Sweet Chilli is such a fab flavour. It’s perfect as a glaze for chicken thighs, veg and potatoes in this super simple Sweet Chilli Chicken Traybake.
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I love sweet chilli. Whether it’s Chinese Sweet Chilli Chicken, a McDonald’s Sweet Chilli Chicken Wrap, Sweet Chilli Sauce on stir fry, or just drizzled on a sandwich at home. It’s such a gorgeous flavour.
I used to be obsessed with Sweet Chilli Jacob’s Cracker Crisps, but they seem to have vanished. If anyone has any, please get in touch!!
Sweet Chilli isn’t always great for kids. We’ve had sweet chilli sauces that have just been way too spicy for them…for us if we’re being honest.
For my Chicken Thighs in Sweet Chilli Sauce, I really tone the spice down a little with some other ingredients, and a bit of water to create a super simple family dinner.
This up there with peri peri chicken wraps and other traybakes as one of my favourite easy meals.
Sweet Chilli Chicken Traybake – An Easy Midweek Meal
I always think that traybakes make the perfect midweek dinners.
All one-pots do really, but meals like this Sweet Chilli Chicken Thigh Traybake are perfect for those summer nights when you don’t want a big comforting casserole. But you don’t want to do tons of washing up either.
A Sweet Chilli Chicken and Sweet Potato Traybake is perfect.
Lots and lots of flavour and colour, you can include plenty of veg, and you pretty much just throw it all together and bake.
Recipes with Baked Chicken Thighs are also ideal because chicken thighs are super cheap, and the skin holds all the flavour of the marinade and looks amazing!
What is Sweet Chilli Sauce?
Sweet Chilli Sauce is basically what it sounds like. It’s sticky, sweet and a bit spicy.
The level of spice depends on the specific ingredients or brand that you use and can vary quite a bit.
Generally, sweet chilli sauce is made from red chilli, garlic, vinegar, and some kind of sweetener, often fruit or honey.
You can buy sweet chilli as a drizzle, a dipping sauce, a sauce for cooking, and a jam (which is fab on cheese!).
Is Sweet Chilli Sauce Healthy?
Sweet chilli sauce is never going to be super healthy because it’s sweet. The sugar content can be high, and so the calorie count is typically higher than the same amount of other sauces.
How healthy yours is will depend on the brand.
But the good news is Baked chicken thighs and vegetables in sweet chilli sauce isn’t too bad. Lots of veggies mean that this meal has plenty going for it on the health front.
Ingredients for Sweet Chilli Sauce
For the chilli sauce for my chicken thighs, I use a standard sweet chilli dipping sauce mixed with oyster sauce (soy can be substituted) ginger puree (or 1inch fresh ginger) garlic powder, chilli powder and water.
What Sweet Chilli Sauce Should I Use on Chicken?
I just use the dipping sauce that we’ve got in and never buy anything specifically to make this meal.
Generally, it’s a Country Range one in a big bottle. You can use any though, and even a chilli jam if that’s what you’ve got.
Another option is making your own sweet chilli sauce. There’s a great recipe here.
Is This Sweet Chilli Chicken Traybake Spicy?
These Sweet Chilli Chicken Thighs are fairly spicy.
My kids eat them, so they aren’t super spicy but there is a bit of a kick.
If you want them less spicy you can add more water to your Sauce for Baked Chicken Thighs to tone the flavour down or use a mild sweet chilli sauce.
Are Chicken Thighs Healthy?
Oven-Baked Chicken Thighs aren’t unhealthy as such, but thighs aren’t as lean and low fat as breasts. I think there’s about three times the amount of fat in a thigh as the same weight of breast meat.
If you want a healthier option, you can make this meal with chicken breasts.
How Long Do Baked Chicken Thighs Take to Cook?
I cook my Chicken Thigh Traybake for about an hour.
This gives the potatoes time to soften and crisp and the chicken chance to cook thoroughly.
Even then though I tend to break a larger thigh up to double-check that the meat is cooked through before serving.
One thing I will say though is sweet chilli sauce because of the sugar content can burn. You can see in my pictures some of my skin is blackened.
If you are worried that your chicken skin is starting to burn, cover the tray loosely with foil and return to the oven.
What Veg Do You Use on a Chicken Thigh Traybake?
I love Baked chicken thighs and potatoes, so I really double up on the potatoes for my Sweet Chilli Chicken Traybake with new potatoes and sweet potatoes.
Feel free to skip one though.
We also add peppers and baby tomatoes. Cherry tomatoes are fine too, so are chunks of red onion, full cloves of garlic, courgettes and aubergines.
Use the veg that you like, just make sure it’s either sliced to 1cm rounds or chopped into small 1-2cm chunks and it will cook fine.
Sweet Chilli Chicken Traybake
Ingredients
For the Sweet Chilli Marinade:
- 100 ml Sweet Chilli Dipping Sauce
- 1 tablespoon Oyster Sauce
- 1 teaspoon Ginger Puree
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 50 ml Water
- 1 kg Chicken Thighs
For the Traybake:
- 2 Bell Peppers (Any Colours, deseeded and chopped into large slices)
- 1 Red Onion (Peeled and cut into 8 chunks)
- 300 g New Potatoes (Sliced into 1cm rounds)
- 1 Medium Sweet Potato (Peeled and chopped into 2cm chunks)
- 250 g Mixed Baby Tomatoes
Instructions
- In a jug whisk together the chilli sauce, oyster sauce, ginger, garlic powder, chilli powder and water.
- Place the chicken thighs in a large, sealable tub, and pour over the sweet chilli marinade.
- Seal the tub and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours, flipping occasionally to move the sauce from the bottom if you can (not essential).
- When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
- Remove the chicken thighs from the tub and place on a plate or in a bowl, retaining the leftover marinade.
- Place all of the veg and potatoes – except the tomatoes – that you are using in a large mixing bowl and tip over what’s left of the sweet chilli marinade from the sealable tub.
- Stir this well so that the veg is coated.
- Tip the veg and potatoes onto a large baking tray.
- Nestle the chicken thighs on top and drizzle over any sauce left in the mixing bowl.
- Bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, remove from the oven and remove the chicken thighs to a plate or bowl.
- Carefully toss the veg and potatoes.
- Sprinkle on the tomatoes.
- Nestle the chicken thighs back on the top.
- Return to the oven and bake for a further 30 minutes before serving.
Video
Notes
- I love using things like ginger puree and lazy chilli, but if you prefer to swap the puree for 1inch fresh ginger, grated.
- Oyster sauce can be swapped for soy or any fish sauce.
- I bake in this all-purpose tray (affiliate link) but any baking tray will do.
- If you haven’t got mixed baby tomatoes, cherry or plum work well.
- If a lot of liquid comes out of your chicken, try your best to drain as much off the tray as you can when you take it out of the oven at 30 minutes.
- Check the largest chicken thigh is cooked through before serving.
- If at any point your chicken skin looks too well done, loosely cover the tray with foil for the rest of the bake.
Nutrition
Any nutritional information is given as a general guide only and may not be accurate. The information is provided using an online calculator and is specific to my ingredients. Please make your own calculations if you want precise information.
