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This Sheet Pan Sticky Pomegranate Chicken and Honey Roasted Squash is a new fall favorite. The chicken is breaded in coconut, oven-baked, then tossed in a spicy, sweet, and extra sticky Thai pomegranate sauce. Then just add honey-roasted autumn squash…cooked right alongside the chicken…for the easiest weeknight sheet pan dinner. Serve the sticky chicken and squash over coconut rice topped with plenty of juicy pomegranate arils. The perfect easy fall dinner any night of the week…that’s delicious too!
Happy Wednesday guys, this week is already flying by! I’ll have a special post tomorrow to share a fun new launch. It’s feeling very exciting, I can’t wait!! More on all of that fun stuff tomorrow. But for now, I’m moving right on into this recipe…
The craziness of the week has left me needing super quick and easy dinners. I’ve been testing out slow cooker meals, one pot dishes, and plenty of sheet pan dinners. Like this chicken! It’s perfect for the crisp, cool fall weather that’s hit us these past few days, especially the night time temps! It’s safe to say we’re entering into cold-weather season. Am I ready for it? No, not at all, but I am ready for all the cozy, comforting fall recipes.
Which brings me back to this chicken. It’s still chicken and rice, just all done up for fall and with a sticky pomegranate chill sauce and a side of sweet honey roasted squash. And it is delicious!
Just add a side of coconut rice and you’ll be good to go. One word? Yum.
The second I see pomegranates show up come fall, I’m immediately brainstorming new recipes. I love pomegranates!
It’s typical to serve pomegranates in a salad, or on a cheeseboard, but I love allowing them to shine. They have so much flavor and can be used in such a variety of recipes. They’re the sweet jewels of autumn, and if you ask me, we should be showcasing them more.
So instead of the usual salad, I thought we’d do a Thai inspired sticky chicken. The pomegranates in the sauce add the most delicious sweet and tangy flavor.
Here are the steps to this sheet pan chicken.
First up, the rice! All sticky chicken dinners need a side of rice. For this chicken, I’m also giving you my coconut rice recipe. It compliments this chicken so well. You just need rice and coconut milk, plus about twenty minutes of time. It’s the easiest to make, but my favorite way to cook rice these days.
While the rice cooks, make the chicken and roast the squash. Since it takes a little longer than the chicken to fully cook, I like to give the squash a little head start. What’s key with the squash is to simply roast it with olive oil, salt, and pepper. You’ll then want to add the honey and chili flakes towards the end of cooking. Once the honey is added, the squash will caramelize on the edges, making them crisp, sweet, and delicious!
For the chicken, I decided to give it a coconut/panko breading. It’s a light breading, but it’s just enough to help all that sticky sauce actually stick to the chicken. The coconut adds just the right amount of flavor, while giving the chicken some texture too.
Once you’ve breaded the chicken, pull the squash out of the oven and arrange it to one side of the pan. Now, take the breaded chicken and arrange it to the other side of the pan. Next, drizzle the chicken generously with olive oil. This will help it to crisp up a bit in the oven. Now just bake everything until the chicken is cooked and the squash has caramelized.
The sticky pomegranate sauce.
The truth? The sauce is truly why you should make this recipe. It’s my favorite sauce, and it’s addicting.
Sweet, tangy, a touch spicy and once boiled down, super sticky. The key ingredient is the pomegranate juice. I know it might sound odd, but the pomegranate juice adds sweetness, tanginess, and deep dark color.
The sauce takes only a few minutes to thicken up on the stove. It’s usually ready by the time the chicken has finished cooking.
Then just toss the sauce with the chicken, return to the oven for a few more minutes, and you’re done. Easy, right? It’s not fancy by any means, but it’s incredibly delicious.
Now serve it all up.
Spoon the rice into bowls, add the squash and chicken, then top with plenty of juicy pomegranate arils and drizzle with a generous amount of the leftover sauce…because saucy sticky chicken is the only way to go. Finish with cilantro.
Such a simple weeknight dinner that’s healthy, pretty (hello to those pomegranates), and the easiest to make. I know this one is going to be on repeat all season long.
Looking for other pomegranate recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Fall Harvest Roasted Butternut Squash and Pomegranate Salad
Pan Roasted Pomegranate Glazed Salmon
Fall Harvest Honeycrisp Apple and Kale Salad
Lastly, if you make this Sheet Pan Sticky Thai Pomegranate Chicken and Honey Roasted Squash, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Sheet Pan Sticky Pomegranate Chicken and Honey Roasted Squash.
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 630 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 acorn or kabocha squash seeded and sliced into half rounds
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus more for brushing
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breasts, cut into 2 inch cubes
- 1 1/2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup sweet Thai chili sauce
- 1/2 cup pomegranate juice
- 3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 inch fresh ginger, grated
- 2 garlic cloves, grated
- arils from 1 pomegranate
- coconut rice, for serving (recipe in notes)
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or grease with oil.2. On the prepared baking sheet, toss the squash with olive oil, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Bake 10 minutes.3. Meanwhile, add the chicken, egg, and a pinch of pepper to a bowl. Toss to combine. Add the coconut, Panko, and a pinch of pepper to a medium-sized bowl. Stir to combine. Dredge the chicken in batches through the coconut mix, tossing to coat. Remove the squash from the oven and arrange to one side of the pan. On the other side, arrange the chicken. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil. Bake for 12 minutes. Toss the squash, flip the chicken, and return to the oven another 3-5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Reduce the oven temp to 425 degrees F.4. Meanwhile, combine the chili sauce, pomegranate juice, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, and ginger in a medium saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Bring the sauce to a boil for 5 minutes, until the sauce thickens and reduces by about 1/3. Remove from the heat.5. Pour 2/3 of sauce over the chicken, tossing to combine. Toss the squash with the honey and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Return everything to the oven for 3 minutes, until the sauce coats the chicken.6. Serve the chicken and sauce over bowls of coconut rice. Top the chicken pomegranate arils and cilantro. Serve the squash on the side.
Notes
Coconut Rice: Combine 1 (14 ounce) can coconut milk and 1/2 cup water in a medium pot. Bring to a low boil. Add 1 cup basmati rice and a pinch of salt. Stir to combine, cover, then turn the heat down to the lowest setting possible. Allow the rice to cook 10 minutes on low, then turn the heat off completely and let the rice sit, covered, for another 15-20 minutes (don't take any peeks inside!). Remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork.
Delicious. Not difficult and so yummy. The flavors pair so well together! I also love it with coconut rice.
Thanks so much Sara! xTieghan
Made this tonight and it was absolutely delicious. It was the perfect balance of sweet and savory. So easy and so quick! I am allergic to soy so I subbed the soy sauce for coconut aminos and my boyfriend who isn’t allergic to soy loved it anyway. I highly recommend this recipe if you are craving something satisfying and fast.
Hey Anna,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am so glad it was enjoyed. Happy Holidays! xTieghan
Made this tonight – so yummy! Wondering if there’s a substitute for the sweet chili sauce (not a big fan of spicy)? Would a thick teriyaki or soy ginger sauce work in it’s place (and in place of the soy sauce)? Or any other recommendations?
Hey Dara,
You could really use any sauce that you enjoy! Thanks for giving the recipe a try! xTieghan
Amazing! Making it again for the second time tonight! You could easily swap out the sauce for an Orange Chicken sauce, and you will get the same crunchy texture that you get from the greasy Chinese food restaurants but it healthy!! I didnt have Panko, so I used Gluten Free Brown Rice Krispy cereal crushed up instead…it was awesome!
Hi Katie! I am so glad this recipe turned out so well for you!! Thank you so much for trying it! xTieghan
I love this recipe! We’re on a kick of trying a bunch of HBH recipes, and this one has definitely made it into our permanent rotation. Thank you so much for this easy, quick, delicious recipe!
Thank you Kelsey! I am really glad my recipes have been turning out so well for you! xTieghan
So so delicious! Definitely making this again.
Thank you so much! I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you! xTieghan
This is one of my favorite recipes everything about it was delicious and the sauce is incredible.
Thank you so much Chanie!! xTieghan
I made this last night and it was amazing!! I doubled the sauce and was so glad I did, delicious!! And your rice instructions were perfect. I always have a hard time with rice. Will definitely be making this again and again.
I am so happy this turned out so well for you, Lisa! Thank you! xTieghan
So tasty and easy to make. This is the perfect balance of heat, sweet, sticky and gingery garlic yumminess. My husband wanted more sauce for his rice which means this is a 10 in his book. It is just beautiful on the plate with the squash and pomegranate. Thank you!
Thank you so much Laurel! I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you! xTieghan
This sauce was amazing! And we loved the coconut breading on the chicken! Can’t decide which sauce I like more this or the sticky ginger sesame chicken! We do prefer the brussel sprouts over squash, so I made both with this recipe.
I am so happy you loved this one, Tiffany! Thank you so much for trying it! xTieghan
I made this for dinner and it was one of the best meals I’ve ever made. One little glitch I ran into: I used three chicken breasts and found a single batch of the sauce wasn’t near enough. I made a second batch and that was perfect. With 2 cups uncooked basmati rice and the doubled sauce recipe, this was a perfect portion for a family of four with a little leftover for my lunch tomorrow. Also, couldn’t find pomegranate juice but used cranberry-pomegranate and it was great. Really fantastic recipe. Thank you.
Thank you so much Charlene! I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you!! xTieghan
This was AMAZING! My husband said it’s his new favorite recipe I’ve made haha. Thank you for sharing!! Will be making this on the reg now
Thank you so much Catherine! I am really glad this recipe turned out so well for you! xTieghan
I tried making this tonight and although the sauce and everything smells and tastes amazing, my chicken never really got crispy in the time allowed in the recipe. Did I miss something? Yours is a beautiful brown/golden color. Mine only started getting color after I added the sauce. Thank you!
Hey Andrea,
Thanks for giving the recipe a try, I am sorry the chicken did not turn out as you would have liked. Did you adjust the recipe at all? Drizzling with olive oil really helps to get that golden brown coloring. Let me know if this helps for next time. xTieghan
I was a tiny bit skeptical to try this because it only had 3.7 stars, but I have no idea why – this was so delicious – definitely 5 stars! Will be saving the recipe and making again, especially for guests. It tasted “fancier” than it was. The coating around the chicken was crispy and the sauce was absolutely amazing, really made the dish pop! The pomegranates and cilantro on top added a nice crunch and freshness. We used cauliflower rice and didn’t miss the regular rice. Keep the recipes coming.
I am so happy you decided to try this one and it turned out so well for you, Elisha! Thank you so much! xTieghan
This recipe is simply amazing, my husband can’t stop talking about it. The kabocha squash is my new favorite squash!
Love that! I am really glad this turned out so well for you, Beth! Thank you! xTieghan