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    Chili-Honey Chicken & Sweet Potatoes w/ Cilantro Yogurt

    This sweet-and-spicy sheet pan chicken thigh recipe is the stuff healthy weeknight supper dreams are made of.

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    Chili-Honey Chicken & Sweet Potatoes w/ Cilantro Yogurt on a sheet pan

    Got the Weeknight Blues? This Easy Chicken Thigh Sheet Pan Recipe Is Here to Spice Things Up!

    A sweetly spicy honey-kissed sheet pan chicken thigh recipe, comin’ in hot! Chicken thighs, sweet potatoes and a few carefully chosen spices team up to bring a little life into your weeknight routine—because who said easy has to be boring? Grab some boneless, skinless chicken thighs (from the grocery store, or your freezer if you’re prepared like that!) and a sweet potato or two, and put that spice rack to work. Cayenne—just a touch—ginger, chili powder and some honey come together to really make this chicken-and-potatoes dinner sing.

    Chili-Honey Chicken & Sweet Potatoes sheet pan dinner ingredients. Cilantro Yogurt, jalapeño and green onions.

    Everything You Need to Make Our Sweetly Spicy Sheet Pan Chicken With Sweet Potatoes

    Sweet potatoes keep for ages and chicken thighs freeze beautifully, so it’s pretty darn easy to have the makings of this sheet pan dinner recipe on-hand year round. It’s not exactly a pantry recipe, but it is one that you can easily stock the ingredients for and be able to make on the fly. In other words, it’s one of the best back-pocket, weeknight-lifesaver recipes, ever. You’ve got salt, pepper and olive oil—we know you do!—so, other than those super-staples, here’s all you’ll need to make our sweet-and-spicy chicken thigh sheet pan:

    • Boneless, skinless chicken thighs

    • Sweet potatoes

    • Honey

    • Spices: cayenne pepper, chili powder, ground ginger, garlic powder.

    honey, olive oil, cayenne pepper, chili powder, salt, pepper, ginger and garlic powder mixed together in a bowl.
    Greek yogurt, Cilantro, Lime juice, Garlic powder, Sea salt, Jalapeño, Chili powder and green onions in a food processor.
    boneless skinless chicken thighs and sweet potato wedges on a sheet pan
    chicken thighs and sweet potato wedges on a sheet pan with chili-honey marinade

    Make It Restaurant-Worthy: Drizzle With Yogurt-Cilantro Sauce

    Sure, you could just eat the chicken and sweet potatoes on their own, maybe with a green salad on the side. But this simple yogurt sauce takes this sheet pan chicken from a pretty-good dinner to absolutely fantastic. You could serve this as the main event of your next dinner party and not a single person would complain. It’s that good. The sauce cools and compliments the smoky spices that adorn the chicken and potatoes and, thanks to the cilantro, it adds a welcome bright burst of freshness to the mix, too. To make it, simply blend:

    • Greek yogurt

    • Fresh cilantro

    • Fresh lime juice

    • Garlic powder

    • A seeded jalapeño

    • Chili powder

    Chili-Honey Chicken & Sweet Potatoes baked on a sheet pan
    Chili-Honey Chicken & Sweet Potatoes w/ Cilantro Yogurt baked on a sheet pan

    How To Make This Simple Chili-Honey Chicken Thigh Dinner

    What did we do before sheet pan dinners? Did we even make dinner? Who can remember. All we know is that they’re here now and thank goodness for that. Chicken thighs, sweet potatoes and sheet pans are a powerful triumvirate—healthy, filling, easy-to-love, and fast enough for a busy night. Add some punchy spices and you’ve got yourself a dinner to be proud of! Here’s how truly easy it is to make:

    1. Whip up a spicy honey sauce: combine honey, olive oil, cayenne, chili powder, salt, pepper, ginger and garlic powder.

    2. Toss the chicken thighs and sweet potatoes with the honey-chili sauce on a baking sheet.

    3. Bake! Then broil! Bake for 15 minutes, then broil for about five more to get a nice caramelization situation going on both the chicken and the potatoes.

    4. Whiz together that yogurt-cilantro sauce while the chicken broils.

    5. And that’s it! Dinner’s done!

    Chili-Honey Chicken & Sweet Potatoes sheet pan dinner w/ Cilantro Yogurt
    Chili-Honey Chicken & Sweet Potatoes sheet pan dinner w/ Cilantro Yogurt

    Tools You’ll Need:

    More Chicken Thigh Recipes to Try

    Chili-Honey Chicken & Sweet Potatoes w/ Cilantro Yogurt

    Thigh Love You

    Did that work? We’re not sure. But what we’re trying to say is chicken thighs, we love you. You’re cheap. You’re delicious. You freeze well. You’re healthy—just about as healthy as chicken breast and a whole lot tastier. We hope this easy chicken thigh recipe hits the spot for you like it did for us. When you make it, we want to hear about it! Share a photo and tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper so that we can see your stuff! Happy eating!

    Related Recipes

    Chili-Honey Chicken & Sweet Potatoes w/ Cilantro Yogurt

    Originally published: October 6, 2021

    • Serves: 6
    • Prep Time:  15 min
    • Cook Time:  25 min
    • Calories: 556
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe

    Ingredients

    • 3 Tbsp honey, warmed
    • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
    • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
    • 2 tsp chili powder
    • 1 Tbsp kosher salt
    • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
    • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
    • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
    • 2.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, fat trimmed
    • 1 1/2 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled cut into wedges or 3-inch x 1-inch pieces
    • 4 Green onions, chopped

    Cilantro Yogurt Sauce

    • 3/4 cup Greek yogurt, divided
    • 1/4 cup packed Cilantro
    • 1 tsp Lime juice
    • 1/2 tsp Garlic powder
    • 1/2 tsp Sea salt
    • 1 Jalapeño, seeded
    • 1/2 tsp Chili powder
    • 2 green onions

    Method

    1. Heat the oven 375°F. Prepare a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside.
    2. In a small bowl mix together the warmed honey, olive oil, cayenne, chili powder, salt, pepper, ginger and garlic powder until fully combined.
    3. Place the chicken and sweet potatoes on the parchment paper lined baking sheet and pour the spice mixture over and toss until completely coated.
    4. Place the chicken and potatoes in the oven for 15 minutes before turning the broiler onto high for 5-8 until the chicken is caramelized and browned and the sweet potatoes are tender.
    5. Meanwhile, in the base of a food processor, add 1/2 cup of the Greek yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, garlic powder, salt, jalapeño, chili powder and 2 green onions, blend until smooth. Pour the cilantro sauce into a bowl and mix in the remaining 1/4 cup of Greek yogurt until smooth.
    6. Serve the chicken and sweet potatoes drizzled with cilantro yogurt sauce, sprinkled with the remaining green onions.

    Nutrition Info

    • Per Serving
    • Amount
    • Calories556
    • Protein48 g
    • Carbohydrates43 g
    • Total Fat20 g
    • Dietary Fiber5 g
    • Cholesterol136 mg
    • sodium1481 mg
    • Total Sugars10 g

    Chili-Honey Chicken & Sweet Potatoes w/ Cilantro Yogurt

    Questions & Reviews

    Join the discussion below.

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    • Barbara L Strobel

      My husband doesn't like sweet potatoes, what can I use instead?

      You could use regular potatoes. Hope you enjoy.

    • Anna

      If I wanted to freeze half to save as a meal for later, would you freeze and then bake for longer or bake and then freeze? Thanks!

      I haven't tested it yet, but I would freeze and then bake longer later. But I wouldn't make the sauce until the day of, it won't freeze well.

    • melissa

      This was delish! But, the cooking time was off - I ended up roasting the chicken and sweet potatoes for 30 minutes, then broiling for 20 minutes. Perfect. If I had cut the potatoes smaller than what the recipe suggested, they probably would have roasted in 15 minutes.

      OK thanks for letting us know! So glad you loved the recipe!

    • Tom A

      Just made this to use up sweet potatoes from the CSA — a winner yet again. No surprise though, we’re a modern proper household and they always hit different.

      I somehow didn’t have cayenne so I used red pepper flakes. I made the mistake of not really trimming the fat on the thighs which caused a good amount of liquid making the parchment fall apart a bit. So to comment readers - seriously, trim the fat haha.

      Thanks Tom, we are so happy you loved this recipe!

    • Alison Nalle

      This is absolutely delicious. Thank you for sharing this easy and yummy recipe.

      Thanks Alison, so happy you loved it!

    • Katie

      This was delicious! Doubled it and served it at a big family dinner for 12 people of all different ages. It was a hit!

      That's so great! So happy to hear everyone love it Katie!

    • Thomas McNulty

      Wonderful, tasty and easy recipe! Added red onions and used Boniato. Had to drain off the juices to get the sweet potatoes crisp, but loved the flavors! Sauce is great!

      Thanks Thomas, glad you loved this!