Dancing Chicken Recipe: Easy Soy Garlic Curry Chicken Over Rice

Dancing Chicken served over rice in a floral bowl on a wooden table

Dancing Chicken Recipe: Easy Soy Garlic Curry Chicken Over Rice

Some recipes do not look like much at first glance, but once you make them, they earn a permanent place in your dinner rotation. That is exactly what happened with this Dancing Chicken recipe.

This easy baked chicken dish is made with simple ingredients like soy sauce, garlic, curry powder, and a little sweetness, but the finished flavor is rich, savory, and incredibly satisfying. Served over rice, it becomes an easy comfort-food dinner that feels both practical and special.

It is also a great recipe for intentional eating. Because the chicken is cut into bite-sized pieces before marinating, every piece gets coated in the sauce, and it is much easier to portion for lighter meals or more filling dinners.

If you are looking for an easy chicken recipe with bold flavor, this one is worth trying.

The Story Behind Dancing Chicken

I’ve been making this recipe since around the year 2000. It’s one of those handwritten recipes that has stayed with me through years of moves, different homes, and different chapters of life.

My recipe box has traveled across multiple states and countries with me, and this recipe has always been in it. It’s one of those simple, reliable meals that never gets old.

What’s interesting is that when I recently searched for Dancing Chicken online, I couldn’t find it anywhere. It seems like this version may have quietly disappeared over time.

So this might be one of the only places you’ll find it now.

Is Dancing Chicken Similar to “Marry Me Chicken”?

If you’ve heard of the popular Marry Me Chicken recipe, you might be wondering how this compares.

While the flavors are different, both recipes fall into that same category of simple, comforting chicken dishes that surprise you with how good they are. Dancing Chicken leans more savory with soy sauce, garlic, and warm curry notes, while Marry Me Chicken is creamy and rich.

If you enjoy easy, flavor-packed chicken recipes, this is another one worth trying.

Watch the Dancing Chicken Video

You can watch my full Dancing Chicken video below to see exactly how I make it from start to finish:

What Is Dancing Chicken?

Dancing Chicken is a simple baked chicken recipe made with bite-sized pieces of boneless, skinless chicken breasts marinated in a sauce of soy sauce, water, garlic, sweetener, and mild curry powder. It is then baked until tender and flavorful and served over rice.

The name may be playful, but the flavor is serious. The soy sauce gives it a savory base, the garlic adds depth, and the curry powder gives the recipe its warm, distinctive flavor. It is not spicy, but it does have a unique taste that makes it stand out from other easy-baked chicken recipes.

Why You Will Love This Easy Chicken Recipe

There are plenty of reasons to keep this Dancing Chicken recipe in your meal rotation.

It is easy to prepare ahead of time since the chicken marinates in the refrigerator before baking. It uses pantry-friendly ingredients that many home cooks already have on hand. It is also flexible enough to work for both lower-calorie portions and more filling meals, depending on how you serve it.

Most importantly, it is just plain good.

Ingredients for Dancing Chicken

1 to 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup water
3 to 4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons Truvia Brown Sugar Blend or brown sugar
1 tablespoon mild curry powder
2 cups cooked rice, for serving

How to Make Dancing Chicken

Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces and place it in a baking dish or cake pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, water, garlic, Truvia Brown Sugar Blend or brown sugar, and curry powder until well blended.
Pour the sauce over the chicken and stir gently to coat.
Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 4 hours, or longer if desired.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Cover the pan and bake for about 45 minutes, stirring a few times during cooking so the chicken cooks evenly and stays coated in the sauce.
Cook until the chicken is fully cooked through.
Serve over steamed rice.

Serving Suggestions for Intentional Eating

One of the things I like most about this recipe is how easy it is to portion.

For a lighter meal, serve:

1/2 cup cooked chicken
1/2 cup cooked rice

For a more filling meal, serve:

3/4 cup cooked chicken
1/2 cup cooked rice

This makes it easy to fit the recipe into different eating styles and hunger levels.

Tips for the Best Dancing Chicken

If you want the best flavor, give the chicken enough time to marinate. Even a couple of hours makes a difference, and a longer marinating time deepens the flavor even more.

You can also adjust the sweetness slightly to your liking. If you want to keep it lighter, the Truvia Brown Sugar Blend works well. If you prefer a more traditional version, regular brown sugar also works beautifully.

Serve it with rice for a simple meal, or add a vegetable on the side if you want something more complete.

Final Thoughts on This Baked Chicken Recipe

Dancing Chicken is one of those recipes that proves simple ingredients can still create a really memorable meal. It is easy enough for a weeknight dinner, flavorful enough to make again and again, and flexible enough to work for intentional eating.

If you try it, I would love to hear what you think.

April 22, 2026 0

Complete Recipe Fail: Popeyes Strawberry Biscuits

You may have seen this recipe circulating around Facebook. I was excited when I came across it. Simple ingredients and it seemed easy. 😒

The dough was perfect until you add the strawberries which are full of a heck of a lot of moisture!. it became my nightmare quick and made me so mad, that I almost threw the bowl at a passerby! 🤬

Solution? Less strawberries? Or more flour? By the way, I only used 1.5 cups of milk to get my initial dough. I did bake them. They DID resemble biscuits in a hockey puck sort of way, but in the end, I think I’ll stick with my no-fail strawberry scones!

Here is the recipe I used (copied and pasted directly from Facebook, so you can have the see the full glory of it):

Made a batch of Strawberry biscuits for a friend:) 🍓🍓❤️❤️🫶🏼🫶🏼

21/2 cups self rising flour

1 stick butter

1 pint strawberries chopped small

2 T sugar

2 cups milk

In a small bowl add strawberries and sprinkle with sugar .

Let sit while you if up the dough .

In a separate bowl add flour and shredded butter and mix til crumbly Add milk and mix just til combined! DO NOT OVERMIX!!!!

Add strawberries w juice and mix lightly til combined Roll onto floured surface knead a few times roll out evenly and cut w biscuit cutter Place on a sheet pan and bake 450 for about 12-15 min When done drizzle topping and enjoy! Topping: aka Drizzle 2 cups powdered sugar 4 T raspberry coffee creamer or just plain milk will work too:) mix well ..

Sift flour w whisk

My daughter also chopped together a little video of clips of my having a mini breakdown while I tried to make this recipe. We were going to post it as a how-to video with the others. That didn’t work out, so instead, this is what you got:

June 7, 2024 0

Restaurant Style Mexican Rice

Ingredients

2 Roma Tomatoes

1/4 of a small yellow onion, chopped into small pieces (roughly)

1 Tablespoon Knorr Tomato Bouillon Powder

1 teaspoon cumin powder

To taste: salt, garlic powder, onion powder

4 cups of boiling water

2 cups of long-grain rice

2 Tablespoons of vegetable oil

Directions

To Prepare the Tomato Blend: Using a blender, combine the tomatoes, onion, tomato bouillon, cumin, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and water until smooth. Set aside.

Prepare the Rice: Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat until hot. Add the uncooked rice and fry until light brown in color, stirring frequently to ensure even browning.

Combining Everything: Once the rice has finished browning, add the tomato blend and stir together. Taste to ensure the seasonings are as you like them. Adjust accordingly, if needed. You may add one or more jalapenos for flavor at this point. Note: if you are only looking for flavor with no heat, the jalapeno can be removed at the end of cooking.

Finishing up: Cover the rice and reduce the heat to low-medium and cook until the rice has absorbed the tomato broth (15 to 20 minutes). Do not stir during the cooking process. Allow the rice to rest covered for 5-10 minutes off of the heat after it’s done and then fluff with a fork before serving.

June 7, 2024 0

How to Make Whipped Butter

Ingredients

Note: This recipe can be cut down in half if you want a smaller batch.

2 sticks (1 cup) of butter (I use salted), softened

4 Tablespoons of milk

Directions

Mix softened butter and milk in a deep bowl on medium speed with double paddles of an electric mixer until the butter is completely whipped. Serve immediately. You may store in the refrigerator; however, the butter will re-harden.

Use immediately or within two hours. Store unused butter in the refrigerator.

Serve on baked potatoes, dinner rolls, etc.

June 5, 2024 0

Old-Fashioned Strawberries & Cream Ice Box Cake

Ingredients

3 cups heavy whipping cream

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar

20 sugar cookies (bake in advance or use store-bought – you can use gluten-free, sugar-free, or whatever you want)

Approximately 1 1/2 lbs strawberries, trimmed and sliced

Directions

Place your bowl and the whisk attachment of an electric mixer in the freezer for at 10 minutes before starting the process.

Add heavy whipping cream to your chilled bowl and whip on medium speed until peaks form and your whipping cream looks like a whipped cream consistency.

Add vanilla and powdered sugar to the whipped cream and mix.

In an 8 x 8 baking dish, build your cake:

Start with a thin layer of whipped cream. Top with a layer of cookies and then add another layer of whipped cream. Add strawberries and repeat these layers until you reach the top, finishing with a layer of whipped cream. Decorate the top with sliced strawberries.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 8 hours (overnight). This will allow the whipped cream to fully set and the cookies to soften, so that you can easily cut pieces (squares) out of the cake for serving. This makes for a delicious summer treat!

Variations: You can also use graham crackers in place of the sugar cookies. Going for a red, white and blue theme? Add some blueberries!

Original Credits: Gluten-Free Strawberry Shortcake Icebox Cake

June 3, 2024 0

Not Your Typical Breakfast Burritos

I love a good breakfast burrito or taco. Usually they’re stuffed full of scrambled eggs, cheese and some sort of breakfast meat, like bacon or sausage (or both). There are times I don’t have time to cook up a bunch of meat. Meat isn’t the cheapest these days either. I also find myself looking for a filling and satisfying meal I can make for one during the middle of a busy work day (I work from home). A few years ago I started creating an easy meal from ingredients I generally have on hand:

Tortilla
Onion
Pepper
Mushrooms
Fresh Spinach
Eggs
Butter
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Lime (juice)
Sour Cream
Cilantro
Avocado
Hot Sauce

You can likely think of more ingredients, but the above is what I like to use. I start by frying up the vegetables in butter. Once done, I add the spinach for about 30 seconds (until just cooked). Next, I add the eggs right into the same pan, along with salt, pepper and hot sauce. Stir/scramble everything together over medium heat until the eggs are just about completely cooked. I like to remove it from the heat and allow it to finish cooking in the hot pan while I finish everything else.

Heat tortillas up in the microwave for about 15 seconds. Spread sour cream in the middle of the tortilla, add chopped cilantro, more hot sauce (I have an onion peach hot sauce I love to use on this), cheddar cheese, your egg mixture, lime juice, avocado (more cheese and sour cream on top, if you’re like me) and either roll it up like a burrito or eat it like a soft-shelled taco.

What I love about this recipe is that you can modify how much you make depending on how many people you’re serving (and how hungry you are). You can certainly add meat too, if you like, but I find this is inexpensive to make and pretty fast. You can always throw in just a few mushrooms, chop up a portion of an onion and pepper and you can even chop things up ahead of time and store it in the fridge to make things faster. It’s filling and very customizable.

January 6, 2023 3

Snickers Cheesecake

There is nothing I love more than a good cheesecake. A few years ago we were living in Ireland. We spent about a year and a half in Dublin and then we moved to Dromod, Co. Leitrim. I loved it, but our Internet wasn’t as good. Since I couldn’t work online like I had in the past, I needed another way to make money. I started making and selling desserts; mostly cheesecakes. It was easier to get my home kitchen certified in Ireland than it would have been in the US and I quickly gained regular commercial clients (mostly coffee shops). By the time we returned to the US in 2014, I was getting pretty busy. (If it had been my choice, I would have stayed and continued to grow my business.)

Snickers Cheesecake was my most popular order. I’d sometimes make 5-10 of them a week.

Since it’s Easter, I decided to make one to celebrate and I’m so glad I did. I haven’t had a cheesecake this good in a very long time. For the first time EVER, I’m sharing my recipe here. (Usually only very close friends and family can get this recipe out of me…with a lot of begging and pleading.)

Want to watch the video? Scroll to the bottom!

Ingredients

Snickers Cheesecake

Servings: 8

Prep time: 2 hours

Ingredients

3 (8-oz) packages of cream cheese at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup heavy whipping cream
pinch of salt
1.5 cups chopped Snickers candies (if you use the mini pieces, you can cut them into fourths)
Caramel sauce
Whipped cream (optional)

Crust

3 packages of graham crackers
1 cup butter (melted)

You will also need:

1 (9″) springform pan
blender
1 large roasting pan
parchment paper
foil
boiling hot water
cooking spray
pencil
scissors

Directions

Preheat oven to 325.
Prepare everything for the cheesecake first. Use a pencil to trace the circular bottom of the springform pan onto the parchment paper. I save the insert that comes with the packaging for this also. Cut the circle out with a sharp pair of scissors.
Spray the bottom and sides of the springform pan. Place the parchment cutout in the bottom and spray it also.
Wrap the bottom and sides of the springform pan with foil. I use four large pieces I can crisscross and then I press them firmly around the outside edge (up the sides). You are trying to prevent water from going inside the pan during baking.
Place the foiled springform pan inside the roasting pan and set aside.
Blend the graham crackers until they are fine crumbs. Stir the melted butter into the crumbs until they are all coated.
Press the crumb and butter mixture into the bottom of the springform pan. You can either make it one thick layer (or cut the crust ingredients in half) or you can press it up the sides a bit too. Use the back of a spoon. Note: This is enough to coat the bottom and the sides. If you only want the crust on the bottom, which is what I prefer (and what is pictured above), you can cut the above measurement in half (1 1/2 packages of graham crackers and 1/2 a cup of melted butter). This is whatever your personal preference is.
For the batter: Cream softened cream cheese and sugar together until smooth.
Add in vanilla extract.
Mix in eggs, one at a time.
Add pinch of salt and cream and mix until smooth (don’t over-mix).
Gently fold in one cup of the chopped Snickers bars. Reserve remaining half a cup.
Pour mixture into the springform pan.
Pour enough boiling water into the roasting pan 1/4 to 1/2 up the sides of the springform pan.
Carefully bake for approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Do not open the oven for at least an hour. When the cheesecake is done, the top will turn a light caramel color and a knife inserted into the center will come out with a slight amount of cheesecake “goo” on the tip. This is okay. It won’t be completely set during the baking.
Sprinkle remaining Snickers pieces around the top of hot cheesecake just after taking it out of the oven. I like to decorate the edges of my cheesecake with cream cheese, so I place them in the middle about an inch away from the edge.
Cool at room temperature for 30 minutes and then cool in the fridge (don’t remove it from the pan) for at least 6 hours (8 is better).
Remove the cheesecake from the pan onto a cake board (or plate or whatever you have). Drizzle caramel over the top for decoration and if you like, decorate the edges with whipped cream. I use homemade whipped cream frosting (recipe to come), but you can do what you like.

If you like my recipe, please share, but please give me credit and include a link to my blog. Thank you!

April 22, 2019 0