This Sticky Coconut Chicken is all about bold flavors and tender, juicy chicken that's hard to resist! Sweet, spicy chicken with a hint of coconut and the simplicity of cooking it all in one pan!
The chicken is marinated in coconut milk, infusing it with a subtle richness and sweetness, before being cooked in a skillet and finished with a wonderfully sticky glaze.
This Sticky Coconut Chicken is easy to make, uses simple ingredients, and delivers big flavors.
Serve with some rice and veg for a dish everyone will love.
Ingredient Notes
These notes are here to help make this recipe a success; they cover some but not all ingredients. For a complete ingredient list, check out the recipe card below.
Chicken thighs: I always go for boneless and skinless chicken thighs as they stay nice and juicy. You can use bone in the thighs, but they will need cooking for longer. You can substitute it with chicken breast, but be careful not to overcook it as it will dry out easily.
Coconut milk: I prefer regular full-fat coconut milk as it helps keep the chicken extra juicy, but you can use light coconut milk if you prefer.
Red pepper flakes: You can add more or less to taste. As written, it has a little pep to it but no real heat.
Fresh ginger: Fresh ginger adds so much to the marinade. I keep a root of ginger in a ziplock bag in my freezer and then just grate it with the skin on straight from the freezer. You could substitute it with ginger paste.
Garlic: The recipe uses 4 cloves of garlic in the marinade. But as with every recipe I write, I will always encourage you to measure garlic with your heart! So feel free to add more.
Sugar: I use regular white granulated sugar, but you can substitute it for light brown sugar if you prefer.
Recipe Tips
We've tested this recipe at least 3 times to ensure it works well for you. Have a look at our tips for getting the best dish you can!
- The longer the chicken is in the marinade, the stronger the coconut flavor. I recommend 4 hours at the very least, but I like to leave it for 24 hours.
- When cooking the chicken, add it to the hot pan upside down. That is, put the smooth side of the chicken thigh on the pan. This will give you a nice finish to the final dish.
- The sticky sauce gets added after the chicken is partly cooked. This gives it time to thicken without getting too sticky. If you find your sauce has reduced too much, you can add extra water (or chicken broth) to the pan.
Why You'll Love This Sticky Coconut Chicken
- It is all cooked in one pan.
- It has that sweet, salty taste that kids (and adults) love.
- It is perfect with rice, but you can serve it with potatoes or salad.
- Leftovers taste amazing in a wrap for lunch.
Recipe Adaptions
These are all just suggestions and things that have worked in our test kitchen, but it is your dinner, so adapt it to suit your family. That is the beauty of cooking; we can all create our own delicious meals.
- Use pork chops instead of chicken thighs; they will need 6 minutes to cook and then 5 minutes with the sauce.
- Add extra spice to the dish by adding red pepper flakes to the sticky sauce.
- Fry onions and bell peppers in the pan with the chicken.
- Toss some steamed broccoli/ cauliflower into the pan for the last 2-3 minutes of cooking. It will soak up the sticky sauce.
- If you like a saucy chicken, double the sauce ingredients, so you have extra to drizzle over at the end.
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FAQ's
You can, but they will need less cooking time than the chicken thighs. Give them will need 4 minutes to cook and then 5-6 minutes to add to the sauce.
The marinade must be disposed of as it has had raw chicken in it.
You can. Add the sauce to the chicken in an oven-proof dish. Cook at 390ºF/200ºC for 20 minutes, then remove from the oven and use a spoon to pour the sauce over the chicken. Cook for a further 25-30 minutes until caramelized.
Serving Suggestions
What to eat with Sticky Coconut Chicken
Although this sticky coconut chicken works well with potatoes, vegetables, or salad, we nearly always have it with rice. Either a pile of jasmine rice or a bowl of sticky rice. And something green, snow peas, sugar snap peas, green beans, or broccoli, all work well. I often double the sauce so we have extra to pour over the veg!
What to drink with Sticky Coconut Chicken
An off-dry Riesling is a fantastic match to the chicken; the acidity and touch of sweetness balance the creaminess of the coconut flavors and the rich, sticky glaze. If you prefer something drier, a Chenin Blanc or a lightly oaked Chardonnay adds a buttery roundedness to the chicken.
For red wine, go for something fruity and low in tannins, like a Pinot Noir or a Gamay. Their light body and bright red fruit flavors won't overpower the dish but won't get lost with the sticky, sweet sauce. If you want something bolder, a Zinfandel, with its jammy fruit and peppery kick, is a beautiful pairing.
But I think my favorite pairing is a rosé, especially one with good acidity and a bit of body, like a Provence Rosé or a Grenache-based Rosé.
Enjoy x
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Get the Recipe
Sticky Coconut Chicken
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 ¼ cups coconut milk (see note 1)
- ½-1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (see note 2)
- 1- inch chunk fresh ginger grated (see note 3)
- 4 garlic cloves minced (see note 4)
Sauce
- ½ cup rice wine vinegar
- ½ cup water
- ⅓ cup sugar (see note 5)
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce
For the chicken
- 8 boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon oil
Instructions
- Mix the coconut milk, red pepper flakes, grated ginger and minced garlic in a large bowl or ziplock bag.1 ¼ cups coconut milk½-1 teaspoon red pepper flakes1- inch chunk fresh ginger4 garlic cloves
- Add the chicken and marinate for at least 4 hours but up to 24 hours.8 boneless skinless chicken thighs
To cook
- Mix the sauce ingredients together and set to one side.½ cup rice wine vinegar½ cup water⅓ cup sugar2 tablespoon soy sauce
- Place a large non-stick frying pan over a high heat. Once it is hot, add the oil and arrange the chicken thighs in a single layer with the smooth side down. (discard the marinade)1 tablespoon oil
- Reduce the heat to medium/low and cook the chicken for 10 minutes.
- Turn the chicken over and pour over the sauce mixture.
- Allow the chicken to cook for a further 10 minutes, then carefully use a spoon to glaze the chicken.
- Cook for another 5-10 minutes until the chicken is cooked and the glaze is thick and sticky.
Notes
- I prefer regular full-fat coconut milk as it helps keep the chicken extra juicy, but you can use light coconut milk if you prefer.
- You can add more or less to taste. As written, it has a little pep to it but no real heat.
- Fresh ginger adds so much to the marinade. I keep a root of ginger in a ziplock bag in my freezer and then just grate it with the skin on straight from the freezer. You could substitute it with ginger paste.
- As with every recipe I write, I will always encourage you to measure garlic with your heart! So feel free to add more.
- I use regular white granulated sugar, but you can substitute it for light brown sugar if you prefer.
Nutrition
Nutrition is per serving
Nagi@RecipeTinEats says
Claire, this is one seriously amazing recipe, I don't think I've seen a sticky coconut chicken before! You ROCK!
Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts says
Hehe, rocking at sticky chicken is something I can live with 🙂
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella says
Wow I love how easy this looks in the recipe. But it looks impressive visually! 😀
Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts says
Those are the best kind of dishes aren't they?
GiGi Eats says
MMmmm! This sounds amazing! I adore chicken and I adore coconut! A TWO-FER!
Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts says
Thank you Gigi 🙂
Krys | Hungry Rants says
I love sticky anything - and chicken is such a crowd pleaser! Love the flavours you have going on here. Oh isn't Albany a gorgeous place, road works are never fun though!
Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts says
We love Albany, we always have such a wonderful time down there.
Barb Finch says
Hi Claire,
What a terrific and easy dish! Love the delicious marinades that do so much before you even start cooking. Haven't used coconut milk like this before so it's a definite will-do. A couple of quick side dishes and you're done - yeah!
And sorry about that road trip from hell - ugh!
Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts says
I agree, marinades are such a great way to mix up the evening meal. And I am a big fan of easy to cook chicken dishes! 🙂
Gourmet Getaways says
I hate it when the GPS sends you the long way!!
Yes, I'm very pleased I wasn't with you!
Amazing looking recipe!!! I would love to be eating this tonight... One pot, it just might be on the menu!
Thanks for sharing xx
Julie
Gourmet Getaways
Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts says
Hehe, Got to love Australia for the ability to have a road trip without trying 😉
x
Dorothy Dunton says
Hi Claire! i actually have all of the ingredients to make this...YAY! I love "sticky" chicken recipes (I think it's Nagi's fault). Thigh meat is our favorite and it's generally less expensive than breast. I love road trips (getting lost is half the fun), but my arthritic back does not agree. Oh well, I still love to eat and my back never says anything about that! 🙂
Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts says
I love sticky chicken too. I think that (and cheese) is why Nagi and I get on so well 😉
I have a honey and chilli chicken that I will be sharing soon. That is another nice sticky chicken dish 🙂
Keith @ How's it Lookin? says
Looks great. I never had coconut chicken before, thanks a lot
Karly says
Yup, definitely drooling over this one. What a PERFECT weeknight dinner and a great way to spice up my normal chicken routine. Love this!
Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts says
Thank you Karly 🙂
Claudia | The Brick Kitchen says
Ughhh 7 hours is waaaay too long stuck in a little car - I feel your pain! I still find it crazy how far you can drive in Australia seeing absolutely nothing, just great expanses of land. Everything in NZ is so much closer together! This chicken would more than make up for it though - I love how it is all in one, and the addition of coconut milk sounds amazing 🙂
Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts says
I know right!!! Coming from the Uk where you pretty much can't drive more than 20 minutes without hitting a town or city, it was a hard thing to get used to. Although we took it to extremes when we drove The Nullarbor! Now that was crazy!!!!
I have never been to NZ, Stew has and says it is beautiful. It is on my list of places I need to visit 🙂
I love all in one cooking 🙂