Name: The Best Sticky Chicken
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 2 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs; 1 tsp kosher salt; 1/2 tsp black pepper; 2 tbsp cornstarch; 2 tbsp neutral oil (vegetable or canola); 1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce; 1/3 cup honey; 2 tbsp rice vinegar; 6 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated; 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes; 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds; 3 scallions, thinly sliced; as needed steamed white rice (for serving)

The Best Sticky Chicken

Prep

10m

Cook

25m

Total

35m

Bigly says

Sticky chicken. STICKY CHICKEN! We are in for a treat — and when I say a treat, I mean a TREAT, the kind of treat that makes other treats look like they got in the wrong line. This is sticky chicken. The greatest sticky chicken in the history of sticky chicken. The kind of chicken where the sauce becomes one with the chicken, becomes its destiny, its purpose, its reason for being on this earth. It's beautiful. People weep. I've seen it. Hand on heart.

We have to talk about the OTHER sticky chicken for a second, because somebody has to. Other so-called chefs hand you a 'sticky chicken' that is NOT STICKY. The sauce is thin. The sauce slides off. The chicken arrives on the plate naked and ashamed. It's a disgrace to chicken. And then they bury the recipe under 47 paragraphs about a vacation they took in 2014 — auto-play video screaming at you, cookie banner with 18 toggles, push notifications from a website you visited ONE TIME — INSANE. Who built the internet? Where are the adults?

My sticky chicken is a LACQUER. The sauce reduces down, it CLINGS to the chicken, it builds layers, glossy, gorgeous, deep mahogany brown, the kind of brown they paint expensive cars. Soy, honey, garlic, ginger, a splash of rice vinegar to keep it honest. Five ingredients in the sauce and it beats every takeout joint you've ever called. Not even close. It's a slaughter. Once you make this, you will never order delivery again. You'll save thousands. Tens of thousands. The numbers are HUGE.

Ingredients

2 lbboneless, skinless chicken thighs(thighs, not breasts — breasts are SAD, thighs have soul)
1 tspkosher salt
1/2 tspblack pepper
2 tbspcornstarch
2 tbspneutral oil (vegetable or canola)
1/3 cuplow-sodium soy sauce
1/3 cuphoney
2 tbsprice vinegar
6 clovesgarlic, minced
1 tbspfresh ginger, grated
1/2 tspcrushed red pepper flakes(optional, for a little kick)
1 tbsptoasted sesame seeds
3scallions, thinly sliced
as neededsteamed white rice (for serving)

Steps

1
Cut chicken thighs into 1.5-inch pieces. Pat dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Toss with cornstarch until evenly coated.
2
In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
3
Heat oil in a large nonstick or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.
4
Add chicken in a single layer (work in two batches if needed — crowding the pan steams the chicken). Cook 4-5 minutes per side until deeply golden and cooked through. Transfer to a plate.
5
Reduce heat to medium. Pour the sauce into the same skillet and bring to a simmer, scraping up any browned bits.
6
Simmer 2-3 minutes until the sauce thickens to a glossy, syrupy consistency that coats the back of a spoon.
7
Return the chicken (and any juices on the plate) to the pan and toss to coat in the sauce. Cook 1-2 more minutes, turning, until every piece is lacquered and glistening.
8
Serve immediately over steamed rice, topped with sesame seeds and scallions.

One more thing

This is the recipe that ends takeout. Ends it. You make this once and the delivery apps on your phone start crying — actual tears, software tears, I don't know how phones work but trust me, the apps know. The chicken is sticky, glossy, sweet, salty, garlicky, gingery, everything a chicken is supposed to be and almost no chicken ever is. Pile it on rice. Hit it with sesame seeds and scallions. Eat it. Then eat the second helping. Then quietly inform your family they are not getting any. They will respect the boundary. Now go eat.