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Tender strips of chicken breast in a sticky, sweet honey garlic sauce, served over rice with steamed broccoli. It’s lean, high in protein, and lighter than takeout.
This honey garlic chicken stir fry is all about the sauce: sweet, garlicky, and sticky enough to cling to every piece of chicken (and your fingers). Thin strips of chicken breast get a quick marinade, a hard sear in a hot wok, and a toss in honey garlic sauce until it turns glossy. Steamed broccoli and rice round it out.
In my other stir fry recipes, soy sauce does most of the seasoning. Here it would compete with the honey, so I cut it back to just 1 tablespoon of low-sodium soy sauce in the sauce and season the rest with salt. Salt has a cleaner taste, and it keeps the honey in front.
If you like sweet and savory chicken stir fries, you might also like my Panda Express String Bean Chicken Breast copycat and Panda Express Mushroom Chicken copycat, which use a similar marinate-then-sear method.
RECIPE AT A GLANCE
What it is: Thin-sliced chicken breast, marinated and seared, then glazed in a honey garlic sauce. Served with steamed broccoli and rice.
Why it works: Less soy and a little salt keep the honey flavor front and center; thin slices and a hot pan give a golden sear.
Time: 6 minutes prep and 7 minutes cooking, plus marinating time (5 minutes minimum, 30 minutes to overnight recommended).
Serve with: Steamed broccoli and steamed rice. For noodle night, it also pairs well with Yaki Udon or Chicken Lo Mein.
Swap the veg: A reader made it with cauliflower instead of broccoli and loved it.
More garlic: Three cloves is the baseline; add as much as you like.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Honey forward, not soy forward. Less soy and a pinch of salt let the honey flavor come through.
- A marinade that does three jobs. Soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, cornstarch, and a little brown sugar tenderize the chicken, help it brown, and season it from the start.
- Thin slices, real sear. Quarter-inch strips lie flat in the pan, so more of each piece browns.
- A sauce you can see is done. It bubbles up on itself and turns sticky and glossy, so you know when to pull it.
Ingredients You’ll Need
The Stir Fry:
- Chicken breast: Sliced thin, about ¼ inch, so it absorbs the marinade and lies flat for searing.
- Broccoli: One head, cut into florets and steamed.
- Avocado oil: For searing. Any neutral vegetable oil works.
The Marinade:
- Low-sodium soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, cornstarch, and brown sugar: Together they tenderize the chicken, help it brown, and add flavor.
The Honey Garlic Sauce:
- Honey: The honey flavor really comes through in this dish, so use the best honey you can find. It makes a difference.
- Chicken stock: The base of the sauce.
- Low sodium soy sauce: Only 1 tablespoon so it doesn’t overpower the honey.
- Cornstarch: Thickens the sauce until sticky and glossy.
- Rice wine vinegar and sesame oil: One teaspoon each.
- Garlic and ginger: Fresh, minced and grated. Three cloves of garlic gives a pretty good amount of garlic flavor; use more or less to taste.
- Toasted sesame seeds
- Salt: To taste, in place of extra soy sauce.
See the recipe card below for exact amounts.
How to Make Honey Garlic Chicken Stir Fry
1. Slice the chicken thin. Cut the chicken breast into strips about ¼ inch thick. Thin strips soak up more marinade and lie flat in the pan, which helps them brown more.
2. Marinate. In a medium bowl, combine the soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, cornstarch, and brown sugar, then add the chicken. Marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight. Short on time? Let it sit while you prep everything else; even 5 minutes helps.
3. Mix the sauce. In a small bowl, stir together the chicken stock, honey, soy sauce, cornstarch, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, sesame seeds, garlic, and ginger. Set aside. Season with salt now or right before serving.
4. Steam the broccoli. Bring about an inch of water to a boil in a small pot, add the broccoli in a steamer basket, and steam for about 5 minutes, until tender but still crisp. No steamer basket? Boil the florets in about ½ inch of water for 3 to 5 minutes.
5. Sear the chicken. Heat a wok or pan over high heat and add the oil. When the pan is hot, lay the chicken flat in a single layer. Don’t crowd the pan, and leave the pieces alone for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until golden brown.
6. Add the sauce and glaze. Flip the chicken and pour in the sauce. Stir-fry for 1 to 2 minutes, until the sauce bubbles up and turns sticky and glossy.
7. Serve. Turn off the heat and serve right away with the steamed broccoli and rice, spooning extra sauce over the top.
Jamie’s Tip
Tips for the Best Honey Garlic Chicken
- Use good honey. The honey is the main flavor here, so the better your honey, the better the dish.
- Season the garlic to your taste. Three cloves is the baseline; garlic lovers can add more, or you can use less for a milder sauce.
- Never skip the marinade. Even 5 minutes helps with tenderness, browning, and flavor.
- Get the pan hot first. Add the chicken only once the oil is hot, then let it sit undisturbed until golden.
- Give it room. Crowding the pan keeps the chicken from searing.
- Watch the sauce, not the clock. Pull it when it bubbles up and looks sticky and glossy.
- Taste before serving. Add salt at the end if it needs more seasoning, rather than more soy sauce.
Frequently Asked Questions
Soy sauce can compete with the honey, so the sauce uses just 1 tablespoon and gets the rest of its seasoning from salt. Salt tastes cleaner and lets the honey flavor come through.
At least 30 minutes in the fridge, or up to overnight, for best results. If you’re in a hurry, even 5 minutes while you prep the other ingredients makes a difference.
Strips about ¼ inch thick soak up more marinade and lie flat in the pan, so more of each piece browns.
It will bubble up on itself and look sticky and glossy, usually within 1 to 2 minutes.
Yes. Broccoli is the classic pairing, and one reader made it with cauliflower and loved it.
Yes. Chicken thighs work well here and are a good alternative if you prefer dark meat.
If this one hits the spot, try my Panda Express String Bean Chicken Breast copycat for something savory and garlicky, or Panda Express Mushroom Chicken with zucchini. Want to skip the meat? My 15 Minute Thai Basil Tofu Stir Fry is just as quick. You can find more in my Asian recipes.
If you make this honey garlic chicken stir fry, leave a rating and a comment below. Tell me how much garlic you went with, and whether you tried a different vegetable. I love reading your comments!
Thanks so much for stopping by!
Honey Garlic Chicken Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breast, thinly sliced, about ¼ inch
- 1 head broccoli, cut into florets
- 1 Tablespoon avocado oil, can substitute any vegetable oil
Chicken Marinade
- 1 Tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
- 1½ Tablespoon Shaoxing wine
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon brown sugar
Honey Garlic Sauce
- 3 Tablespoons chicken stock
- 3 Tablespoons honey
- 1 Tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
- 1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ¾ teaspoon ginger, grated
- salt to taste
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine the marinade ingredients and add the sliced chicken. Marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight. Short on time? Let it sit while you prep the other ingredients.
- In a small bowl, combine the honey garlic sauce ingredients. Set aside.
- Bring about 1 inch of water to a boil in a small pot. Add the broccoli in a steamer basket and steam for 5 minutes, or until tender but still crisp. No steamer basket? Boil the broccoli in about ½ inch of boiling water for 3 to 5 minutes.
- Heat a wok or pan over high heat and add the oil. When the pan is hot, lay the chicken flat in a single layer. Don't crowd the pan. Leave the pieces alone until golden brown, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Flip the chicken and add the honey garlic sauce. Stir fry for 1 to 2 minutes, until the sauce thickens and turns sticky and glossy.
- Season with salt to taste. Serve with the steamed broccoli and rice.
Notes
- Less soy sauce: This recipe uses less soy sauce than my other stir fries so it doesn’t overpower the honey. Season with salt in the sauce or right before serving.
- Honey: The honey flavor really comes through, so use the best honey you can find.
- Garlic: Three cloves gives a good amount of garlic flavor. Use more or less to taste.
- Marinating: 30 minutes to overnight is best, but even 5 minutes helps.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
Super tasty – we are big garlic fans, so this recipe immediately appealed! We used cauliflower instead of broccoli as that is what we had in the crisper.. but so good. I can imagine we could easily enjoy this every week.
Thanks Annabel! So glad you enjoyed it!
This recipe made me feel really rather nostalgic, as my mom made a similar dish when we were growing up! I hadn’t eaten it in so long, so I made it for her the other night when she came over for dinner. We both agreed it was very delicious, and we loved the memories it brought back from years gone by!
Thanks so much Greta! Glad you and your mom enjoyed it. 🙂
I love so many things about this recipe… that you use healthy chicken breast, your tips about cutting it to it absorbs more of that delicious sauce, and that delicious sauce! Yum! I could eat this every day.
Much better than takeout! My whole family will love it.
The marinade really puts this recipe over the top. It’s better than take-out!
Garlic and chicken is a can’t miss combination! Love this!
I am a huge fan of sweet and savory pairings so I know my entire family will enjoy this easy and healthy meal.