Old-Fashioned Southern Sticky Chicken
This Southern Sticky Chicken is a classic, bone-in dinner that delivers tender, juicy meat coated in a thick, caramelized glaze. With just ketchup, honey, and soy sauce, this family-favorite recipe transforms 3 to 5 pounds of chicken into a sweet and savory masterpiece in about 90 minutes!
The Sunday Dinner Staple You Can Make on a Tuesday
This sweet and sticky chicken is an old-fashioned Southern recipe that has been around for about as long as folks have been cookin’! The recipe has evolved and been tweaked over the years, but the flavorful sticky marinade that clings to the chicken is still every bit as good as folks remember from the days when Granny used to make it for Sunday dinner.
All you have to do is mix up the sticky chicken marinade, which has equal parts sweet and savory ingredients, to make a sauce that’s irresistible. Then you bring the sauce ingredients to a boil, pour them over the chicken pieces, and bake. The result is tender and juicy chicken soaked in a deliciously caramelized and sweet Asian-style sauce!
I love this sticky chicken recipe because it’s easy to make, which means it makes a great weeknight dinner, plus, it’s even easier to double for leftovers and lunches. You can serve your meal with rice, vegetables, or a slew of other Southern sides.
Other Asian-inspired meals I recommend include crockpot cashew chicken, Asian-inspired pot roast, chicken fried rice, and Chinese chicken salad.
Recipe Ingredients
- Bone-in chicken with skin
- Ketchup
- Honey
- Brown sugar
- Soy sauce
- Garlic powder
Recipe Notes
- If you want your marinade to have a bit of a spicy kick, add in a couple of tablespoons of chili garlic sauce, a tablespoon of sriracha hot sauce, or a sprinkle of paprika, , or cayenne pepper. Basically, whatever heat you have on hand!
- If you have a soy allergy, use tamari instead.
- Substitute brown sugar for granulated sugar, maple syrup, or an extra two tablespoons of honey.
How to Make Sticky Chicken
1. Simmer the Sauce
In a medium saucepot, whisk together your ketchup, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, and garlic powder. Place it over medium-high heat. You aren’t looking to cook it down for long, just bring it to a rolling boil so all those sugars melt together into one smooth, glossy marinade!
2. Prep the Chicken
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Arrange your chicken pieces in a 9×13 baking dish. I find it easiest to use tongs here so I can tuck everything in neatly. Pour that hot, sticky sauce right over the top, making sure every piece gets a good coating!
3. The First Bake
Slide the dish into the oven, uncovered. Let it bake for 45 minutes. At this point, the sauce will be starting to thin out and bubble. Use your tongs to flip every piece of chicken over so the underside can take a turn soaking in that liquid gold.
4. Flip and Baste
Bake for another 30 minutes. Flip the chicken one last time so the skin side is back on top. Use a spoon to scoop up the sauce from the bottom of the pan and pour it over the top of each piece.
NOTE: Cooking time is the same if you use legs and thighs.
5. The Grand Finale
Bake for the final 15 minutes. This is when the magic happens: the sauce will thicken up significantly and “stick” to the chicken. Once it’s out, let it rest for a few minutes so the glaze sets.
Booyah! Easy sticky chicken!
What To Serve With Southern Sticky Chicken
Whatever you like! You can go for an Asian takeout-style meal and serve it with rice, sliced green onion, broccoli, and a sprinkle of sesame seeds. More traditional Southern pairings include Fresh Green Beans, Broccoli with Homemade Cheese Sauce, Broccoli Salad with Bacon, or Tomato, Onion, and Cucumber Salad.
Storage
This recipe will last up to 5 days in an airtight container in the fridge. It will also keep in the freezer for up to four months. When it’s time to reheat your leftovers, simply warm them up in the microwave!
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Ingredients
- 3 -5 pounds bone-in chicken with skin folks usually use legs and/or thighs
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1 cup honey
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350.
- In a saucepot, combine ketchup, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, and garlic powder over medium to medium-high heat.
- Bring it just to a boil while stirring. Remove from heat.
- Arrange chicken pieces in a 9×13 baking dish. Pour the entire amount of sauce over the chicken, turning pieces with tongs to coat.
- Place in oven, uncovered, for 90 minutes, turning after 45 minutes.
- 15 minutes before cooking time is up, flip pieces once more and baste with sauce.
Video
Hi Christy, just to say thanks, the sticky chicken is what I’m making for my stepson Tom’s birthday tomorrow (6/20) – he’ll love it!:) I grew up in NE MS, where my dad’s from, and mama’s from Pickens County, AL so I grew up as a child in the ’60’s and ’70’s listening to Andy Williams, Lawrence Welk, Elvis, the Monkees and Beatles, the Carpenters, disco & pop hits of the ’70’s & ’80’s, and most everything in between. These days it’s mostly country and Christian/gospel, and I’m proud to say I still love to listen to a great Southern gospel quartet every now and then! Thanks also for your wonderful words of wisdom and encouragement, God is using you to reach people in a mighty way and in times like these, that’s sorely needed, as I’m sure many would agree. Blessings to you and your family!
What a wonderful childhood!! Thank you for such kind words, it is appreciated more than you can imagine. I hope everyone enjoys the Sticky Chicken and you have a wonderful day celebrating!!! Blessings to you and yours!!
GREAT recipe and great conversation on your website!! – the music of the 50’s & 60’s is still the best!!! do wop, rock n roll, soul – incredible
Incredible indeed Al!!!
This sounds wonderful – and easy – so I’m all over it! The recipe for Sticky Chicken we’ve been using for over 35 yrs is: 1 pkg dry onion soup mix, 8 oz. apricot preserves, and 8 oz. bottle Catalina (or any French) Dressing. Mix in a bowl, pour over chicken pieces and bake at 350, basting with sauce, until chicken is browned – @ 1 hr. The sauce is just as good on baked pork chops, also.
I didn’t bring have dressing,;(( what else could I use??
Christy, this is one of my all time favorites which I got from you some time ago. Thanks again!
Me again 😀 not a food question though. Ive looked all over your site and cant find a way to get notifications if anyone replies to my posts here. I do get your email letter though. 😉
Hey again John! Always good to hear from you. Twice in a day is a double bonus! I honestly have no idea if there is a way to sign up for notifications. I think there used to be at some point but it may have gotten lost in the site redesign a few months back.
Ok thanks. Guess Im going to have to keep coming back then. 😉 LOL
It Really looks and sounds good Christy. Im ready to try it. I have a couple of questions though. Many times when eating chicken (with the skin) I get disappointed that the delicious flavor i get on the skin isnt in the chicken itself. Do you know what i mean? IF I can take a bite and have the seasoned skin in each bite thats good. But it rarely happens that way. i always want to eat all the skin. LOL Any suggestions how to get the meat to taste like the skin?
Also speaking of boneless breasts, If I soaked the breasts in the sauce over night or even longer would it soak into the chicken? Thanks 😀
Hey! Marinating does help but I wouldn’t recommend boneless breasts with this recipe. You really need that skin because the marinade sticks to that and there is where your flavor is going to be. I know exactly what you mean about the inside not tasting the same as the outside. The outside is made up of tissues that clings to that flavor and develops even more on its own as it cooks and roasts in the juices and the only way to bring that into every single bite is to use more sauce for drizzling and dipping. Fortunately, this dish gives you lots of extra sauce for just that! Another thing you can do is add a bit of salt to the marinade and that will help draw a wee bit more flavor into the chicken itself.
Thank You Christy, I was thinking about using the left over sauce for dippin. 😀
I am a little late to the table, pardon the pun, but I just wanted to put my two cents worth in about using boneless, skinless chicken breasts.
I put the breasts in my 9 x 13″ pan, poured about a third of the sauce over, covered with foil and baked at 350° for approx. 30 mins. I removed the foil, poured another third of the sauce over, baked uncovered for an additional 15 mins., then poured the remaining sauce over, and broiled between 5-7 mins., watching it while it broiled.
By covering it, the chicken does not dry out, uncovering it thickens the sauce, and broiling actually does make the sauce on the pieces a little stickier. My husband, son and I really enjoyed it!
I have yet to try it with thighs, waiting for them to go on sale.
Thank You for a lovely recipe Christy.
I am SO GLAD you came back and shared your findings!!! This will be so helpful to many people, including myself!
Thank you!!!
Gratefully,
C J
I grew up in the fifties with the original rock n roll and it was great!!
Oh Evelyn…Sock hops, poodle skirts, crisp white socks folded over, jeans cuffed. I can see it all…One of the many era’s I think I should have been born in!!