If I’ve said it before, I’ll still say it 100 times more, simple pan sauces are life! 🙌They’re the fastest, easiest way to create a flavorful meal from a simple cut of meat. This 20 Minute Honey Mustard Chicken is the perfect example. With only a handful of ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry, you can make this sweet and tangy chicken on even the busiest weeknight. Promise.
Pictured with Parsley Salad with Almonds and Apricots.
What is a Pan Sauce?
Pan sauces are the magic that happens when you build a sauce on the leftover juices and browned bits (called “fond’) in the pan after you cook a piece of meat. There is so much flavor in those little bits that are left behind, so don’t let them go to waste!
First you have to “deglaze” or dissolve those bits off the pan using a liquid (usually broth or wine), then add some herbs or spices, butter for a creamy finish, and whatever else you’d like. For the pan sauce in this 20 Minute Honey Mustard Chicken I’ve added a simple mix of stone ground mustard and honey, which also give the sauce a little more body. It’s simple, but fool proof, and you’re going to love it.
Other Recipes with Easy Pan Sauces:
- Herb Butter Chicken Thighs
- Apple Spice Pork Chops
- Chicken Piccata
- Blackberry Sage Pork Chops
- Balsamic Chicken Skillet
What Kind of Chicken Can I Use for Honey Mustard Chicken?
I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs here because they are always juicy and tender, cook very quickly, and require the least amount of prep. You can also use boneless, skinless chicken breast, but you will want to pound them out to an even 1/2-inch thickness before browning in the skillet, which will add about 5 minutes to your prep time. Bone-in and skin-on cuts make excellent pan sauces, but they do require a much longer cook time, so they’re not ideal for this quick method.
20 Minute Honey Mustard Chicken
Servings 4Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs* ($4.50)
- 1 tsp smoked paprika ($0.10)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
- 1/2 cup chicken broth ($0.07)
- 2 Tbsp stone ground or whole grain mustard ($0.16)
- 2 Tbsp honey ($0.24)
- 1 Tbsp butter ($0.13)
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium flame. While the skillet is preheating, combine the smoked paprika, garlic powder, and salt in a small dish. Sprinkle the spice mixture over both sides of your chicken pieces.
- Once the skillet is nice and hot, add the cooking oil and swirl to coat the surface. Add the chicken pieces and cook on each side until well browned and cooked through (about 5 minutes each side, this can vary with your cookware and size of your chicken pieces). Transfer the cooked chicken to a clean plate.
- Add the chicken broth to the skillet and stir to dissolve the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Allow the broth to simmer in the skillet for about 5 minutes, or until it has reduced by half.
- Finally, add the mustard, honey, and butter to the skillet. Stir to melt and dissolve the ingredients together. Add the chicken and juices back to the skillet, and allow the sauce to come back up to a simmer. Spoon the honey mustard sauce over top, then serve.
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Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Honey Mustard Chicken – Step by Step Photos
Begin to preheat a large skillet over medium. While waiting for the skillet to heat, combine 1 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, and 1/4 tsp salt in a small dish. Sprinkle the spices over both sides of your chicken (1.5 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs).
Once the skillet is nice and hot, add 1 Tbsp cooking oil to the skillet, and swirl to make sure it has coated the entire surface. Add the chicken pieces and cook them on both sides until well browned and cooked through (about 5 minutes each side). Cooking chicken like this can take some practice. You can see from my photos how one side of my skillet gets hotter (chicken is more browned) than the other side. So keep an eye on it, turn the heat up or down if it’s going to fast or too slow, and kind of play it by ear. This is why cooking is a learned skill. It’s never exact! :)
Remove the cooked chicken to a clean plate, then add 1/2 cup chicken broth to the skillet (or white wine, if you happen to have an open bottle!). Stir to dissolve the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet, then let the broth simmer for about 5 minutes, or until it has reduced by half.
Finally, add 2 Tbsp stone ground mustard, 2 Tbsp honey, and 1 Tbsp butter. Stir to melt and dissolve these ingredients into the sauce.
Return the cooked chicken to the skillet, spoon the honey mustard sauce over top, let it come back up to a simmer briefly, then serve!
That honey mustard pan sauce is so good and perfect for drizzling over whatever you’re serving your 20 Minute Honey Mustard Chicken with. I served mine with my Parsley Salad with Almonds and Apricots, but it would be great with just about any salad, vegetable, or even just rice.
Great recipe! I’ll definitely make it again. I added a little more honey, but everything else was perfect.
Just made this dish tonight. Very easy. very tasty. I followed the recipe. It was a hit. Will be using this recipe again. Took me no time to prepare
I followed the recipe exactly-this is a keeper! The bf was a fan. :-)
Let me lead off by saying that I did make some tweaks to the recipe. However, it still came out delicious. My chicken thighs had bones, so in order to make sure they would be cooked through, I doubled the chicken broth then braised them in a 400° oven for about 35 minutes. When I took them out, I boiled the broth down. I find I rarely get enough mustard flavor from whole-grain mustard alone, so I also added a couple tablespoons of spicy brown mustard. I tagged you in my photo post on both Instagram and Twitter.
My 6-year-old son gave me so many high fives for this and my 9-year-old daughter who is going through a picky phase was the first one done after even having seconds! This sauce is so yummy. Going to try it with breaded chicken next.
Been making this as a weekly routine for a few weeks and just tried it with a few cloves of minced garlic when you add the chicken broth! Adds another element that is worth a shot!
Excellent! This dish is so tasty and I love that it doesn’t take long to prepare. My husband says we should be having this for dinner at least once a week!
Could you possibly make this creamy? Adding oat milk, cream .. etc ? I made this loved it but want to try the cooking oat milk how would you make that work for a cream sauce !
I’m not sure about oat milk because I’ve never cooked with it, but having drank it I don’t think it would be quite creamy enough. I think your best bet would be to add a little heavy cream.
This is one of my five year old daughter’s favorite dinners to eat, and it has recently also become one of her favorite dinners to help me make! I let her pound the chicken breasts and sprinkle the spices on, and then I let her pour the mustard and honey into the pan (you can eyeball these measurements and it turns out fine) and stir while the sauce comes together. Tonight while we were eating she said her chicken was like “little pieces of joy.” If you have a kid who is cold-weather-and-pandemic bored and wants to help in the kitchen, I highly recommend this family-friendly dish!
Has anyone cooked this in the crockpot before?
I make this recipe frequently and it’s always delicious. I usually serve it with sweet potato and a green vegetable, which are great taste contrasts. It’s one of my favorite recipes to bring the next day for lunch, as it heats up well and retains its flavor. I was just thinking of it and realized I’ve been making it regularly for about two years but never left a comment!
Could you replace the butter in the sauce with some nondairy alternative? What would you recommend?
I don’t suggest replacing the butter as it affects both the texture and flavor of this sauce.
My husband has a high dairy sensitivity and we are able to use ghee. And it worked just as good!! So tasty! If you’re able eat ghee, try it out!
I made this yesterday and it was so good! I made it exactly as the recipe says but added a 1/4 tsp of hot pepper powder from our garden. I definitely recommend!
This was really good and easy. I paired my chicken with roasted brussels sprouts and sweet potato! Yummy : )
My boyfriend said this is the best dish I’ve ever made! It was so delicious. I doubled the sauce and used chicken breasts cut into strips. I don’t like cooking chicken on the stove top, always worried it isn’t cooked all the way through, so I cooked it in the oven with the olive oil and seasonings 400f for 20 min. Then added it to the sauce which I had simmering on the stove top. Made it with your jasmine yellow rice and roasted frozen broccoli and it was SO AMAZING. It’s been requested again for tomorrow night!
Delicious. I’ve been using this website for years, it’s my go to spot to try something new.
I used Chardonnay in place of the broth (because I didn’t have broth but I ALWAYS have wine!) It was absolutely to die for!
This honey mustard pan sauce is to die for. Loved it and so easy. Super recommended. I served it with plain basmati rice and a simple arugula side salad.
I made this last night to rave reviews. All the ingredients were in-house and the sauce was ah-may-zing! Made with yellow rice and a summer squash/zucchini bake. That sauce….maybe some egg noodles next time! Thank you, Beth, for your down to earth instructions, photos, cost breakdowns, and stories. I so frequently default to your blog for your recipes.
So easy, SO delicious! I’ve made this twice now with fabulous results both times. Last night I put in fresh green beans after reducing the broth/pan sauce mixture with a little extra water to steam them in the delicious sauce, lid on for five minutes, and finished them on a higher heat to re-reduce the sauce when I added the chicken back in. SUCH a great combo. I always have the ingredients on hand so all I need for an easy meal is the chicken & a veg to make a delicious, unbelievably-easy weeknight dinner.
After removing the chicken, I sauteed some garlic and mushrooms before adding the broth to make the sauce. So yummy.
I just made this for meal prep this week and OMG SOOOO GOOD! I made rice and roasted broccoli as a side. I will make this again! 😊
Omigosh already cooking my chicken thighs and just realized it’s supposed to be BONELESS, SKINLESS😳 attempting to rescue😣 and meat in short supply
Mmmmm…get in my tummy RIGHT NOW!!! I’ve run across many honey-dijon chicken recipes before, but the addition of the smoked paprika sets this one head and shoulders above the other. It really makes for rich/complex flavour: dark spice and light tangy high notes. I could have licked the leftover sauce right from the pan (but poured it on leftover rice instead). Best of all – this is a really simple recipe that is ready fast! Easy five stars!
Thank you so much Catherine!
I’m sodium free so can you tell me the sodium content?? Thanks.
Thanks for the request! I do get that request a lot, but unfortunately I don’t have a reliable source for the nutrition information. The calculators and databases that most bloggers and websites use to calculate the info can be extremely inaccurate, and for something that can so severely impact the health of people with health conditions, I just don’t feel comfortable publishing unreliable numbers. I prefer to leave it up to the reader to use the database or calculator they trust. I’m sorry and I wish accuracy were easier than shipping the food off to a lab for analysis!
We love this recipe this is the third or fourth time I’ve made it and comes out great every time. I always make it with chicken broth and Dijon mustard. So good! We had tonight with wild rice and steamed carrots.
I made this vegetarian by substituting portobello caps for the chicken, kept everything else the same. It was soooooo good!
We make this at my house probably once a week and love it every time! I love how quickly and easily it comes together, and my husband comments literally every time we eat it how much he enjoys this dish. I’ve modified it a bit to suit our tastes- I use a bit more stock and let the chicken cook in the sauce, which I tend to cook down until it’s fairly thick. We also almost always use chicken breasts rather than thighs. We usually serve this with oven roasted asparagus or broccoli, and it’s an absolute winner!
This is ridiculously good! I like using a mustard that doesn’t have white wine, though, because I personally didn’t like the honey mixed with the tart flavour of what I assume is the wine. This recipe’s amazing with thighs, but I made this once with breasts and it was still really good. Thanks so much for the recipe!
I want to make this tonight, but I only have yellow mustard! Do you think it would still work?
It will definitely taste different.
Thank you, Beth! I am not a big meat eater but if there was a recipe to convert me into eating more meet, this would be it. My husband made this and it was absolutely delicious, wow! Simple, easy, quick and absolutely wonderful. I did have a question though, how do you suggest we use this recipe but adjust it so it can be done on a charcoal BBQ? Thank you, you’re the best :)
I’m not sure that’s possible, unfortunately. You need the skillet and the reserved chicken drippings to be able to make the pan sauce. :(
I thought course ground mustard was the same as ground mustard oops. lol Realized my mistake before I added the chicken back to the pan. Just dumped the sauce portion and remade it. Posting in case it saves anyone else. Turned out great regardless! ♡
We thought the chicken needed a little something more but can’t decide what, but it is tender. I doubled the sauce like one of the comments suggested but I would add a thickener next time with maybe additional mustard and some pepper for added flavor.
This was so good, even reheated the next day for lunch! I’m not crazy about chicken thighs so I used boneless skinless breasts instead and it came out so tender and juicy. I didn’t have paprika so I used chili powder instead and it was still delicious. I’ll be making this again for sure.
So delicious! thanks for sharing. My husband would love this
Delicious and another BB recipe to add to my rotation. Quick and easy, which is just what I need during finals so I don’t live off of cereal. Thanks!
I made this recipe tonight with skinless, boneless chicken breasts. It was delicious and so easy to make. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
I made this with chicken cutlets (thin chicken breasts) because my husband doesn’t like chicken thighs. It was so delicious, can’t wait to make it again! I ate it with one of those bagged Trader Joes kale/brussel sprout mixes that I sautéed in olive oil. Tasted great with the sauce.
We really enjoyed this one. I substituted dijon mustard for the coarse mustard, so I realize that would’ve changed the texture and taste a bit, but it worked! I also had to cook the chicken thighs much longer, but that’s just my stove and pan (about 15 minutes each side in a cast iron skillet on a glass stove top). I think the extra sauce will be great on rice as well. Thanks for another keeper!
This recipe is my current obsession! It’s great as written, but, if I’ve got it on hand, I’ll add a little dry white wine, shallots, and, if I’m feeling extra decadent, some half and half. Awesome, simple, delicious recipe, Beth!
Ooooh, I love those additions! You’re making me drool!
This was very yummy, thank you for sharing !
This was very good and was really quick to cook. I did cook my chicken a bit longer (my pieces were on the large side). The sauce was very tasty too. Thanks for the recipe, will definitely make again.
Great recipe. Very quick, easy, and delicious. We doubled the sauce and once the chicken was coated in it, we removed it from the pan and added sautéed sweet potatoes, onions, and patty pan squash to the remaining sauce. We loved it and are really glad to have found another healthy and tasty option for dinner.
This was tasty the first time, but I used ground mustard *seed* instead of mustard the condiment because that’s what I thought you meant…only to see differently when I looked at the pictures. Oh well, easy to fix next time. Should I assume for the future that when you don’t say mustard seed, it means the condiment?
Correct. Mustard seeds will be listed as mustard seeds. And I actually don’t have any recipes that use mustard seeds at the moment. :)
Loved this chicken
This was super simple to make and so delicious! I think this is maybe the forth meal from your website I’ve cooked and each have been a hit. I actually like a stronger mustard flavor so next time I make it I might just do a tablespoon of honey instead of two, but that’s what I like about these recipes, they’re easy to customize.
I made some eggplant and rice for a side and the sauce was perfect for both! I had leftovers and brought some to my sister who just had hand surgery and apparently she hadn’t eaten anything all day…she told me she wasn’t hungry and I told her to just try a bite while it was warm and suddenly she was shoveling it in her mouth haha! 10/10 would make again!
Aww, what a lovely story!! Thank you for sharing that with me and I’m glad your sister enjoyed it so much. :)
Are you supposed to get rid of the oil after you’re done cooking the chicken, before the broth goes in? I did because it seemed like too much…
I thought this recipe was pretty good, but I think I’ll try a different brand of mustard next time. This was a bit too vinegary for my tastes.
I did not drain my oil first. Another thing you can try to make the vinegar flavor a little less strong is to add a touch more honey. :) That will dampen the acid.
I think it was super good, although I had to go to work almost after I made it, so I only got to taste it reheated at work and with not enough of the yummy sauce, haha! I should report back when I have more of the sauce, but from what I tasted, it was delicious, and it was very, very easy. I ate it with rice and eggplant.
So good and soo easy! I made mine with a side of rice and green beans.
That looks delicious. I also like your skillet. Can you share what brand and/or model it is?
Yes, that is the 10″ fry pan from my Oxo Good Grips Tri-Ply Pro Stainless Steel set. I love that set!
Your comment about pan sauce is right on! Easy to make, and sometimes you don’t even have to wait until the meat is cooked, but simmer in a sauce. My stand-by chicken pan sauces include marsala, picatta, and mustard tarragon–this one is worthy of inclusion in my rotation, although I will be using breast scallops since DH won’t eat thighs. Boneless pork chops or scallops are delicious with all the same chicken sauces
Delicious, quick and uses simple ingredients. Another keeper. Thank you for making dinner happen, Beth. We appreciate it!
this was so delicious! Even my 2 year old loved it! So fast too! Excellent work, as usual.