Honey Mustard Chicken
This Honey Mustard Chicken is an easy-to-make one-pan dish that requires just 15 minutes of hands-on preparation, making it perfect for those busy weeknights! Pan seared chicken breasts are coated in the most delicious creamy honey mustard sauce. 
When it comes to one-pan dishes, this Honey Mustard Chicken has to be one of my favorites. It combines the sweetness of the honey with the tanginess of grainy mustard, creating a flavorful sauce that enhances the tenderness of the chicken. After pan-frying the chicken to golden brown and crispy, you make a rich sauce with an onion and garlic base to give it a thicker consistency and take the flavor to the next level. The beauty of this recipe is how versatile it is; it pairs beautifully with all your favorite sides, whether it be a bed of mashed potatoes or mashed cauliflower, or on a bed of cauliflower rice, or your favorite rice. Serve it with a delicious side salad or roasted veggies, and you have the most amazing complete meal with delicious flavor. This saucy, rich honey mustard chicken will quickly become a favorite the whole family will love (my 3 year old asks for this chicken weekly!).
Why You Will Love This Honey Mustard Chicken Recipe
- This rich, creamy, easy recipe is a quick meal that requires less than 15 minutes of hands on prep, then the chicken bakes in the oven until golden and bubbly.
- The savory honey mustard sauce and the chicken freeze beautifully! Make a double batch so that you have an easy meal you can pull from the freezer on a night when you don’t feel like cooking.
- This sweet and tangy honey mustard chicken is a meal prep dream! Make this easy chicken recipe several days in advance and quickly reheat before serving.
- It will become a family favorite! The creamy honey mustard sauce is always a hit with kids, both of mine devour it!
- This honey mustard chicken recipe has simple ingredients that are available at any local grocery store, or you may already have everything in your kitchen!
- This honey mustard chicken dish is dairy-free, gluten-free, grain-free, Paleo, and Specific Carbohydrate Diet legal
Ingredients You Will Need For This Honey Mustard Chicken
- Chicken: I love using boneless skinless chicken breasts but you could also use boneless skinless chicken thighs if you prefer dark meat. If you use bone-in chicken, you will need to adjust the cooking time. You could also use chicken tenders for kid-friendly chicken fingers (just be sure to reduce the cook time in the oven so the chicken pieces don’t become tough)
- Oil: I used olive oil as a delicious neutral oil option. It also has a high smoke point. You could also use avocado oil for amazing results.
- Spices and Herbs: This easy honey mustard chicken recipe has a simple combination of salt, black pepper, and dried thyme.
- Aromatics: I like to dice the onion finely and crush the fresh garlic to release all the fantastic flavor. When combined, they create a thick and creamy sauce that enhances the flavor beautifully. Feel free to swap the onion for shallots or white onion.
- Chicken stock: You can substitute this for homemade bone broth or store-bought chicken broth. I like Pacific Foods because it has clean ingredients.
- Honey: It just wouldn’t be a honey mustard chicken without the honey. It makes a delicious, sticky, sweet, flavorful sauce.
- Dijon mustard: I love to use dijon mustard, but you can use a whole grain mustard, and the results will still be tangy and delicious!
You can find a full list of ingredients in the recipe card below
How To Make This Delicious Honey Mustard Chicken Recipe
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously season both sides of each chicken breast with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a cast iron skillet and sear chicken for 3 minutes per side until golden. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
- Add the diced onion, and crushed garlic to the skillet and cook for approximately 4 minutes until the onions soften.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard and honey. Add the chicken stock to the skillet and bring to a boil before adding in the honey mustard mixture and thyme. Let everything simmer for 3 to 4 minutes before returning the chicken breasts to the pan. Spoon pan sauce over the chicken and then transfer the skillet to the oven.
- Bake for 30 minutes in your preheated oven. Check with a meat thermometer for an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Sprinkle the chicken with a bit more thyme or parsley before serving.
What To Serve With This Honey Mustard Chicken
I highly recommend serving this Honey Mustard Chicken over The Best Mashed Cauliflower, mashed potatoes or brown rice, trust me you won’t want a drop of that tangy honey mustard sauce to go to waste. You can also never go wrong with a delicious fresh green salad served with this easy chicken dinner, or roasted veggies which you could cook in the oven while the chicken bakes. Try these healthy recipes like roasted green beans wrapped in bacon, brussels sprouts, or my favorite, Roasted Carrots.
Can I Make This Honey Mustard Chicken Recipe in the Instant Pot?
Yes! Instant pot honey mustard chicken is quick and easy. Using the saute setting, add oil, season chicken with salt and pepper, and sear on both sides for 3 minutes on each side. Remove chicken and set aside. Mix the honey and mustard and set aside. Add chicken stock to the instant pot before adding the honey mustard mixture and the thyme. Return chicken to the instant pot and cover with sauce. Close the lid and cook on high pressure for 8-10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chicken. After cooking, allow for a natural release for 5 minutes, then quickly release any remaining pressure.
Can I Make This Honey Dijon Chicken In Advance?
Making honey mustard chicken in advance is a great way to save time and ensure a delicious meal is ready when you need it. You can make this 3-4 days in advance for a quick and easy dinner when you’re ready for it. Store in an airtight container or individual containers for your personal consumption all week. This delicious chicken will also freeze well for up to three months when stored in a freezer-safe container.
What About Leftovers?
Honey mustard chicken leftovers can typically last in the refrigerator for about 3 to 4 days when stored in an airtight container. To maintain the best quality, ensure the chicken cools to room temperature before refrigerating it. If you want to extend the shelf life, you can freeze the leftovers, which can last for about 2 to 3 months. Just be sure to store them in a freezer-safe container or bag. When ready to eat, warm in a large skillet on medium-high heat until it reaches 165 degrees and add a splash of chicken stock to help thin out the sauce. You could also warm the honey mustard chicken and sauce in the microwave. Leftover chicken is delicious cut up and added to a salad or served in a wrap too!
Here Are A Few More One-Pan Chicken Recipes That You Will Love:
- Honey Walnut Shrimp
- One-Pan Chicken With Mushrooms and Tomatoes
- One-Pan Mediterranean Cod
- Sweet and Spicy Gochujang Shrimp
- Lemon Orzo with Shrimp, Feta and Spinach
If you make this creamy honey mustard chicken recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!
Honey Mustard Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1/3 cup dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 175 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Generously season both sides of each chicken breast with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a cast iron skillet and then add in the chicken breasts and sear for 3 minutes per side until golden in colour and then transfer the chicken to a plate.
- Add the diced onion, and crushed garlic to the skillet and cook for approximately 4 minutes until the onions begin to soften.
- In a bowl whisk together the mustard and honey. Add the chicken stock to the skillet and bring to a boil before adding in the honey mustard mixture and thyme. Let everything simmer for 3 to 4 minutes before returning the chicken breasts to the pan. Spoon some of the sauce over the chicken and then transfer the skillet to the oven. Bake for 30 minutes. Sprinkle the chicken with a bit more thyme before serving.
Nutrition
This post was originally published on November 21, 2018 and updated with new copy on November 5, 2024.
I don’t like onions so would it make a big difference if I skipped them?
This recipe was delicious!! I subbed boneless, skinless thighs because that’s what I had thaw. I served it with rice and asparagus. Thank you
Absolutely delicious!! I love honey mustard and chicken & this was a incredibly easy way to combine the too with such good flavor and feel healthy doing so!
Carmen I want to thank you for the great Honey Mustard Chicken recipe. The recipes on this website has inspired me to try the Specific Carbohydrate Diet again to manage the same auto immune disease mentioned on your website.
Regards, Paul
I wonder if I could use honey mustard salad dressing. Thoughts?
I wouldn’t recommend it because the sauce wont be nearly as thick and sticky
should I use fresh or dried thyme?
Either one works, 1/2 tsp should be dried, if you are using fresh triple the quantity to 1 1/2 tsp.
Do you think I could sub Coconut Nectar or Date Syrup for the honey to make it Whole 30?
I would recommend soaking 2 dates in boiling water and then blending them into a puree to make this Whole30
Could this be done is an Instant Pot?
I haven’t tried but I think so, I would saute up until step 3 and then do manual high pressure for 10 minutes. You may need to turn back to saute after to reduce the sauce
This took a bit longer to get on the table than I expected, but well worth the time. I used chicken thighs, so I think that caused extra time for browning before going into the oven. I didn’t have dijon mustard, only spicy brown, so I added horseradish to the mixture to give it a tangier taste. So good! Thank you for sharing!
Ooohh love the sounds of adding horseradish to the sauce! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!
Hi! Made this dish last night and it was great! We used chicken thighs and served it over some cauliflower rice which was, as you stated, much needed to soak up the sauce! A super easy and time saving recipe. Thanks so much, we love your site!!
This is very flavorful! My chicken turned out pretty tough but I tend to have that issue with chicken breast. Will definitely try again!
So happy to hear that you enjoyed it! I would recommend trying chicken thighs next time and cooking them for less time, they should hopefully turn out more moist!
Could I do this recipe the day before and then heat it up in the oven? For how long? Thanks!
Yes you definitely could. I would bake it covered in tin foil at 325F (160C) for about 10 minutes, be careful not to cook it too long otherwise it will dry out.