Huli Huli Chicken is a delicious, sweet and savory marinated chicken that is turned over and over as it's BBQ'd for a perfect caramelization and let me tell you, it's delicious! Huli Huli means turn turn, which is essential in making the perfect Huli Huli Chicken dinner.
Make it in the Instant Pot for a fast dinner or on the stovetop if you want. Huli Huli Chicken can also be baked in the Oven or even cooked on the Grill which is the preferred method. However, they are all wonderful and this is a marinade you want to save and keep.
Anyway you decide to cook Huli Huli Chicken, it’s quick, easy, juicy and delicious, why not serve Pistachio Salad along side for a fun treat. It's an easy fun salad recipe.
No more dry or unflavored chicken. This Huli Huli chicken will become a family favorite in no time. Try Chicken Thighs too. Oh you will thank me. I personally enjoy the boneless skinless thighs but bone in works too.
Just give it a shot and you’ll see for yourself. You’ll never go back to boring chicken again. This recipe uses simple and common pantry ingredients you’ll never want to opt for barbecue sauce again. It's sweet and savory.
This Hawaiian Chicken goes great with a wide range of side dishes! Add a side of coleslaw or a side of my Hawaiian Mac Salad and you’re good to go!
What’s In Huli Huli Chicken?
- 1 lb Chicken Breasts
- ½ Cup Brown Sugar
- ⅓ Cup Ketchup
- ¼ Cup Soy Sauce
- ⅓ Cup Chicken Broth or Sherry
- ⅓ Cup Pineapple Juice
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon garlic
- Pineapple Rings *Optional garnish
How to Make Huli Huli Chicken
- In a bowl combine the Brown Sugar, Ketchup, Soy Sauce, Sherry (or chicken broth), Pineapple Juice, ginger, and garlic. Stir the ingredients to combine.
- Slice the chicken breasts in half turning them into thin cutlets.
- Pour half of the marinade over the raw chicken breasts and then reserve the remaining sauce.
- Marinate the chicken for 1-8 hours.
Huli Huli Chicken Stovetop Cooking Directions:
- Heat a Frying Pan over medium high heat.
- Add 2 tbs of olive oil to the warm pan.
- Place the chicken breasts in pan and then cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Flip the chicken and then cook on the other side until chicken has reached 165 degrees internal temperature.
- Baste the chicken with the additional marinade that you reserved.
- Serve hot.
Huli Huli Chicken Instant Pot Directions:
- Add 1 cup of water to your Instant Pot.
- Place the chicken cutlets on the trivet.
- Close the lid and the pressure valve.
- Set the Pressure cooker to Manual/Pressure Cook for 12 minutes with a 10 minute natural release.
- Open the lid and then remove the chicken. Baste it with the additional marinade.
Huli Huli Chicken Oven Baked Directions:
- Preheat Oven to 350 Degrees
- On a cookie sheet, place marinated chicken breasts side by side
- Bake for 20-23 minutes
- Turn chicken over and baste half way through
- Bake until chicken reached 165 degrees internal temperature at it's thickest point
- Remove from oven and baste with marinate
- (optional) Place Chicken Breast under broiler to caramelize basting ~ it's delish
In Hawaiian, the word “Huli” means to turn, flip, rotate, reverse, etc.
Huli Huli chicken gets its name from the traditional cooking method used for the chicken.
Usually, this dish is cooked Rotisserie style or on the grill. In those methods, it has to be turned over a few times to lock in the juices.
Hawaiian BBQ chicken can mean anything. Most of the time you’ll find it to mean a grilled or rotisserie style chicken with a sweet and tangy sauce.
Hawaiian BBQ chicken is delicious!
If you’re in a hurry and cannot wait the full recommended time to marinate the chicken then do 3 hours.
At bare minimum of 3 hours should help to flavor the chicken.
That said, 8 hours or even overnight is always better. It gives a better flavor and makes the chicken nice and juicy
How to Store Huli Huli chicken
Uncooked or cooked the chicken should be stored the same way.
In an airtight or sealed container in the fridge. Chicken should always be kept in the fridge for food safety reasons.
Can I Marinate and freeze raw chicken to use later?
Absolutely. You can marinate and then freeze your raw chicken for a future meal.
Simply thaw and cook like normal when you’re ready. This also helps to get a better flavor out of the chicken without much effort.
MORE Easy Dinner Recipes!
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- How to make Teriyaki Chicken
- Instant Pot Hamburgers
- Chicken Tuscan Pasta
- Instant Pot Steak Fajitas
- Chicken Taco Soup
- Easy Swiss Steak
- Crack Chicken Pasta
Huli Huli Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 lb Chicken Breasts
- ½ cup Brown Sugar
- ⅓ cup Ketchup
- ¼ cup Soy Sauce
- ⅓ cup Chicken Broth or Sherry
- ⅓ cup Pineapple Juice
- 1 teaspoon Ground Ginger
- 1 teaspoon Garlic
Instructions
- In a bowl combine Brown Sugar, Ketchup, Soy Sauce, Sherry, Pineapple Juice, ginger and garlic. Stir to combine.
- Slice Chicken breasts in half making thin cutlets.
- Pour half of marinade over raw chicken breasts and reserve the remaining sauce.
- Marinate for 1-8 hours.
Cooking Directions
- Heat Frying Pan over medium high heat.
- Add 2 tbs olive oil.
- Place chicken breasts in pan and cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Flip and cook other side until chicken reached 165 degrees internal temperature.
- Baste with additional marinade.
- Serve hot.
Instant Pot Directions
- Add 1 cup water to instant pot.
- Place chicken cutlets on trivet.
- Close lid and pressure valve.
- Set Pressure cooker to Manual/Pressure Cook for 12 minutes with a 10 minute natural release.
- Open lid and remove chicken, baste with additional marinade.
Oven Baked Directions
- Preheat Oven to 350 Degrees
- On a cookie sheet, place marinated chicken breasts side by side
- Bake for 20-23 minutes
- Turn chicken over and baste half way through
- Bake until chicken reached 165 degrees internal temperature at it's thickest point
- Remove from oven and baste with marinate
- (optional) Place Chicken Breast under broiler to caramelize basting ~ it's delish
Air Fryer Directions
- Preheat Air Fryer to 350 F Degrees
- Place marinated chicken in Air Fryer Basket and air fry for 8 minutes.
- Turn chicken breast over and cook for an additional 8 minutes on other side
- Measure internal temperature for doneness. Chicken should reach 165 degrees at thickest part
- Remove from air fryer and allow to rest for a 3-5 minutes before cutting
Notes
Air Fryer Cooking Directions:
-
Preheat Air Fryer to 350F Degrees
-
Place Marinated Chicken Breasts or Thighs on a single layer in Air Fryer Basket for 8 minutes.
-
Turn over and cook for an additional 8 minutes on other side
-
Measure internal temperature for doneness. Chicken should reach 165 degrees at thickest part
-
Remove from air fryer and allow to rest for a 3-5 minutes
Nutrition Disclaimer
All nutrition values are approximate and calculated by a plugin and are provided as a courtesy. Adding or subtracting ingredients will change the nutritional value.
Peggy
this is one of my favorites, so easy and full of flavor! I make fried rice with it, and put some of the marinade on it as well. yum!
Betty
So delicious! Have shared the recipe with many people. I use juice from pineapple tidbits then add the pineapple to the pan to heat through the last few minutes of cooking.
Jennifer C
This was so good. I sliced the chicken into thin strips and marinated. I then put them on skewers and grilled, while basting with extra marinade. We like a little heat, so I reserved the juice from the pineapple rings and added a little lite soy sauce and siracha to it. While the pineapple rings were on the grill, I basted them with the spicy pineapple juice. It was a nice addition to the Huli Huli chicken!
Devour Dinner
Hi Jennifer! Thanks for an awesome review. I love your addition of Siracha, I bet it was delish!
Kathy
This is delicious!
Devour Dinner
Thanks Kathy! It's a wonderful marinade for sure. So glad you loved it.