If you love Asian food, you will go nuts over this Chinese Chicken! Made with the same Char Siu marinade as the ever popular Chinese Barbecue Pork (Char Siu), this recipe calls for Asian staples you might already have. BBQ it, pan fry, bake or broil/grill it. The smell when this is cooking is outrageous!
Try this with a side of Fried Rice and Asian Slaw, or Asian Mushroom Ramen Noodles!
If you’ve strolled through Chinese neighbourhoods, past Chinese BBQ shops with the bronzed, glistening ducks and Chinese Barbecue Pork hanging from hooks in the window dripping with sticky glaze, then the smell when this hits the hot pan will be familiar.
And even if you’re not familiar with that smell, you will just know, you will know that this is 100% lip smackingly delicious and a total crowd pleaser. 🙂
This Chinese Chicken is the chicken version of Chinese Barbecue Pork. The marinade is slightly adjusted to make it more suitable for chicken – mainly less sugar because there’s more surface area with chicken so I find the pork Char Siu marinade a bit too sweet and also easier to cook on the BBQ/stove without burning the marinade.
And I even added the tiniest drop of red food colouring to give it that warm reddish tinge that Chinese Barbecue Pork is so well known for. (Entirely 100000% utterly and completely optional 🙂 )
And speaking of optional – the skewers are totally optional too. I just used them to do something a bit different because it dawned on me that I had done the Thai Coconut Marinated Chicken recently that would look very similar once cooked. Plus, they are handy for turning the chicken. 🙂
The flavour of this chicken is classic Chinese – it has lovely depth of flavour, it’s sweet and savoury, and a hint of Chinese Five Spice Powder flavour that makes this distinctly Char Siu. This is terrific cooked in the oven or broiled/grilled, but hands down the best way is on the BBQ or stove. That caramelisation that you get on the surface is just gold. GOLD. – Nagi xx
PS If you make this, tell me in the comments below if you agree that the smell when this is cooking is outrageous!!!!
PPS If you haven’t made it yet but you want to, tell me in the comments below if you can tell just by looking at the photos that the smell when this is cooking is outrageous!!!!
Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.
Chinese BBQ Chicken
Ingredients
Marinade:
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 tsp brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp honey
- 1 1/2 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 2 tsp oyster sauce
- 1 ½ tbsp light soy sauce (or all purpose)
- 1/2 tsp Chinese five spice powder (Note 1)
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil (not critical)
- Few drops red food colouring , optional
Chicken:
- 750 g / 1.5lb chicken thigh fillets , skinless boneless (or breast)
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 10 – 12 bamboo skewers , soaked in water for 1 hour (optional)
- Green onions / scallions , finely sliced, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Place Marinade ingredients in a ziplock bag or bowl and mix to combine.
- Add chicken and mix to coat. Marinade for 3 – 24 hours.
- Optional: Cut chicken into bite size or large pieces and thread onto skewers. Use 1 skewer for small pieces, 2 for large, like pictured in post.
- Heat half the oil in a heavy based skillet over medium high heat, or BBQ on medium (if using grill side, brush oil on bars).
- Remove chicken from marinade (RESERVE for basting) and place in the skillet - cook in 2 batches, don't crowd the pan. Cook for 4 minutes then turn.
- Use the Marinade to baste the cooked side of the chicken. After 3 minutes, turn the chicken over so the basted side is now cooking again - cook for 1 minute.
- Baste the chicken, then turn again and cook for 45 sec - 1 min.
- Transfer chicken to a plate, cover loosely with foil and rest for 5 minutes.
- Serve, garnished with green onions / scallions if using!
Recipe Notes:
Grill/Broil: Preheat to medium high, then cook for 6 - 7 minutes on each side (watch carefully, will get dark brown spots and can burn easily due to sugar in marinade). 4. Nutrition per serving.
Nutrition Information:
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Chinese Chicken recipe video!
The ever popular Char Siu Chinese Barbecue Pork!
LIFE OF DOZER
When I feel sorry for him and let him on the couch, he certainly makes himself comfortable…..
SaveSave
This is so easy but PERFECT! Even my nephews who are extremely fussy wanted to taste based on the smell of this cooking. They loved it.
G’day Nagi, how are you? How is Dozer?
Being the anal person that I am, I’ve purchased red bean curd from my local Asian food market.
Dad’s not fond of pork so I’m going to make your Char Siu chicken recipe instead.
How much Red Bean Curd do I need to use for the Char Siu chicken recipe?
Hi Nagi!
Looking for a chicken on skewers recipe that I can cook ahead and reheat for a party…would this be suitable or is it best eaten freshly cooked?
A beautiful marinade. I loved this chicken and the kids loved it too. Thanks for another winner Nagi!
im not a huge fan of char siu pork so I tried this to go in the Singapore noodle recipe and it was delicious! Such a flavour packed marinade. I used chicken thighs, only had a couple of hours to marinade it, cooked it in the oven and it turned out beautifully.
The whole family loved these! I made them exactly as written, using my oven to bake them. Tq so much!
Made this tonight with Nagi’s fried rice and also her wombok salad. Yum yum yum. We BBQ’d the chicken and I reduced leftover marinade on the stove to a sticky glaze for dipping. Highly recommend x
Hi Nagi, made Char Siu this morning, the flavor is spot on great great great, never thought I could make something so incredible flavorful, love your recipes I’ve made a few so far.
Thanks again Nagi! and love Dozer too!
Another delicious 5 star recipe from Nagi! The chinese 5 spice made the whole apartment smell like char sui. Thank you!
could I use this to put in the stir fried rice
YES! It’s amazing Tracey!! N x
My husband traded his dinner roll for a third piece of chicken.
I accidentally defrosted bone in thighs. Worked great. TY for another winner, winner chicken dinner.
So good! Made little appetizer sized skewers and took them out to the lake. My friends gobbled them up!
Love this recipe…I’d bought a few too many thigh fillets so cooked them all in this recipe then froze the two left over thigh fillets. Used them for a starter at lunch on the weekend in a few spring roll wrappers. Our friends said I was amazing! Ha ha (thx tineats)⛹️♂️
Thigh fillets we love u! This recipe is like having a Chinese restaurant in your kitchen except without all the chefs, without the fab smells and without those inviting sizzling noises) but with the cleanup of all those saucepans! ha ha. Again everyone (well our two friends) thought we bought this at our local Chinese! Love tineats 🏊♂️
Could you use this to marinade a whole chicken & cook it in the crockpot??
Hi Nagi. If i freeze this chicken in the marinaded then say take it out 3 weeks later and thaw on the bench will the marinate be watery due to the ice thawing and also can i use the thawed out marinate to baste while its cooking?Leanne
Another “keeper” as my hubby would say. Made the marinade but cooked the chicken thighs in my Air Fryer for 10 minutes on 200 Degrees. Yum. Turned out very moist and some burnt bits on the side of the chicken (extra flavour!!) . Thanks Nagi for another brilliant recipe. xx
That’s great to hear Sharon! N x
This was wonderful
Could this recipe be used as a substitute for chinese bbq pork as a filling for bao? I’m trying to eat less pork but still want to make something similar to char siu bao.
Yes definitely Emily!! N x
I make this sauce as an “put it on anything” sauce. I’ve added it to stir-fried veggies and potstickers an practically lick the plate when I’m done.
YUM! Sounds great Ellen! N x