Gordon Ramsay’s sticky lemon chicken is bone-in thighs browned with garlic and thyme, then glazed with dark soy sauce, sherry vinegar, and honey until syrupy and sticky. Fresh lemon slices and preserved lemon cook down into the sauce, giving it a sharp citrus punch that cuts through the sweetness. Serves 4, about 35 minutes.
This recipe appears in two of his cookbooks. The original is in Cooking for Friends using a whole chicken, and the evolved “Double Lemon Chicken” version in Quick and Delicious adds preserved lemons and finishes in the oven. In the video he says “chicken has such a reputation of being mainstream and boring, and this is a really nice way of giving the chicken a little bit boom.”
The honey goes in five minutes before the chicken is done, not at the start. Ramsay is specific about this in the video because adding it too early means it burns and turns bitter instead of becoming that glossy, sticky glaze that coats every piece.
Gordon Ramsay Sticky Lemon Chicken
Course: DinnerCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Easy4
servings10
minutes25
minutes440
kcal35
minutes“Double Lemon Chicken” from Ramsay’s Quick and Delicious. Thighs browned with garlic, glazed in soy sauce, sherry vinegar, and honey, then finished in the oven with fresh and preserved lemons. The preserved lemon is his twist that gives the sauce an intense citrus depth you can’t get from fresh lemon alone. About 440 kcal per serving.
Ingredients
8 chicken thighs, bone in and skin on
2 tbsp olive oil
5 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
3 thyme sprigs (lemon thyme if available)
1 fresh lemon, finely sliced on a mandolin
1 preserved lemon, roughly chopped
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
3½ tbsp runny honey
1 tbsp water
2 tbsp roughly chopped flat leaf parsley
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Brown the chicken: Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Heat the olive oil in a large ovenproof frying pan over a high heat. Season the thighs with salt and pepper and add them skin-side down with the garlic and thyme. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown.
- Build the glaze: Add the sherry vinegar and let it bubble and reduce by half. Drizzle over the dark soy sauce and honey. Shake the pan to mix the sauce and coat the chicken.
- Add the lemons: Scatter the fresh lemon slices and chopped preserved lemon over and around the chicken. Add the tablespoon of water.
- Oven finish: Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes, basting once or twice, until the sauce has reduced to a sticky glaze and the chicken is cooked through.
- Serve: Scatter with chopped parsley. Serve straight from the pan with champ (spring onion mash), green beans, or steamed sugar snap peas.
FAQs
Why add the honey late?
In the video, Ramsay adds the honey “five minutes before the chicken is cooked” rather than at the start. Honey burns quickly at high temperatures, turning bitter and acrid instead of sweet and sticky. Adding it late means it only has time to caramelise gently into a glossy glaze rather than scorching on the pan.
The soy sauce goes in first because it can handle the heat. The combination of soy and honey creates that signature sweet-salty-sticky coating. Shake the pan rather than stirring to keep the chicken skin intact.
What do the preserved lemons do?
Fresh lemon gives sharpness. Preserved lemon gives depth. The salt-cured skin of a preserved lemon has a concentrated, almost floral lemon flavour that’s completely different from fresh juice. Ramsay says adding it “will give the dish a different dimension.”
You can buy preserved lemons in jars from most supermarkets. Scoop out and discard the flesh, then roughly chop the peel. If you can’t find them, the original Cooking for Friends version uses only fresh lemon and still works well, you’ll just miss that extra intensity.
Can you use chicken drumsticks or breast?
In the video, Ramsay uses a whole chicken cut into pieces including drums. He scores the drumstick bone so it “cooks so much quicker.” Thighs are more forgiving because the dark meat stays moist in the sticky glaze.
Breast works but will dry out faster because it’s leaner. If you use breast, cut the oven time to 10-12 minutes and baste more often. The glaze helps protect the surface, but it can’t save overcooked white meat.
What to serve with sticky lemon chicken?
Ramsay serves it with champ: mashed potato with chopped spring onions, beaten with cream and milk. In the video he uses 100ml cream and 100ml milk, reduced down before adding to the mash, finished with a knob of butter.
The sticky glaze also pairs well with rice. His pilau rice soaks up the sauce, or a chickpea salad adds freshness and protein on the side. If you like the soy and honey flavour profile, his teriyaki salmon uses a similar sweet-salty glaze on fish.
What is the difference between sticky and double lemon chicken?
They’re the same dish at different stages of Ramsay’s career. The original “Sticky Lemon Chicken” in Cooking for Friends uses a whole chicken with fresh lemon only. The “Double Lemon Chicken” in Quick and Delicious uses thighs with both fresh and preserved lemons and finishes in the oven instead of on the hob.
The double lemon version is the upgrade. The oven gives more even cooking and the preserved lemon transforms the sauce from sharp to complex. If you’ve only ever made the original, try the preserved lemon version once and you won’t go back.
Does sticky lemon chicken store well?
The dark meat and sticky glaze actually improve overnight as the sauce soaks deeper into the chicken. Fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat in a 180°C oven for 15 minutes with a splash of water to loosen the glaze.
The leftover chicken pulled off the bone makes a brilliant filling for wraps with shredded lettuce and a squeeze of lime. Or toss the pulled meat through noodles with some extra soy sauce for a quick lunch. Start with his lentil soup and follow with sticky lemon chicken wraps for a proper midweek meal.
