Skillet Hot Honey Chicken With Hearty Greens
- Total Time
- 30 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
Advertisement
Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 2pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (4 to 6 thighs)
- Kosher salt and pepper
- 1tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1small hot chile, thinly sliced (such as jalapeño, Fresno or serrano), or to taste
- 1large bunch or head of hearty greens, such as escarole, mustard greens or kale (about 6 ounces)
- 2tablespoons honey
- 1tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
609 calories; 44 grams fat; 11 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 19 grams monounsaturated fat; 9 grams polyunsaturated fat; 12 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 9 grams sugars; 40 grams protein; 723 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Pat the chicken thighs dry with a paper towel, then season both sides with salt and pepper. Drizzle the olive oil into a large skillet, then add the chicken thighs skin side down.
- Step 2
Set over medium heat and cook, without moving them, until the skin is crisp and deep golden brown, about 15 minutes. If you can’t stand leaving the chicken untouched for this long, use your tongs to press the chicken down into the pan, which promotes even browning.
- Step 3
Flip the thighs over and swirl the chile into the rendered chicken fat. Cook until the meat is cooked through, about 10 minutes.
- Step 4
Meanwhile, stem and tear the hearty greens into big bite-size pieces. In a big bowl, toss them with salt and pepper.
- Step 5
Transfer the chicken to serving plates, leaving the fat in the pan. Off the heat, stir the honey and vinegar into the fat until the honey’s melted and everything’s combined. Dress the greens with enough of the sauce to lightly coat, seasoning with salt and pepper as needed. (Feel free to eat the chile peppers or leave them behind.) Serve the chicken with the salad, spooning more sauce over the chicken and salad as desired.
Private Notes
Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.
Cooking Notes
Nacho
I scaled this up and used a sheet pan @ 400 degrees for 35 minutes. It’s actually better this way and far less less smokey. It’s easy to then use juices from the pan to make a sauce.
Marcia Cunningham
I find sheet pans the way to go with chicken thighs. 400 degrees for 30-40 mins then add the honey, chile and vinegar a few minutes before you remove from oven. One pan, no fussing, perfect chicken, great sauce! Great recipe!
Morgan
Twenty-five minutes in a cast iron skillet was perfect for my medium-large thighs. Chicken (and any other meat not from the sea) should be brought to room temp before cooking, which significantly reduces the cook time. In the case of skin-on chicken, giving it an hour or two out of the fridge while the meat absorbs some salt kills two birds with one stone (sorry for that).
Eleni
This was simple and delicious. In addition to greens, it also works well with rice (or any grain), and cooked veggies. I added it on top of some braised kale with garlic and it was delicious!
Caitlin
Delicious and easy! Made in my large cast iron skillet. Only had spring mix on hand...it was great with the sauce, and the greens wilted slightly with it plus the hot chicken on top. Added a slice of fresh cut lemon which we squeezed over everything upon serving. It really made the all the flavors light up.
Jim G.
Suggested cook time was accurate for me. I did use same technique as for smothered chicken; placed 4 bone-in thighs in #8 cast iron skillet, placed a large saucer over the thighs weighed with a 28 oz can of tomatoes. My stove runs hot so i used a lower burner setting than med. Cooked for 15 min with skin down, flipped the thighs over and cooked for 14 more minutes (29 total). Internal temp was between 170° & 180°F.
KJ
I find sheet pans the way to go with chicken thighs. 400 degrees for 30-40 mins then add the honey, chile and vinegar a few minutes before you remove from oven. One pan, no fussing, perfect chicken, great sauce! Great recipe!
Philip
I added 3 thin-sliced cloves of garlic with the jalapeños to create a more complex flavor profile with the honey and apple cider vinegar. To bring the greens into the fold, I used dandelion greens and lightly wilted them in the sauce after removing the chicken. Their natural bitterness was perfectly complimented by the tangy, sweet sauce. This recipe is a solid base for experimentation.
Joe
I used boneless, skin-on breasts. Put the skillet in a 425 degree oven (joining the potatoes I was roasting) for a few minutes to finish them. Came out perfectly.
Merry
I followed one reader's good advice to bake on a sheet pan at 400 for 35 minutes, but then added a final step of finishing them under the broiler for about 4 minutes, to crisp the skin. Fantastic.
K. Wagner
This is so easy and delicious! I take the bone out of the thighs and pound them a bit to make them cook more evenly. Served over boiled, cut up new potatoes. 30 min weeknight dinner that felt pretty fancy!
Allison
This is my new favorite weeknight chicken! I used more Serrano peppers than recommended because we like heat! It is perfect with baby Kale and I made brown rice or a baguette is great with it too!
Kip
Stunning! Doubled the sauce, dressed the greens (frisée) then put the thighs back in the skillet on the heat turning them frequently to carmelize in the sauce... (I’d undercooked them on the 2nd side). Crispy, juicy, delish!
meredith
Simply delicious. I doubled the sauce and wilted the greens a bit into it, and added red onion and some croutons to make, almost, a salad. I wish I had more greens (Which is weird, because I normally don’t like wilted greens.) my jalapeño wasn’t hot enough, so I would have added more spice. I looooved it, though. And the couple of pieces of leftover chicken I had the next day were crazy good.
jeff
Overall, super tasty. I had a couple of problems with the recipe as written, but adjusted as follows: 1) the recipe recommends adding the hot peppers on the flip. For me, the peppers burned quickly. When I removed the thighs, I ran the rendered fat through a sieve to remove the burnt peppers. I wiped the pan and added 1/4c hot sauce, honey and vinegar. 2) I added the thighs back to the sauce to heat through for 1-2 min per side, then spooned sauce over thighs and greens as directed. Very good
Ruthe
The way the recipe reads, you put the chicken in a cold pan and then put the burner on? This doesn't make sense, so I pre-heated the pan.
Teresa B
This is my new fav summer dinner. I was able to use the first kale from the garden. I might double the Serrano though when they hit the heat the heat left less heat! I wanted to feel like I was in Nashville, up late listening to a bunch of bands and in need of a snack.
anne
Worked with boneless skinless thighs (actually preferred over bone in skin on). Doubled dressing. Used 2 Calabrian peppers but would use 3 next time. Dressing really good on curly kale. Would make dressing again for kale but probably not chicken.
Equilibrist
This was really good. I didn’t have any fresh peppers so just used chile flakes, and added capers as well for even more umami. Escarole worked well as the green.
Elizabeth K
I didn't have any cider vinegar, so I used aged balsamic--divine.
Barbara L
This is now my husband's favorite recipe!! I followed your instructions precisely and was quite pleased with how delicious this dish is. The jalapeños also burned for me, but I found them to be a tasty touch.
Jen
I would wait to drop the chiles, especially if your thighs will need extra time like mine did. A meat thermometer can help you gauge the time.
Ragbert
I made this with a very large boneless/skinless thigh in a stainless steel pan, over medium heat, and a hood fan on. I used grapeseed oil, and I put a fitted cover over the pan to prevent too much spattering. It turned out great! After removing the chicken from the pan, I added a rough-chopped garlic clove & a tsp of chili crisp to the vinegar & honey, and stirred it all with the fond in the pan. Added red & green leaf lettuce & arugula, and poured everything over the chicken thigh. Yum!!!
Jim
I served it with spinach instead of greens. It was delicious!!
Cait
I love the flatware in the photo... care to share what kind these are, NYTimes?
Elizabeth K
Take a screen shot and do an image search!
Sheila L.
Wow, this is delicious. Went roasting pan in oven (400/45 mins for large thighs) vs. cast iron on stovetop to simplify, but that was the only change from the recipe as written. Put hot chicken and sauce on a bed of kale and spinach, tossed and devoured. Will make this many more times!
c
Delicious! I made in the oven at 400 as many others suggested. Broiled for about 5 min after flipping to get extra crispy skin. I ended up using mikes hot honey in lieu of a pepper since my daughter likes it. Very delicious! Poured the sauce over spring greens and made a side of lemon, feta, cucumber Israeli cous cous. The perfect meal!
Stuart
Followed recipe to the letter and found a new green to love, mustard greens!
Sofija
I swear by this marinade, literally: chicken thighs, salt / pepper, mayo and some sofrito or seasoning of choice, marinate it for 24hrs, then the next day, let the chicken come to room temp and bake it till the chicken is cooked + broil for crispy skin (45mins - 1hr)
Laurie
Do skinless boneless thighs work well for this recipe?
Ragbert
Yes indeed! That's exactly what I used tonight and it was delicious. You may need a bit extra oil and slightly lower heat because you won't have as much rendered chicken fat. But if you flavor the sauce well, it should work fine.
Private notes are only visible to you.
Advertisement
