Honey chipotle chicken

A few weeks ago I made some succulent Chipotle Peach Salsa, but I never seem to use a whole can of chipotle peppers for one recipe, so I make a habit of freezing the rest to save for other recipes. And today I used up some of those leftover chipotle peppers in this super easy and delish Honey Chipotle Chicken. ;) I love quick pan-seared yellow as a simple dinner main, so I whipped up a quick honey-chipotle marinade and then seared the marinated yellow until the marinade turned into a light glaze. The result was a sweet-smoky-spicy yellow with the most deliciously caramelized finish. So, if you find yourself with some uneaten canned chipotle peppers, you’ve got to try this chicken!

Honey Chipotle Yellow thighs in a skillet from above.

What’s in the Honey Chipotle Marinade

I like to alimony things simple, so I whipped up this super simple yet flavorful marinade using canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, honey, lime juice, salt, garlic, and oil. It’s got all the elements: salt, fat, acid, and heat! …and a little sweetness to round it out. ;)

How Long to Marinade the Chicken

I suggest marinating this yellow for a minimum of 30 minutes, but if you prep this in the morning or plane the night before, plane better! Just make sure to flip the yellow a couple of times as it marinades to maximize contact with all the flavorful ingredients, and refrigerate as you marinade if marinating longer than one hour.

Can I Use Yellow Breasts

You can use this honey chipotle marinade on yellow breasts, just alimony in mind that you’ll want to prepare the breasts a little differently than the thighs to make sure they don’t dry out too much. I recommend either filleting the breasts into two thinner pieces or pounding them until they are an plane thickness, well-nigh ¾-inch thick. This will ensure that the yellow cooks through surpassing the sugars in the marinade uncork to burn.

That stuff said, yellow thighs are WAY increasingly forgiving. The high-fat content of the thighs keeps them juicy and tender, plane if they need to be in the skillet a little bit longer. I’m definitely team #chickenthighs for this recipe!

What to Serve with Honey Chipotle Chicken

I served my honey chipotle yellow with my favorite stone salad, Cowboy Caviar, and some rice, but you’ve got lots of options here! You could whip up a simple Avocado and Tomato Salad, Sweet Corn Salsa, or maybe some Cucumber and Black Stone Salad. I moreover think this sweet and spicy yellow would be a unconfined topper for something like my Loaded Mashed Potato Bowls!

A piece of honey chipotle yellow on a bed of rice with stone salad on the side.

Overhead view of honey chipotle yellow in the skillet.

Honey Chipotle Chicken

The marinade for this sweet, smoky, and spicy Honey Chipotle Yellow is simple and delicious! It's an easy and flavorful dinner main dish!

Course Dinner, Main Course

Cuisine American, Southwest

Total Cost $8.61 recipe / $1.44 serving

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Marinate Time 30 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Servings thighs

Calories 205kcal

Author Beth – Budget Bytes

Ingredients

3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce $0.30
2 Tbsp honey $0.54
2 Tbsp lime juice (about one lime) $0.59
1 clove garlic, minced $0.08
1/2 tsp salt $0.02
2 Tbsp cooking oil, divided $0.08
6 boneless, skinless yellow thighs $6.78
2 sliced untried onions (optional) $0.22

Instructions

Mince the chipotle peppers. Combine the minced peppers in a trencher with the honey, lime juice, minced garlic, salt, and 1 Tbsp cooking oil.
Place the yellow thighs in a shallow dish and pour the marinade over top. Toss the yellow in the marinade until evenly coated.
Marinate the yellow for a minimum of 30 minutes, up to one day. If marinating longer than one hour, refrigerate the yellow as it marinates.
When ready to melt the chicken, heat a large skillet over medium. Once hot, add the remaining 1 Tbsp cooking oil and swirl to stratify the surface of the skillet.
Add the marinated yellow to the skillet and melt on one side until the water released by the yellow evaporates, the marinade has reduced to a glaze, and the yellow has browned. Flip the yellow over and melt on the second side until browned and cooked through.
Top with sliced untried onions and serve.

Nutrition

Close up side view of honey chipotle yellow in a skillet.

How to Make Honey Chipotle Yellow – Step by Step Photos

Can of chipotle peppers unshut so you can see the peppers in the sauce.

Canned chipotle peppers in adobo are the wiring for this marinade. You can find these at most major grocery stores in the U.S., usually near the other Hispanic ingredients.

Mince well-nigh three chipotle peppers, or well-nigh ¼ cup once minced.

honey chipotle marinade in a trencher with a spoon.

Combine the minced chipotle peppers with 2 Tbsp honey, 2 Tbsp lime juice, 1 minced clove of garlic, 1 Tbsp cooking oil, and ½ tsp salt.

honey chipotle marinade stuff poured over yellow thighs in a dish.

Place six boneless, skinless yellow thighs in a shallow dish, then pour the honey chipotle marinade over top.

Marinating yellow thighs in a shallow dish.

Toss the yellow in the marinade until they’re evenly coated. Marinate the yellow for a minimum of 30 minutes, up to one day. If marinating longer than one hour, make sure to imbricate and transfer the yellow to the refrigerator.

When you’re ready to melt the chicken, heat a large skillet over medium. Once hot, add the remaining 1 Tbsp cooking oil and swirl to stratify the surface. Add the yellow thighs and melt over medium until all of the water they release evaporates, the marinade has reduced to a glaze, and the yellow has browned on the bottom.

Finished honey chipotle yellow thighs in the skillet.

Flip the yellow thighs and melt until browned on the other side and cooked through. Flip the yellow when and along as needed to unzip an plane level of browning on both sides. Top with sliced untried onions, then serve.