Honey Sesame Chicken is the crispy, crunchy, sweet, and salty meal you’ve been looking for – even if you didn’t realize it! Dare I say that this might become your new favorite way to make chicken? It’s certainly become one of mine – so let’s get into it!
You know when you create something in the kitchen that can only be described as special? Well that’s how I felt as soon as I took a bite of this honey sesame chicken. Well what could be more perfect than crisp, crunchy, coated chicken coated in a sticky sweet and super flavorful honey sesame glaze?
The answer – just in case you were wondering – is nothing. This dish has all you’ll ever need, even if you didn’t know it! I like to pile this chicken over top of fluffy white rice to ensure that every last drop of sauce doesn’t go to waste and because I like that carb hit – sue me!
To try and make it at home was a no brainer. This chicken dish is a family favorite now, and while it’s great when you’re out wanting a quick lunch, nothing beats making this dish in the comfort of your own home.
Ingredients
Chicken
- Chicken – I used boneless skinless chicken breast, however boneless skinless chicken thighs can be used as well.
- Breadcrumbs – I used panko as it is my favorite for ensuring a super crispy coating with that perfect crunch.
- Eggs – for the chicken to dip in before dredging through breadcrumbs.
- Seasoning – Salt and pepper.
Sauce
- Honey – All glazes need something a little sweet, honey is also important for the texture. If you don’t have any you can substitute maple syrup.
- Soy sauce – I prefer to use a good low sodium soy sauce.
- Vinegar – Rice vinegar to add brightness and acidity.
- Sugar – We want to help that honey along a little bit, I like to use brown sugar as it’s dark molasses notes will add dimension to our sauce.
- Garlic – Use as much or little as you like.
- Sesame – We’re incorporating the sugar fragrant and flavorful oil into our sauce and sprinkling sesame seeds over top our finished dish – because why not!
Can I Use Chicken Thighs?
You sure can! I just used chicken breast because it’s what I had on hand but if you are a firm chicken thigh supporter, I won’t try to convert you! Your chicken may need a bit more time to bake if you switch up the meat but it depends on how big your chicken pieces are so just keep an eye on them in the oven.
How To Make Honey Sesame Chicken
- Preheat your oven to 400 F degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Add the eggs to a shallow plate, season with salt and pepper and beat well. Add the breadcrumbs to another shallow plate.
- Assemble the chicken: Dip the chicken pieces first into the egg mixture, then dredge them through the breadcrumbs. Place the chicken onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat until finished with all the chicken. You might need to use 2 baking sheets, or one really large one.
- Bake for about 20 to 30 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown and crisp.
- Combine the sauce: In a small pan over medium heat, combine all the sauce ingredients except sesame seeds. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer until slightly thickened, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Finish the dish: Pour over warm chicken and toss to fully coat. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, green onions and serve.
Want To Fry Up Your Chicken Bites?
Forget the oven! You can fry these up for a perfectly golden brown bite.
Fry the chicken on both sides until golden brown and chicken is cooked inside, should take about 2 to 3 min per side. Repeat with remaining chicken. If oil gets too dirty between batches, clean out the skillet and start with fresh oil. Place fried chicken strips on paper towels to soak up some of the oil.
How Else Can I Serve My Honey Sesame Sauce?
The beauty with this sauce is that it is completely drool worthy on nearly anything you can think of! If you’d like to spoon it over some other meals, here’s some suggestions.
- Veggie stir fry – any kind you can think of!
- Chicken – cubed up and not coated in any breading!
- Pork
- Beef
- Tofu
Leftovers
Fridge
You can store these fully cooked in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 – 4 days. Feel free to crisp them up by baking them in the oven when ready to feast.
Freezer
You can store these in the freezer for up to 1 month if you’d like to prepare these in advance. Just dredge the chicken strips and then lay them on a baking sheet and freeze them, uncooked. Hold off on making the sauce till you’re ready to feast.
Seal in an airtight container once completely frozen and bake at 425 F degrees for 20 – 25 minutes from frozen when ready to eat.
How To Serve
You can serve these with additional sauces on the side such as sriracha, hoisin sauce or more soy sauce. If you’d like you can snack on these all on their own, that most certainly wouldn’t be a bad way to do it – but if you’d like to turn this scintillating snack into a full blown meal feel free to serve it over top some of these.
More Delicious Chicken Recipes To Try:
- Asian Glazed Chicken Fingers
- Coconut Chicken
- Bang Bang Chicken
- Sticky Honey Sriracha Chicken Bites
- Lemon Pepper Chicken
- Honey Garlic Chicken
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Honey Sesame Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
Chicken
- 1 ½ pound chicken breasts boneless and skinless, cut into 1 inch cubes
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon pepper or to taste
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 1 ½ cups Panko breadcrumbs
Sauce
- ⅓ cup honey
- ⅓ cup soy sauce low sodium
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar packed
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 F degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Add the eggs to a shallow plate, season with salt and pepper and beat well. Add the breadcrumbs to another shallow plate.
- Dip the chicken pieces first into the egg mixture, then dredge them through the breadcrumbs. Place the chicken onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat until finished with all the chicken.
- Bake for about 20 to 30 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown and crisp.
- In a small pan over medium heat, combine all the sauce ingredients except sesame seeds. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer until slightly thickened, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Pour over warm chicken and toss to fully coat. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, green onions and serve.
Video
Recipe Notes
- You can store these fully cooked in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 – 4 days. Feel free to crisp them up by baking them in the oven when ready to feast.
- You can store these in the freezer for up to 1 month if you’d like to prepare these in advance. Just dredge the chicken strips and then lay them on a baking sheet and freeze them, uncooked. Hold off on making the sauce till you’re ready to feast.
- Seal in an airtight container once completely frozen and bake at 425 F degrees for 20 – 25 minutes from frozen when ready to eat.
I didn’t have Panko on hand so I crushed up some gluten free Rice Krispies. This recipe is really outstanding. My family is already asking me to make it again!
This dish is not only delicious, but aesthetically pleasing as well. The only alteration to the recipe was the sauce which is amazing! I did make it the night before and stored it in the fridge. I had trouble getting it to thicken when I heated it, so I added a couple of teaspoons of cornstarch and a tad more honey. The result was perfection! It coated the chicken nicely and kept the sesame seeds in place. This dish will be in regular rotation at my house.
Have you ever used this sauce to pour over Regular chicken and bake?
I have not, but you can totally do that!
My two grown sons and husband liked this very much! Mine didn’t turn out quite like your picture. I think I might have added too much soy sauce and used a different brand bread crumb. But I will definitely make again! Thanks.