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Why You’ll Love My Recipe

Simmered to tender perfection in a delicious brown sugar garlic sauce, these chicken thighs are an affordable meal that’s perfect served over rice for an easy dinner.

These chicken thighs are first browned and then cooked in the sauce in the oven so fast and easy it will soon become your new favorite! Try making some Roasted Broccoli and Mushroom Rice for sides to round out the meal.

Close-up of garlic brown sugar chicken thighs, pan-seared and glazed, garnished with chopped green onions in a cast-iron skillet filled with savory sauce. The skillet rests on a red and white patterned cloth.

Karlynn’s Recipe Notes

Skill Level: This is an easy recipe.
Total Time: These chicken thighs take 65 minutes to make.
Variations: Adjust the seasonings according to your own personal tastes. Add more garlic, fresh or powdered ginger, or some hot pepper flakes. Try adding a drizzle of sesame oil to the sauce and garnishing the chicken with sesame seeds. Buy a chicken broth with roasted garlic added for even more intensity.
Tools Needed: For this recipe, you’ll need a large ovenproof skillet, a small bowl, a whisk or small spoon, a large spoon, and some measuring spoons.

A spoon drizzles thick, dark sauce over golden-brown garlic brown sugar chicken thighs sizzling in a skillet.

What You’ll Need For Ingredients

Chicken: This recipe calls for bone-in chicken thighs, but you can use different cuts of chicken. If you substitute boneless chicken thighs, they will cook faster than the ones with the bones in. You can also use skin-on chicken breasts, browning them as per the recipe, making sure the skin stays on the chicken. Whatever you choose, adjust cooking time accordingly.

Broth: This recipe uses a little chicken broth to deglaze the pan and provide liquid for the sauce. You can use any store-bought chicken stock. Or, learn the difference between Chicken Stock vs. Chicken Broth, and maybe even make your own How to Make Crock Pot Bone Broth for another layer of flavour.

Sauce: The sauce in this recipe is a sweet, tangy, and sticky combination of butter, brown sugar, soy sauce, and herbs. It caramelizes and coats the chicken beautifully. You can also thicken it more, thin it out, or double up the batch to give yourself extra sauce for serving with your sides.

How To Make Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken

This is a brief overview of the recipe. The full list of ingredients and step-by-step instructions are in the recipe card below.

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
Heat butter over medium-high heat in a pan until it is hot and foaming.
Place the chicken thighs into the pan, skin side down. Cook until browned. Flip to brown the other side.
Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside. Leave one tablespoon of butter in the pan. Discard the rest.
Add minced garlic to pan and brown lightly. Deglaze pan by adding a little chicken broth and stirring. Be sure to scrape all the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
Mix the sugar, chicken broth, soy sauce, and spices in a small bowl.
Put chicken thighs back the pan and pour the sauce over them.
Put pan into the oven and cook until the chicken reaches a minimum internal temperature of 165°F.
Serve and enjoy!

Karlynn’s Tips and Tricks for Making Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken Thighs

Suggested Sides: The star of this recipe is definitely the sweet and flavorful sauce. These chicken thighs would go great with a bowl of Teriyaki Rice. You can also serve this with Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes, which will soak up the delicious sauce from the chicken thighs! If you need a solid vegetable, why not try Dill & Brown Sugar Roasted Carrots?

Thickening the Sauce: If you want to thicken the sauce, whisk one tablespoon of cornstarch into 2-3 tablespoons of water, then whisk into the sauce at the bottom of the pan. Cook on the stove for 1-2 minutes until thickened. You could also make double the sauce for some extra to serve over rice or vegetables.

Close-up of glazed garlic brown sugar chicken thighs topped with chopped green onions, resting in a dark, glossy sauce on a black skillet.

Storage Instructions

Fridge: Once the chicken is fully cooled, you can store it in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat in the oven or the microwave.

Freezer: The leftover chicken can be stored in a covered container or freezer-safe bag in the freezer for 2-3 months. To make it easier to defrost and reheat individual pieces, consider freezing the chicken spread out on a plate or tray until solid before moving it into a container.

More Delicious Chicken Recipes

Looking for more easy ways to prepare chicken?

Try these Air Fryer Chicken Thighs or some Saucy Crock Pot Chicken Thighs.

Make Bourbon Chicken or Smothered Chicken for more deliciously saucy options.

If roasted chicken is more your thing, try this Olive Oil Roasted Chicken with Lemon and Rosemary.

There you go, friends. Another wonderful way to prepare chicken. Try out this recipe and let me know what you think.

Happy Cooking!

Karlynn