Honey Garlic Grilled Chicken (Printable)

Marinated chicken thighs grilled with a sticky honey garlic glaze and smoky hints.

# What You'll Need:

→ Chicken

01 - 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, approximately 2 pounds
02 - 1 teaspoon salt
03 - ½ teaspoon black pepper

→ Marinade

04 - ⅓ cup honey
05 - ¼ cup soy sauce, low-sodium preferred
06 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
07 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
08 - 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or rice vinegar
09 - 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
10 - ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

→ Garnish

11 - 2 tablespoons fresh parsley or cilantro, chopped
12 - Lemon wedges for serving

# How-To:

01 - Pat chicken thighs dry with paper towels and season both sides evenly with salt and pepper.
02 - In a mixing bowl, whisk together honey, soy sauce, minced garlic, olive oil, vinegar, smoked paprika, and red pepper flakes until well combined.
03 - Place chicken thighs in a large zip-top bag or shallow dish and pour marinade over them, ensuring all pieces are thoroughly coated. Seal and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 4 hours for deeper flavor.
04 - Preheat grill to medium-high heat at approximately 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly oil the grill grates to prevent sticking.
05 - Remove chicken from marinade, allowing excess to drip off. Reserve the remaining marinade. Place chicken thighs skin side down on grill and cook for 6 to 7 minutes until deeply browned.
06 - Flip chicken thighs and continue grilling for 6 to 7 minutes until internal temperature reaches 175 degrees Fahrenheit.
07 - While chicken grills, pour reserved marinade into a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 3 to 4 minutes until slightly thickened and safe for consumption.
08 - During the final 2 to 3 minutes of grilling, brush the prepared marinade over the chicken to create a sticky, caramelized glaze.
09 - Transfer chicken to a serving platter and rest for 5 minutes. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley or cilantro and serve with lemon wedges.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • Bone-in thighs stay juicy no matter what, so there's no dry chicken disaster to worry about.
  • The marinade is genuinely simple but tastes like you spent hours on it, which feels like getting away with something.
  • Everything happens on one grill, no fussing with multiple pans or complicated timing.
02 -
  • If you skip boiling the reserved marinade, you're serving raw chicken marinade, which is a food safety issue nobody wants to find out about the hard way.
  • The difference between thighs that are just cooked and thighs that are actually caramelized comes down to patience and heat—don't move them constantly, and let the skin do its thing.
03 -
  • Always oil your grill grates when they're hot, not cold, so the oil actually grips and prevents sticking instead of just evaporating.
  • If your marinade starts to blacken on the grill instead of thickening, it's too concentrated or the heat is too high—move it to a cooler spot and stir constantly.
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