Honey Baked Chicken
This honey baked chicken is the kind of recipe that quietly becomes a staple. It’s simple enough for a weeknight, reliable enough to serve when company’s coming, and familiar in a way that makes everyone at the table comfortable.
There’s no marinating, no complicated prep, and only a handful of ingredients in the sauce. You whisk, pour, and let the oven do the work. The result is tender, juicy chicken with beautifully browned skin and a lightly sweet, savory sauce that feels special without being fussy.
This is one of those meals that proves dinner doesn’t have to be complicated to feel satisfying.
Why this recipe works for real life:
This is a great recipe to keep in your back pocket when you want dinner to feel steady and calm instead of rushed or overwhelming:
- It uses simple ingredients you likely already have
- There’s very little hands-on time once it goes in the oven
- The flavors are familiar and gentle, which makes it easy for kids to enjoy
The sauce might look unexpected at first — honey, butter, mustard, and curry powder — but nothing tastes strong or overpowering on its own. Everything blends together into a balanced, cozy flavor that works well for a wide range of palates.
How to Make Honey Baked Chicken
This baked chicken recipe is straightforward and forgiving. For the full directions, scroll down to the recipe card, but here’s the big picture:
- Whisk together the sauce ingredients.
- Arrange the chicken in a baking dish.
- Pour the sauce over the top.
- Roast, basting occasionally, until the chicken is deeply golden and cooked through.
That’s it. No special timing tricks, no extra steps.
Tips for juicy, reliable baked chicken
A few small choices make a big difference here:
- Use bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs for the most consistent results
- Choose a baking dish that gives the chicken some space so it roasts instead of steams
If you need a great veggie side dish that you can cook in the oven along with this chicken, I highly recommend my Garlic Roasted Zucchini! Its as simple as dumping stuff in a pan and letting it cook! You will need to let it cook a few minutes extra if you have both the chicken and the zucchini in the oven together, but it will still turn out to be one fabulous meal!Â
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Honey Baked Chicken
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the butter, honey, mustard, salt and curry.
- Arrange chicken pieces into a baking dish.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken and place the pan in the oven.
- Bake for approximately 1 hour 15 minutes, basting the chicken with the sauce every 15 minutes.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is provided as a general estimate and may vary based on ingredients, brands, and substitutions. For specific dietary needs, we recommend calculating nutrition using your preferred tool.
I made this for my mom on Mother’s Day, she is a picky eater and loves it btw it came out perfect
Should it be covered with foil while baking?
Nope, it doesn’t need foil on top, unless you start noticing that it is getting really dark on top! The chicken skin will crisp and get dark in some places, but it doesn’t need foil unless it looks like its close to burning.
I see Garam Masala instead of Curry powder and it was wonderful. Thank you!
Have you ever used boneless chicken. Thank you
Hi Jeanne! I have not used boneless chicken in this particular recipe before. You could use boneless, skinless thighs here instead but you will need to shorten the cooking time.It will probably only take 20-25 minutes, but you will have to watch it and check the temperature with a thermometer! If you try it, let me know how it goes!
Ummm… this sounds AMAZING. I'm not a big chicken fan, but I will absolutely be trying this soon. Only a few more weeks until my little guy can eat honey!
Made this tonight and it was delicious. It wasn't crispy and dark like in the picture but none the less delicious. We did use chicken breast instead of thighs or legs.
What temperature we use when we bake the chicken?
Bake the chicken at 350 F for 1 hour and 15 minutes. 🙂 Enjoy!
Do you cover the chicken?
Nope! Keep it uncovered, that will help you get that gorgeous golden brown skin!
Do you think this would work well with a whole chicken too??
What kind of mustard did you use?
Any kind of mustard you happen to have on hand will work just fine!
I've been told that I'm allowed to make this recipe again. Thanks so much. It was delicious
Haha that's awesome. 🙂 Glad it went over well!
Excellent recipe. I loved it