
Total Carbohydrate 33g	12%
Dietary Fiber 1g	3%
Total Sugars 16g
Protein 16g
Vitamin C 1mg	3%
Calcium 22mg	2%
Iron 1mg	5%
Potassium 311mg	7%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.