Sticky Baked Chicken Thighs is what you make when you need an unplanned, quick and easy recipe for boneless skinless chicken thighs. It’s incredibly simple, made with pantry staples and uses a highly effective method for cooking chicken thighs in the oven.
The sweet-savoury glaze tastes like your favourite country-style rub, and the sauce is so good for drizzling over everything on your plate. Also – see how to use this as a marinade for Sticky GRILLED Chicken!
Boneless skinless chicken thighs in the oven!
We all love chicken thighs that have been cooked so they’re beautifully caramelised on the surface – like with everybody’s favourite pan seared Garlic Chicken Thighs.
But we all have those days when we don’t want to deal with the spitting and splutter of chicken thighs in the pan.
And we all also have those days when we haven’t planned for a particular recipe for that pack of chicken thighs in the fridge.
Enter – Sticky Baked Chicken Thighs.
Boneless skinless chicken thighs cooked in the oven that practically look like they’ve been seared on the stove made with ingredients I bet you already have!
The country-style glaze: pantry staples!
Made with basic pantry staples with plenty of substitutions possible, this country-style sauce is adapted from these Baked Pork Chops. It’s savoury and a bit sweet, with great layers of flavour. Here’s what we’re using:
Worcestershire sauce – packs a ton of savouriness, plus you can give yourself a pat on the back for using it for something other than Bloody Mary’s 😂;
Soy sauce – the “better than salt” way of adding salt to anything (more flavour);
Ketchup – OR Aussie tomato sauce, BBQ sauce or other similar type sauces;
Brown sugar – or honey or even maple syrup. Corn syrup, golden syrup or other such sweet things in liquid form should work just fine too;
Garlic – because it makes everything better;
Vinegar – because where we have sweet, we must balance with tang. Use apple cider vinegar if you have it, otherwise any other clear(ish) vinegar; and
Oil – just makes the sauce a bit more interesting. You can skip it if you want.
Cooking boneless skinless chicken thighs in the oven
These baked chicken thighs are a mix, drizzle and bake job.
The key here is baking on a high heat to get nice caramelisation – I bake the thighs at 220C/425F.
For the best result, bake it for just over half the time, then finish with a broil/grill. This caramelises the surface really well, and this is my preferred method for baking chicken thighs.
What temperature should boneless chicken thighs be cooked to?
Boneless chicken thighs are cooked when the internal temperature is 75C/165F. However, because thighs are far more juicy than breast, they are more forgiving so don’t fret about exact cooking times.
Can this be made with chicken breast?
Yes, but the caramelisation isn’t as good. Directions in recipe notes!
Plenty of sauce for drizzling!
The other nice thing about this recipe is that there’s plenty of a lovely syrupy sauce to spoon over the chicken and everything else on your plate.
The sauce is the reason why I like to bake AND broil/grill chicken thighs. While you get better caramelisation by just broiling, you don’t get pan juices.
And for this quick meal, I want sauce because then it minimises the effort I have to go to for the sides! Mop all the sauce up with some crusty bread, or for something a little different, try this speedy Garlic Mashed White Beans (pictured below). ~ Nagi x
More quick Chicken Thigh recipes
These are all boneless chicken thigh recipes that don’t require any marinating time.
Garlic Chicken Thighs – crispy surface, fabulous garlic flavour
Chicken Stroganoff – everything you love about Beef Stroganoff, but with chicken!
Bacon Wrapped Chicken – Bacon. Chicken. You know it’s a winner!
One Pot Chinese Chicken and “Fried Rice” – it’s fried rice and Chinese chicken, all made in one pot
Honey Garlic Chicken – the 5 ingredient sauce is outrageously good!
Oven Baked Chicken Breast – dry rubbed then baked, this recipe works 100% perfectly with thigh as well
Sticky Baked Chicken Thighs
Watch how to make it
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Sticky Baked Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 700g / 1.4lb chicken thighs , skinless boneless (5-7 pieces), Note 1
Glaze (Note 2 for subs):
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 3 tbsp brown sugar , lightly packed
- 1.5 tbsp soy sauce , all purpose or light (NOT dark)
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 2 clove garlics , minced
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 220°C/420°F (200°C fan).
- Pan – Use a pan large enough to fit the thighs lying flat (not bunched up/folded). Line pan with foil (you'll thank me later), place thighs in pan.
- Glaze 1 – Mix Glaze ingredients together. Spoon over about 2/3 of the Glaze on the surface of each (not underside), reserve rest.
- Bake 15 minutes, remove pan.
- Flick to grill/broiler on high, adjust shelf to be 20cm/8" from heat source.
- Glaze 2 – Spoon pan juices over chicken. Then spoon/dab remaining Glaze onto chicken.
- Broil chicken for 8 to 10 minutes until surface is nicely caramelised.
- Rest – Remove and stand for a few minutes (uncovered) before serving with pan juices.
Recipe Notes:
- Cut each breast horizontally to form 2 steaks;
- Oven: Spoon ALL the sauce over one side. Bake for 18 minutes at 425F/220C, do not remove for basting, do not broil.
- Broil: Spoon bit of sauce on one side. Broil on high 3 minutes. Flip, spoon over remaining sauce. Broil 6-8 min, watch carefully to ensure it doesn’t burn too much.
- Ketchup – Aussie tomato sauce, BBQ sauce or other similar sauces
- Brown Sugar – white sugar, or 2 tbsp honey, maple syrup, or any other sweet thing in similar liquid form
- Soy Sauce – light or all purpose soy sauce, don’t use dark it will be too intense. Fish sauce would also work but reduce to 1 tbsp.
- Apple Cider Vinegar – sub with any clear(ish) plain vinegars eg plain white vinegar, white wine vinegar, rice vinegar, champagne vinegar etc.
- Worcestershire sauce – add 1/4 tsp black pepper then add an extra dash of all the other ingredients. A sprinkle of onion and/or garlic powder on the chicken before coating in sauce would also help.
- Add ins – dash if your favourite hot sauce wouldn’t go astray! Pinch of herbs (mixed, oregano, thyme), cayenne pepper for heat, sprinkle of paprika for warmth, cumin or coriander for South-West edge.
- Foil – Sauce will caramelise on edges and adhere firmly to pan. Takes intense scrubbing to remove, so use foil. DO NOT use parchment paper (will catch fire under grill).
- No point putting glaze on underside, it doesn’t stay on. Underside gets flavoured because it ends up cooked in the sauce. Also want upper side exposed to heat the whole time for best caramelisation.
- Pictured in post with speedy Garlic White Bean Mash
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
One of his best features 😂
So so good and super easy!!
Another delicious dish and never feel the need to tweek your recipes Nagi. Perfect just the way they are!
That’s awesome to hear Ruth ❤️
The chicken was tender, moist and absolutely delicious. Enjoyed every bite and I just love Dozer!
Definately a keeper! made several times for family. Question: can this same sauce be used if I cut up the thighs into bite size pieces (like take-out) ? If so is it better to finish on stove top instead of oven?
100% YES! Just cook them on the stove and forgo the oven 🙂
Excellent as is! Added a dash of sweet chili sauce and a tablespoon of chili garlic sauce. Loved it.
Perfect MB, great idea!
Husband said best chicken recipe EVER.., really good and not difficult …definitely 5 stars
Wahoo! That’s great to hear Nikki!
No way the cook time can be right in this recipe. A 15 minute bake and a 10 minute broil leave these chicken thighs basically raw. Should be more like a 25 to 30 minute bake.
Hi David, yes the cook time is correct. Are you using boneless thighs?
Excellent recipe, quick for a weeknight meal. Foil is a MUST. I will be making this often. Thank you!
That’s great to hear Elaine!
Excellent chicken recipes! Love that sweet sauce!
Thanks so much Marie!
I’m just wondering if I could substitute the soy sauce in the glaze for the sticky baked chicken? The reason for the my question is because I am highly allergic to soy sauce, thanks!
Hi Shellie, coconut aminoes are a great soy substitute – N x
Yummy chicken thighs! So easy to make with ingredients I always have on hand. Will definitely make these again. Another wonderful recipe!
Wahoo! Perfect Darlana!
Nagi, once again your recipe did not disappoint. My hubby and 2 toddlers loved this chicken. Although my chicken wasn’t really sticky it still tasted amazing. I poured the juice over some veggies on the side. It didn’t need anything else as it was full of flavour.
Sounds like you nailed it Summer! – N x
Nagi, you’ve done it again. This recipe was delicious. We used Chicken Breast instead of Thigh, but it was still amazing. Will definitely be making this again. Thank you for adding flavour to our dinner time!
Hi Nagi, this recipe looks amazing, especially with the subs for sugar. I eat, most of the time, Paleo, and would like to sub the soy with coconut aminos. Your thoughts please?
Thanks much, Julie
Hi Julie, I haven’t tried to be honest, but would love to know if it works!
Hi Nagi, swapped the soy for sweet chilli coconut aminos and they were delish. I’ll be sharing your recipe in the Paleo community, with full credit to you. Love Dozer too, he is just the best x
What a hit this recipe was with my two fussy grandsons! They “hoovered” it down, thanks for another winner Nagi
Winner winner CHICKEN DINNER!!!
Just on our third recipe from your website, the first two were a hit and I’m expecting these will be as well 🙂 Happy to have found you!
I’m so glad you found me Tracey, I hope you continue loving the recipes!
Turned out delicious!!! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
You’re so welcome Rushi!
Family loved it, so easy too! Will definitely make this again! 😉👍
The easiest, quick and so full of taste, that I ever made. This is going to become a family tradition for sure. Friends & family have asked for the recipe and say the same as me. Thank you for making me, finally, loving chicken thighs.
Wahoo, that’s great Colette!
Nagi is spot on when she says this recipe is best with the chicken thighs. I picked up some thighs and a small, cheap pack of chicken breasts. Prepped my thighs, some for the freezer for the week and some for the fridge for tomorrow. I did the chicken breasts for my dinner, and although the sauce is still amazing, the breasts were NOWHERE near as tasty and caramelized as the thighs get. Definitely listen to Nagi and stick to the thighs….you won’t regret it!!
Thighs all the way!!!
I loved this- so easy and delicious.
I didn’t bother grilling the chicken. I baked it instead then drained the excess sauce into a pan and reduced it down on the stovetop. Poured it over the chicken to serve, and added special fried rice on the side. Yum!
Sounds like you nailed is Sarah!