Crispy deep-fried chicken tossed in honey sauce. A classic Chinese recipe that tastes EXACTLY like takeout. This is a recipe that we’ve used in our restaurants for over 30 years, it can stay crispy for hours when cooked correctly.

What is honey chicken?

Honey chicken is a classic Chinese takeaway dish made with golden fried chicken pieces and a shiny, sticky honey glaze. It’s a dish loved by everyone young to old, and I mean what’s not to love?!

This honey chicken has been made in our restaurants for over 30 years. The recipe has passed through generations of Chinese restaurants and I’m finally sharing the recipe with all of you.

The secret to this recipe is the batter, our ratio of flour, cornstarch and water creates a perfect crispy batter that stays that way for HOURS. Serve this with a warm bed of steamed or fried rice for a delicious meal.

Ingredients

Batter

• Self-raising flour: Make sure you use self-raising flour as it gives the batter a lighter and crispier texture
• Cornflour: Cornflour lightens the batter and gives it a crispier texture
• Water: Make sure you measure out the water, the consistency shouldn’t be too thick or too runny

Chicken

• Velveted chicken: Click here to learn how to velvet chicken, for the most tender chicken
• Oil: Any kind of neutral oil works best, I usually use vegetable or canola oil

Sauce

• Honey: Honey gives the chicken that shiny sweet glaze
• Water: Water helps to tin out the sauce enough to coat the chicken
• Custard powder: Custard powder is the secret ingredient in this recipe, it helps to thicken the sauce an add fragrance and color.
• Sugar: Sugar gives the sauce that extra boost of sweetness
• Salt: Salt helps to balance out the flavour of the sauce
• YumYum: Yumyum is my special blend of MSG which you can purchase here! Or if you can’t get your hands on it you can substitute with MSG

Tips to make sure your chicken is crispy

The secret to the crispiness is in the batter, adding too much or too little water to the batter can cause the batter to be tough or soggy. As long as you follow the ratios in the recipe you should have perfectly crispy chicken. A couple of tips you can follow include:

• Make sure the oil is hot enough before frying the chicken, otherwise, it will absorb too much oil and become soggy
• Fry the chicken until it is a deep golden brown
• Drain the chicken in a sieve or on a wire rack once fried

How to Cook Honey Chicken

Preheat the oil to 180C/350F and drop the battered chicken into the hot oil. Fry the chicken, breaking apart any large pieces with your wok ladle.

Continue cooking the chicken until golden brown, then strain the chicken from the oil. Set aside the leftover oil to use next time you cook.

Combine the ingredients for the honey sauce and cook until slightly thickened. Add the fried chicken and toss to combine. Then plate up, sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

Honey Chicken

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Print Recipe

Crispy and sweet deep-fried chicken tossed in a sweet and sticky sauce. A classic Chinese recipe that tastes EXACTLY like takeout. This is a recipe that we’ve used in our restaurants for over 30 years, it can stay crispy for hours when cooked correctly.

• Total Time: 30 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Batter

• 1 cup Self-raising flour
• 1/2 cup Cornflour
• 1 cup 2 tbsp Water

Chicken

• 300g Velveted chicken (follow recipe here), or chicken thigh 
• 1 litre Vegetable or canola oil

Sauce

• 3 tbsp Honey
• 2 tbsp Water
• 1 tsp Custard powder
• 1 tbsp Sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1/4 tsp YumYum, or msg

To serve

• Fried thin vermicelli noodles
• Toasted sesame seeds

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Instructions

Batter

1. Combine the flour and cornstarch in a large bowl
2. Add the water and whisk until smooth
3. Add the marinated chicken and stir until completely coated
4. Set aside and heat the oil

Chicken

1. Heat the oil over high heat in a wok or pot until it reaches 180C/350F
2. Add the chicken and fry for 10 minutes, or until cooked through and golden brown
3. Strain the chicken from the oil and set aside
4. Set the left over oil aside to be used next time you deep-fry

Sauce

1. Combine the honey, water, custard powder, sugar, salt and yumyum together in the empty wok or pot
2. Heat over high heat until bubbling and slightly thickened
3. Add the chicken and toss until combined
4. Serve on a plate with fried vermicelli (optional) and sprinkle with sesame seeds
5. Enjoy with a side of rice

• Author: Vincent Yeow Lim
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 15 minutes
• Category: Chicken
• Method: Easy
• Cuisine: Chinese

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 portion
• Calories: 471
• Sugar: 16.3 g
• Sodium: 992.5 mg
• Fat: 20.3 g
• Carbohydrates: 51.2 g
• Protein: 21.2 g
• Cholesterol: 54.8 mg