EretenSouthern and Tex-Mex recipes

Garlic & Brown Sugar Chicken

Garlic & Brown Sugar Chicken

Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken – a well-balanced weeknight meal full of flavor and a sweet brown sugar coating. It is ready in under 30 minutes with only 5 ingredients.

A plate with seasoned diced chicken, steamed broccoli, and white rice, served on a patterned white dish with a cloth napkin and parsley nearby.

Why Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken stays in the rotation

Brown Sugar Chicken Breast is straightforward and quick to make. It makes the well-balanced weeknight meal.

You can have dinner on the table in about 15 minutes. To make it even easier, you can pair it with a 90-second rice and microwave steamable veggies for a full meal with minimal effort.

Seared, juicy chicken breast is cooked in a savory and sweet sauce made of butter and brown sugar.

It’s a unique flavor that picky eaters and kids love. It will quickly become part of your dinner rotation.

If you love bold chicken flavors, this Chipotle chicken and vegetable skillet Is another weeknight winner.

A bowl of raw, diced chicken, a small dish of brown sugar, a pat of butter, a peeled garlic clove, and a bottle of seasoning are arranged on a white countertop.

Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken Ingredients

  • Boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch pieces
  • Unsalted butter
  • Garlic
  • Chicken seasoning (we use Montreal chicken seasoning)
  • Brown sugar

How to cook Brown Sugar Chicken

  1. In a large skillet, add the butter and melt. Make sure burner is on medium-high/high. You want to get a good brown sear on the chicken.
  2. Add chicken to the skillet and sprinkle with chicken seasoning.
  3. About halfway through cooking the chicken, add garlic and continue to saute, stirring frequently. Be careful not to burn the garlic.
  4. When chicken is completely cooked, sprinkle brown sugar across the top and allow to melt into the chicken.
  5. Stir it all together and serve up with a starch and veggie!
Diced raw chicken pieces in a black skillet, sprinkled with various seasonings, beginning to cook.

Brown Sugar Chicken Tips and Tricks

  • This recipe intentionally uses a stove top method. We find that it gets a nice browned chicken. If you were to cook this in the oven, you’d miss out on the nice, browned outer layer of the chicken.
  • It’s important to cut the chicken breast into equal pieces. They don’t have to be well-balanced, but staying similar in size will ensure even cooking and avoid undercooked pieces mixed in with overcooked pieces.
  • Be careful about the heat and time you cook your minced garlic. If garlic burns (which it can easily), it gets bitter and will cause the chicken to taste bitter.
  • A great shortcut is to buy pre-minced garlic. We buy it in a jar from either Costco or HEB. We find that bulbs of garlic are great if you’re making roasted garlic or need whole cloves, but for recipes like these, pre-minced garlic is well-balanced!
  • Our pan had a lot of extra moisture/water in it after cooking the chicken – usually this is directly from the chicken itself. If it was still partially frozen, or if you purchased a brand that adds water (it usually says on the package), sometimes you end up with a lot of water in the pan with the chicken. This will actually prevent it from searing the outside and it won’t give the sauce the right consistency. If this happens, drain your chicken and add back to the hot skillet.

How to Serve Brown Sugar and Garlic Chicken

Brown Sugar and Garlic Chicken goes great with both starches and veggies. Some of our favorites include:

Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken Storage

Leftover garlic brown sugar chicken should be cooled completely before storing.

To store in the refrigerator, place the leftover chicken in an airtight container. It will remain fresh for up to 3 days.

To store in the freezer, place the chicken in a freezer safe ziptop bag. Push out any additional air from the bag and seal it. Store it flat in the freezer for up to 6 months.

To reheat garlic brown sugar chicken, we recommend using a skillet. Place it in a skillet over low heat on the stove with a splash of broth. Put a lid on top and let it slowly heat through. This will help to not overcook the chicken and dry it out.

A white plate with cooked chicken pieces, steamed broccoli, and white rice, served on a wooden surface.

Brown Sugar Garlic Chicken FAQ

Prep 5 minutesCook 20 minutesMakes 6 servings

Ingredients

  • 1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast cut into 1 inch pieces
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1 clove garlic
  • chicken seasoning I use Montreal chicken seasoning
  • 4 tsp brown sugar

Method

  1. In a large skillet, add the butter and melt. Make sure burner is on medium-high/high. You want to get a good brown sear on the chicken.
  2. Add chicken to the skillet and sprinkle with chicken seasoning.
  3. About halfway through cooking the chicken, add garlic and continue to saute, stirring frequently. Be careful not to burn the garlic.
  4. When chicken is completely cooked, sprinkle brown sugar across the top and allow to melt into the chicken.
  5. Stir it all together and serve up with a starch and veggie!

Notes

  • Weight Watchers Freestyle Points: 2 <h3 class="wprm-recipe-header

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