For a fun, flavorful weeknight meal try these tender, sticky orange glazed chicken thighs!
I love cooking chicken for dinner, but it can easily get boring if you don’t jazz it up! These sticky sweet, tender chicken thighs with a simple orange glaze are super easy and so scrumptious… especially if you love bright, citrusy flavors!
A splash of hot sauce gives the orange glaze a little spice, and coated over the chicken makes for a fun, flavorful mid-week meal. Sprinkle it with cilantro to bring out the citrusy tangy in the glaze, and wrap ‘em up for lunch leftovers. They’re even better next-day!
I hope you enjoy this recipe and the rest of your week, friends! Make your Monday through Friday meals more delicious and fun with many more of my favorite weeknight meals, which you can find here.
Sticky Orange Glazed Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- Coarse salt and ground pepper
- 1 cup thawed orange juice concentrate or orange juice
- 1 cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 4 teaspoons white wine vinegar
- 4 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons hot sauce
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Position oven rack in upper third.
- Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper and arrange skin side down on a rimmed, foil lined baking sheet. Bake chicken until cooked through, 45 to 50 minutes, flipping halfway through.
- Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine 1 teaspoon salt, juice concentrate, ketchup, brown sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce. Bring to a boil then simmer on low until mixture thickens, 18 to 20 minutes.
- Preheat broiler. Transfer chicken to a large bowl, add glaze, and toss to coat. Drain off fat from sheet. Return chicken to sheet and broil until sauce is bubbling and chicken is dark brown in spots, 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro, if desired, and serve.
- Enjoy!
Yum, these look sticky delicious!
What a great way to brighten up some chicken – a real ray of sunshine!
YUM..they just look bright and delicious and bursting with flavor. I often get in a chicken rut!
Perfect game day recipe!
These look absolutely delicious! I love orange with chicken too. Yum!
These look delicious!!! Thanks for sharing!
These are so pretty! Who knew messy could be beautiful?! And I know how you feel with getting bored with chicken. Same here. I cook chicken more than anything but normally use the same recipes. Boring. But this? Definitely not boring!
Woah. My mouth nearly fell to the floor when I saw these! They look amazing! I love orange with chicken, really must make these. I cook chicken more than anything too, but I do love how versatile it is, pretty much goes with anything and I’m a really fussy eater and don’t really like other meats so I’m always looking for new recipes to try! :)
Looks incredible! So saucy and delicious!
Your chicken looks so stunning. I love orange…the color, the flavor…how pretty.
Gosh, these sound good.
There’s nothing like biting into a piece of spicy, sticky chicken! Great recipe.
Love this! It looks finger-licking amazing!
this was a big hit, nothing left but the bones!
Any way I could do these in the crock pot?
You could try cooking the thighs in the CrockPot on high for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, then after brushing on the glaze popping them under the broiler. I’ve never tried it this way though, so no guarantees!
As soon as I saw this picture, I knew I’d be making these TONIGHT! I did and they’re delicious!! Thanks for sharing!
These were awesome!! Will be going on our regular rotation :)
How would you adapt the recipe for boneless skinless chicken thighs? I assume I will need shorten cooking time., but do you think also the temperature?
I would just shorten the cooking time to 30-35 minutes.
Is there a difference in using orange concentrate or a cup of orange juice? I am cooking the sauce, and used OJ, but it seems not thick. THank you for posting the recipe, greatly appreciate.
OJ concentrate is more syrupy and has a higher sugar content. So, the sauce it produces will be a bit stickier than with using orange juice. Simmer it down and it will thicken up!
I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve made these other than not enough! They’re amazing, the sauce is perfectly sweet, tangy, and sticky. My whole family loves them, and we all fight over the last piece. This has become a staple in my house.
Thank you so much for posting this recipie! I tried it and now it’s my boyfriends favorite meal. I impressed my roommates by cooking a big batch of these with creamy mashed potatoes and broccoli and everyone loved it.
I would definitely recommend using the OJ concentrate over the juice. Big difference. I also add minced garlic, a bit more hot sauce (specifically Sriracha), a bit more Worchestire sauce and that’s it!