Honeyed Chicken

My metal pan of chicken turned out darker than Louise’s which she cooked in a glass pan.
It was interesting how much lighter Louise’s batch turned out which she cooked in glass rather than metal.
It was also interesting how her chicken browned a bit more after it had been sitting. We transferred all of hers to another container and put the sauce in mason jars so she didn’t get sauce sloshed all over her car when she drove home.

Background

This is a recipe that I have refined a bit since it was given it my my cousin Leila about 35 or 40 years ago. The original recipe I jotted down was 3 pounds of chicken wings, ginger, salt, pepper, garlic and soya sauce, 300 degrees, covered. I have since decided to make it using chicken thighs and have specified some quantities and added a few cooking instructions.

Ingredients

  • 1 large (Costco size) tray of chicken thighs (about 25-30 pieces)
  • grated ginger (a piece about 1-2″)
  • minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
  • salt to taste
  • pepper to taste
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup vinegar
  • 2 tbsp soya sauce
  • 2 tbsp corn starch

Instructions

  • Place the chicken thighs reasonably tightly together in a baking pan. I use a 10.5′ x 14.5″ pan for a single batch and a 12″ x 18″ pan for a double batch.
  • Mix all remaining ingredients together.
  • Pour the liquid over the chicken and move chicken around gently so that the sauce seeps between all the pieces.
  • Cover the pan.
  • Bake at 300-350′ covered, stirring occasionally, about every 30-45 minutes depending on the size of batch you are making and the temperature you bake it at.
  • I usually move the outer pieces in towards the centre and move some inner pieces out towards the edges of the pan partway through cooking to ensure they are move evenly cooked. I also turn the chicken over for a while to facilitate even cooking.
  • I usually use an instant read thermometer to test the chicken doneness (165’F / 74’C) to prevent over cooking.

Notes

This freezes and reheats well.

We tend to serve this over instant/ramen noodles (such as Mr. Noodles brand which we just cook without the flavouring package) or spaetzle noodles. And often serve with canned corn.

This is our family’s go-to recipe to drop off as a meal for friends. We make a big batch and divide it into labelled 2-cup cottage cheese / sour cream / yogurt containers. Then we package those freezable containers with some canned corn and instant noodle packages. That way the receiving friend can choose to have some within a day or two and/or to put the chicken into the freezer.

When warming up in the microwave, check it and stir frequently and separate the pieces of chicken as soon as you can to help prevent the chicken pieces at the edges getting overcooked. You can also thaw it out in the fridge beforehand to make it quicker and easier to reheat.

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