20 Hot Honey Recipes You Have to Try

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These hot honey recipes will inspire you to use this delicious sweet and spicy condiment in dozens of different ways to make weeknight dinners even tastier.

A bottle of Mike's Hot Honey is in a photo collage next to 3 recipes it could be used in.

Once I tried drizzling hot honey over a pizzeria pizza, I became completely obsessed with Mike's Hot Honey.

It was such an unusual condiment to find sitting at the table next to the grated parm and crushed red pepper flakes, I was curious.

I tentatively dipped the edge of my pizza crust in a little of the sweet and spicy and honey and quickly found myself grabbing for more.

Now this unique item is an absolute staple in my kitchen pantry!

Over the last couple of years, I've found dozens of different ways to use hot honey to make my regular weeknight dinners even tastier.

If you haven't gotten into the hot honey craze yet, here are the easiest, and most delicious, places to start:

A jar of Mike's Hot Honey sits in front of a measuring cup filled with chicken marinade.

What Is Hot Honey?

Hot honey is a chili pepper infused honey that has a deep red-amber hue. It is my new favorite sweet and spicy condiment.

The original hot honey is Mike's Hot Honey but other honey makers have jumped on the bandwagon and you can find lots of alternatives at most grocery stores these days.

You could also order a bottle of Mike's Hot Honey on Amazon here.

Hot Honey Chick-Fil-A Sauce

The absolute easiest and one of the most delicious ways to use hot honey is to combine it with fried chicken, my homemade buttermilk fried chicken is baked right in the oven.

I've also found the best fried chicken nuggets in the freezer section at Costco. You can bake them in an air fryer or in the oven and they get perfectly crispy.

Drizzle the hot honey right over the nuggets or stir it into my easy homemade Chick-fil-A sauce for a chicken nugget dip.

Copycat Chick-Fil-A Sauce
Make the deliciously famous chicken nugget and french fry dip everyone adores with this easy copycat Chick-Fil-A Sauce recipe that uses easy pantry ingredients you have right at home.
Serve the sauce chilled from the fridge with a warm fresh batch of oven baked or air fried frozen chicken nuggets or your favorite baked french fries or potato wedges.
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A platter of chicken nuggets has a cup of copycat Chick-Fil-A sauce for dunking.

Hot Honey Chicken

For a lighter alternative to fried chicken, you could make hot honey baked chicken breasts or drizzle the honey over my broiled chicken tenderloins recipe.

My slowcooker hot honey chicken uses regular honey and infuses it with the chili flavor while it cooks for hours in the Crockpot.

Drizzle on Pizza

This was the original way I first tasted hot honey. The pizzeria served it in huge bottles with an easy drizzle spout that I loved.

You could dip the crust in a little dollop of honey on your plate or do like I do and just give the entire slice a gentle drizzle.

I think the hot honey tastes best with a classic cheese pizza or a sausage and pepperoni pizza but it would work great with a barbeque chicken pizza, too.

Cheese Pizza
The best cheese pizza ever starts with an easy pizza crust, fantastic pizza sauce, and the best cheese topping ever.
5 from 3 votes
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A homemade cheese pizza is sliced and ready to serve.

Sweet and Spicy Charcuterie Board

Honey is a great addition to a charcuterie board since it pairs so well with a variety of cheeses and meats.

Offer a jar of both regular sweet honey AND a bottle of hot honey to add interest to your next cheddar snack board.

Cheddar Snack Board
This delicious snack board is inspired by the Ultimate Cheddar Snack Board from Stunning Spreads by Chrissie Nelson Rotko.
5 from 1 vote
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A round snack board has sliced green apples, spreadable cheese, slices of cheese, ruffled slices of various meats, and a bowl of fresh blackberries.

Buttermilk Biscuits

Biscuits and honey are a match made in heaven. Make my easy buttermilk drop biscuits and drizzle the hot honey over the top while they are still warm.

Or beat the hot honey into whipped butter for a hot honey butter spread!

Easy Buttermilk Drop Biscuits
These easy buttermilk drop biscuits can be made in just minutes and bake up so light and flaky. Try the classic butter biscuit recipe first and then switch things up with one of the 3 fun flavor variations listed in the notes below!
5 from 39 votes
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A white plate has a pile of fresh baked buttermilk drop biscuits.

Hot Honey Bourbon Chicken

Whenever I use honey for a savory dinner ingredient, I always grab my hot honey for an easy way to give the dish some kick.

The hot honey is an easy way to make my sticky Crockpot bourbon chicken so yummy!

Crockpot Bourbon Chicken
This sweet and sticky bourbon chicken is cooked in a crock pot for an easy weeknight dinner. Serve the shredded meat over a bowl of rice and spoon some of the delicious spicy-sweet sauce over the top.
5 from 1 vote
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A bowl of rice is topped with shredded bourbon chicken from the crockpot.

Hot Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs

Honey gives a gorgeous glaze to these spicy honey garlic chicken thighs.

Serve them with fresh green onions over a bed of jasmine rice for a quick dinner.

Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs
Prep this honey garlic chicken in 5 minutes for an easy oven baked dinner your family will love. Serve over rice or peanut butter noodles for a special treat.
4.98 from 47 votes
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A white plate has jasmine rice and a pile of honey garlic chicken thighs sprinkled with fresh green onions.

Hot Honey Dipping Sauce

Dipping sauces aren't just for chicken. You could make a hot honey dipping sauce using my Bang Bang sauce recipe and serve it with roasted shrimp or baked breaded shrimp.

Bang Bang Sauce
Homemade bang bang sauce is an easy Bonefish Grill copycat recipe that tastes amazing with shrimp or chicken. You can use this spicy sauce as a dip for an appetizer or drizzle it over a bang bang shrimp rice bowl or toss it with your favorite pasta and chicken and shrimp!
5 from 2 votes
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The bang bang sauce is in a dipping cup on a plate, surrounded by chicken nuggets.

Hot Honey Salad Dressing

Add a kick to your next apple pear salad by mixing hot honey into my mustard vinaigrette.

Mustard Vinaigrette
T๏ปฟhis easy mustard vinaigrette takes just a few minutes to measure and mix. It pairs perfectly with salads featuring apples, cranberries, citrus, or dark leafy greens like spinach or arugula. It's delicious with chicken or pork. Use it to baste salmon before roasting.
5 from 1 vote
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A mason jar filled with mustard vinaigrette is in front of a salad.

Mexican Slaw with Hot Honey

If you want to add a slow heat to your favorite taco dinner, make my easy Mexican slaw to pair with fish tacos or chicken tacos. Hot honey is used to sweeten the no-mayo slaw to give it small kick.

Mexican Slaw
Make this easy Mexican slaw from prepared coleslaw mix or shred your own cabbage and carrots and toss with the zippy dressing made without mayo. This is the perfect taco topping for fish tacos or spicy chicken tacos.
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The slaw is in a white bowl with a spoon. Fresh lime wedges are on the side.

Spicy Sauce

Honey is a great alternative to brown sugar in some recipes. My spicy sauce for sandwiches could easily be tweaked to use the hot honey in place of the brown sugar.

Spread this on a cold deli ham sandwich or grill it and make a spicy hot ham and Swiss cheese sandwich.

Spicy Sauce
This creamy, spicy sauce is the perfect sandwich spread for a grilled rueben. It also makes an excellent dip or drizzle for shrimp.
5 from 1 vote
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A mason jar of homemade spicy sauce in front of sliced bread.

Buttermilk Cornbread

You could use the hot honey as one of the ingredients IN the buttermilk cornbread or reserve it for drizzling over the top of a fresh square at the dinner table.

Grandma's Buttermilk Cornbread
This classic southern buttermilk cornbread recipe can be made with or without buttermilk (see the notes for the easy substitution.) Serve it warm with a drizzle of honey and butter.
5 from 37 votes
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A white ruffled platter has large squares of homemade buttermilk cornbread.

Hot Honey Ham

Use hot honey on my Crockpot spiral ham, it will add so much flavor to the gorgeous glaze at the end!

Crockpot Spiral Ham with Brown Sugar Glaze
This easy Crockpot spiral ham recipe is the perfect way to cook your holiday dinner while your family is out of the house at church on Easter morning or Christmas eve. Come home to a hot ham ready to be glazed and broiled for the picture perfect finish in just 10 minutes. Choose a traditional sweet brown sugar and mustard glaze or use hot honey for a delicious sweet and spicy spin on a holiday classic.
4.98 from 47 votes
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The spiral ham is on a roasting rack so it can be broiled to make the brown sugar glaze crispy.

Spicy Pimento Cheese Spread

I used the hot honey as a sweet ingredient in my spicy pimento cheese spread.

Serve it with buttery crackers for an easy appetizer, add it to your cheddar snack board, or make grilled pimento cheese sandwiches with juicy tomatoes.

Homemade Pimento Cheese
This delicious classic pimento cheese spread is perfect for serving alongside a platter of buttery crackers or using as the base for a pimento cheese sandwich. Just a touch spicy with a little dash of sweetness, it is the perfect texture.
5 from 1 vote
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A bowl of homemade pimento cheese is served on a plate with butter crackers.

Hot Honey Sriracha Chex Mix

Like things extra hot?? Use a spicy honey to give even more flavor to our favorite sweet and spicy honey sriracha Chex mix.

Honey Sriracha Chex Mix
Sweet and spicy Chex mix features melted butter, honey, and a touch of sriracha sauce for a fun kick.
4.50 from 2 votes
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Sweet and spicy honey sriracha chex mix has square pretzles, cereal, and peanuts mixed together.

Hot Honey Mustard Sauce

My easy raspberry mustard dip is perfect for dipping seasoned pretzels in but it runs more sweet than spicy.

Swap the hot honey in the ingredients to give it more kick.

Raspberry Mustard
This sweet and spicy mustard dip is perfect for dunking homemade seasoned pretzels for an easy party snack.
4.34 from 3 votes
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A blue bowl filled with raspberry mustard has a spoon and is surrounded by seasoned pretzels.

Hot Honey Teriyaki Sauce

I always use hot honey in my homemade teriyaki sauce. It goes so well with the pineapple teriyaki meatballs stir fry!

Thick Teriyaki Sauce
This easy homemade teriyaki sauce is thick and savory. It works perfectly for brushing over grilled chicken or stirring into a healthy stir fry.
4.50 from 4 votes
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A pot of warm homemade teriyaki sauce is on the stove top.

Hot Honey Meatballs

Use hot honey instead of brown sugar to sweeten my sweet and sour meatballs in the Crockpot.

These make a fantastic party appetizer but I've even served them for dinner with rice.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs in the Crockpot
Classic cocktail meatballs keep warm on your buffet table for hours in the slowcooker. This wildly popular sweet and sour sauce is made from ketchup and grape jam but is elevated by a dash of hot sauce to keep it from being too sweet.
5 from 6 votes
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The white serving bowl is filled with sweet and sour meatballs in a rich glaze.

Hot Honey Pork Tenderloins

Honey and apples are such a wonderful flavor pairing. Using hot honey for my roasted pork in applesauce would be a lovely way to deepen the flavor. Pair them with roasted mini potatoes for a hearty fall meal.

Roasted Pork in Applesauce
This sweet and savory pork tenderloin is browned on the stove top but finished in the oven. It is wonderful served with mashed potatoes or your favorite fall side dishes.
4.58 from 7 votes
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Two pork tenderloins in a dutch oven.

Hot Honey BBQ Sauce

Swap out the brown sugar and use hot honey in my light and sweet BBQ sauce. Brush it over ribs, grilled chicken, or pulled pork.

Sweet BBQ Sauce
This sweet BBQ sauce is lighter in sugar than other recipes and naturally vegan and gluten free. It is the perfect topping for your favorite barbecue recipe.
4.50 from 2 votes
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A mason jar filled with barbecue sauce has a spoon and is in front of a dish of shredded pork.

Hot Honey BBQ Chicken Sliders

Drizzle the hot honey over my baked BBQ chicken sliders for a sweet and spicy sandwich that will fly off the buffet table at your next party.

BBQ Chicken Sliders
These easy to assemble BBQ chicken sliders have just the right amount of filling, melting cheese, and a deliciously buttery crisp topping. They will fly off the baking pan at your next party or family game night.
5 from 2 votes
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A metal baking pan has 3 rows of baked bbq chicken sliders showing the melted cheese oozing out.

Hot Honey Chicken Salad

Add extra kick to my favorite cranberry chicken salad recipe by using hot honey with the jalapeรฑos for extra spice.

Cranberry Chicken Salad with Jalapeรฑos
This creamy cranberry chicken salad has an awesome kick to it with minced jalapeรฑos stirred into the mix. The dried cranberries add texture and sweetness to your chicken salad sandwich. This festive salad is great any time of year piled on a croissant or served on a leafy green salad with crackers.
5 from 2 votes
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A ball of cranberry jalapeno chicken salad sits on a bed of lettuce with clubhouse crackers on the side.

Hot Honey Glazed Baby Carrots

You can swap in Mike's Hot Honey for the brown sugar in my easy glazed baby carrots recipe. It's an awesome sweet and spicy side dish for a weeknight dinner or holiday meal.

Glazed Baby Carrots
Sweet glazed baby carrots with brown sugar, butter, and a dash of ginger, make an elegant and easy vegetable side dish for a weeknight dinner but are pretty enough for your holiday table.
5 from 2 votes
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A white bowl is filled with glazed baby carrots, a blue napkin is tucked underneath.
A photo collage shows 4 different ways to use Mike's Hot Honey.

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