Hawaiian Chicken
Updated
Updated
Craving Hawaiian Barbecue, but aren’t in Hawaii? This Hawaiian Chicken is the next best thing! Made with brown sugar, pineapple juice, soy sauce, aromatics, and butter, it’s so easy and knock-your-socks off delicious!
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5 STAR REVIEWS
Don’t you think anything that includes Hawaiian as part of the name, automatically takes it up 5 notches? (I’m lookin’ at you Hawaiian Macaroni Salad and Hawaiian Chicken Kabobs!) I’ve read about people selling everything they own, relocating to Hawaii and working 2 or 3 jobs just so they can live there. Have you ever been? I have, once. And I get it.
The islands are filled with the freshest, best tasting fruit and incredible chicken barbecue. But since most of us can’t just hop over to Maui, I’m sharing our Hawaiian Chicken recipe that can be prepared at home. It’s so easy and will make you feel like you’re at a Hawaiian luau.
Helpful Tips & Variations
- Using chicken breasts vs. thighs. For best results, use boneless, skinless chicken thighs for this recipe. I’ve made this with chicken breasts – still good, but we don’t like it as much. The thighs are juicier and richer. But if you don’t like thighs, then chicken breasts are fine. Cooking time will need to be adjusted so the breasts don’t dry out.
- Cutting back on the butter. This recipe calls for a 1/2 cup of butter. You can cut back a little, but not too much. The butter is essentially the sauce that prevents the chicken from drying out.
- Don’t skip marinating. Letting the chicken marinate in the fridge for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight, will give you the best flavor. It’s worth the wait!
Hawaiian Chicken Barbecue
Ingredients
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 3/4 cup pineapple juice
- 5 cloves garlic, , minced
- 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh ginger, , chopped
- 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 cup sliced sweet onion
- 3 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs, (about 12 thighs)
- 1/2 cup butter, , melted
- 4 scallions, , chopped
- coconut rice, , for serving
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the brown sugar, soy sauce, and pineapple juice together until all the sugar is dissolved. Mix in the garlic, ginger, crushed red pepper flakes, and onion.
- Add the chicken to the marinade and toss gently to coat. Cover and transfer to the fridge to marinate for at least 4 hours (or overnight.)
- Prepare grill for medium heat and brush the grill grates with oil or generously coat with non-stick cooking spray.
- Discard marinade. Grill chicken until cooked through and an internal temperature of 165 degrees is reached, about 5-7 minutes per side (depending on how thick the thighs are and how hot your grill is, careful not to let them burn.)
- Transfer grilled chicken to a casserole dish. Pour melted butter and diced scallions over the top, toss to coat.
- Serve over white rice or coconut rice and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information given is an automatic calculation and can vary based on the exact products you use and any changes you make to the recipe. If these numbers are very important to you, I would recommend calculating them yourself.
Did you make this? Leave a rating below!
What to Serve with Hawaiian Chicken
Hawaiian Barbecue chicken pairs perfectly over cooked white rice or coconut rice to soak up all that delectable butter sauce. We also like to enjoy this dish with a refreshing drink such as a mojito or something tropical like a Blue Hawaiian.
Storing Leftovers
- Fridge. Any leftover grilled chicken should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge and eaten within 3 days.
- Freezer. Allow to cool, then place in a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 2 months. Allow to thaw in the fridge.
- Reheat. Warm the entire casserole dish in the oven or individual portions in the microwave until heated through.
More Easy Chicken Thighs Recipes:
I hope you love this delicious and easy recipe – be sure to give it a review below! Also don’t forget to follow Belly Full on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube!
Only had 5 hours to marinate but still was juicy and delicious. Day Dreams of the big island 🏝️😍
This was DELICIOUS! How could it not be with all that butter. Lol. Seriously, we loved it. So much flavor and super easy to make. Thanks!
Loved this, husband even put the recipe in his RecTeq app for his smoker so we could make it again. Have yet to find a BellyFull recipe we don’t like/ love.
This sounds wonderful. The thighs are marinating right now. Can’t wait!
Made this using chicken breasts. Pounded them out to 1/4-inch thickness and baked at 425F for about 20 minutes. SO GOOD. Thanks for the recipe!
Hi I found BRAGG organic coconut nectar and Coconut Secret Soy-free seasoning Teriyaki… I used both these for my marinate with pineapple juice and garlic… The teriyaki already had the ginger in it… It has garlic too… But I love a good garlic flavor!!! I also cut fresh pineapple rings and have them marinating with the chicken….
I plan on baking everything together in the oven at 400°F for 30 minutes… Than grill the chicken and pineapple to crisp up a bit… I plan on reducing the sauce and adding butter to that for a glaze over the chicken… Also making coconut rice… Just relpacing the water with Coconut milk from a can!!!
This was absolutely delicious. I used the pineapple juice from a can of sliced pineapples and then grilled the pineapples too. Everyone LOVED it.
I used a can of pineapple slices as well. I marinated the pineapple in Jack Fire, but you can use any cinnamon based liquor, for a few hours. We grilled them & then served them warm over ice cream. My husband had a coconut sorbet/gelato & he put his pineapple on that.
Ooooooh yes. These look so juicy and bold and flavorful and delicious. I mean listen to me, it’s not even 9AM and I’m already feigning over chicken thighs! Need!!
I have never been to Hawaii, but I LOVE hawaiian BBQ! These chicken thighs look finger-licking good!
This dish is delish! I made it in the oven, since we don’t have a grill. Came out great!
I’ve made this a few times – my family goes nuts for it. Sometimes I use the full 1/2 cup butter listed and other times I cut it down to 1/4 cup. It’s definitely more delicious with the full 1/2 cup (especially if you’re serving with rice), but less is still wonderful!
This was GREAT.
This recipe looks delicious and I would love to try. I do have 2 little ones though that have a soy intolerance and can’t have soy sauce (otherwise we have some serious tummy issues). Any ideas on what I could sub out for the soy sauce? I would love to try this, but don’t really want to deal with 4 days of tummy trouble. Thanks!
Oh gosh, I wouldn’t want to endure that either :( Unfortunately, I really don’t know what you would substitute for soy sauce. Maybe Google it? Although, keep in mind whatever you find, I can’t vouch for what the end result will taste like. Good luck!
It’s too cold to grill, so I made this in the oven instead. Still came out delish!! And I did make it with the rice as well… yum!
This met all of our expectations. I mean, how can you go wrong with these ingredients. Nonetheless, you never know. It was SO good. I did cut back on the butter and it was fine!
This is absolutely delicious!
I’ve never been to Hawaii and, until recently, never had much interest in going. Crazy, right?! One of these days I’ll get there! In the meantime I can make your yummy chicken thighs!
My husband and I loved this! He said “don’t you dare lose that recipe.” LOL.
I want to hug your son big time after reading this!
Ahh, Hawaii! That was an incredible trip, wasn’t it? ;)
And yes, I do know of a woman who recently sold her place, packed her cat and her bags, and lives happy as a clam in Hawaii. From her FB posts, she appears to have found the Fountain of Youth.
I’ve never been to Hawaii but after reading this recipe I think I might have to take a trip there!
Best endorsement of this recipe for sure!
I love Trevor’s reaction to this chicken! It is quite an endorsement (your fabulous picture being another huge endorsement).
OH EM GEE I want 14 plates.