This quick and easy grilled chicken marinade recipe is healthy, flavorful and made with basic ingredients. It can also be used as a baked chicken marinade.
Fire up the grill or your oven because you have to try out my easy chicken marinade recipe.
Seriously, this is the BEST marinade ever.
It makes the most JUICY and flavorful chicken you can imagine.
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How do you make a marinade?
Make it by mixing together oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, ginger, garlic, honey, herbs and spices (thyme, paprika, black pepper, oregano, red chili flakes) in a bowl. The, place the chicken pieces in this bowl and mix them in the marinade. Cover bowl with saran wrap and marinate in the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes and a maximum of 24 hours.
How should I season grilled chicken?
If you are marinating chicken, you don't need to season the chicken again. Traditionally, seasoning chicken is done just prior to grilling. Dip the chicken breast or drumsticks or thighs in lemon juice and then coat them in your choice of herbs and spices. Then, grill on both sides until fully cooked.
What can I use to marinate chicken breast?
You need to have a few ingredients to marinate chicken:
- Oil to hold moisture in the chicken.
- Herbs and spices to provide flavor.
- Lemon juice, lime juice or vinegar to add subtle tartness.
What do you marinate chicken wings in?
My recipe below works very well on chicken wings too. You would need: soy sauce, lemon juice, ginger, garlic, honey, herbs and spices (thyme, paprika, black pepper, oregano, red chili flakes).
How long do you cook chicken breasts on the grill?
Grill 6-7 minutes on each side or until fully cooked though.
How long to marinate chicken?
Marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes and a maximum of 24 hours.
How to marinate chicken for BBQ? For grilling? For roasting?
The rule of thumb is that the the flavor will become deeper and stronger the longer you marinate chicken. If you prefer mildly flavored chicken, marinate for only 30 minutes. If you like very flavorful chicken, marinate for longer (max: 24 hours!).
This marinade for chicken works well on:
- Chicken thighs
- Chicken wings
- Chicken drumsticks
- Chicken breasts (my favorite!)
- Whole chicken
When to marinade chicken?
It's best to marinate overnight so that flavor really goes deep into the chicken.
Here are some TIPS for making simple chicken marinade:
- Use LOW SODIUM soy sauce. The regular soy sauce makes the chicken very salty.
- This barbecue chicken marinade can work well for beef and seafood too but truly tastes the best on chicken.
- For a MILD flavor, marinate for 30 minutes to 1 hour. For MAXIMUM flavor, marinate overnight or 24 hours.
- This recipe works perfectly as a grilled chicken marinade AND baked chicken marinade.
- DON'T grill or bake for too long since that will make the chicken dry.
- This is a very good WHOLE chicken marinade recipe too but you must marinate that overnight.
- To make spicy chicken marinade, increase the quantity of paprika and red chili flakes to suit your preference.
- Garnish with cilantro (my favorite), parsley or basil and each of those will add a subtle distinct flavor.
Well, that's all for today.
If you liked this post, be sure to check out some of these other EASY chicken dinner recipes:
Chinese lemon chicken (Asian lemon chicken)
Recipe
Easy Grilled Chicken Marinade
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Ingredients
- ⅓ cup Olive oil
- ¼ cup Soy sauce Low sodium
- ¼ cup Lemon juice
- ¼ cup Honey
- 1 tablespoon Vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Ginger Paste or finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon Garlic Paste or finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon Black pepper
- ½ teaspoon Thyme Dried
- ½ teaspoon Oregano Dried
- ½ teaspoon Paprika
- ¼ teaspoon Red chili flakes Optional
- Salt Optional
- 6 Chicken breasts
- Cilantro, basil or parsely Fresh, for garnish
Instructions
- In a deep mixing bowl, add oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, honey, vinegar, ginger, garlic, black pepper, thyme, oregano, paprika, red chili flakes and additional salt (optional).
- Mix everything together.
- Place chicken breasts in the bowl and mix them in the marinade thoroughly.
- Cover bowl tightly with saran wrap and marinate in the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes up to maximum of 24 hours.
- When you are ready to grill or bake, use tongs to remove chicken pieces from marinade and place it on a hot grill. Grill each side for 6-7 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked through.
- While grilling, baste the chicken with reserved marinade a few times.
- Remove chicken breasts from grill and place them on a serving dish. Garnish with chopped parsley, cilantro or basil.
- Let the chicken rest for 5 mins and then enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Read all my tips above.
- Leftover grilled chicken can be refrigerated in a sealed container for up to 1 day.
Nutrition
An automated tool is used to calculate the nutritional information. As such, I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information provided for any recipe on this site.
Until next time, tata my lovelies!
Susan
Looks like an amazing recipe I will be sure to try!
Abeer Rizvi
I hope you love it as much as me!
Michelene
Fabulous-moist chicken with great flavor-my go to grilled chicken marinade now
Abeer Rizvi
Woohoo! So happy you enjoyed it.
Kristi
What type of vinegar does this recipe call for?
Abeer Rizvi
I use regular distilled or white vinegar.
joann hagerman
This sounds wonderful! Can this be baked as well? Thanks
Abeer Rizvi
Yes, aboslutely.
Valentina
Abeer, this looks amazing. Pinning to my grilling board. I love the video.
Mary Jo
One of the best marinades I've ever found. Added just a touch more honey to counter the tart/sour a bit. Delicious on the grill, will try another day in the oven!
Gail Senn
Seems like a lot of lemon?
Abeer Rizvi
I don't think it's a lot and it works very well in the overall flavor but you can always adjust it to your liking.
Issa
Can this be done in a slow cooker?
Abeer Rizvi
I think it can work but I have never tried it.
Julie
2nd time i've made this. Its perfect for chicken on a bun with mayo, lettuce and tomato. Family loves it. I like that its healthy and the flavour isn't real intense. Plus the chicken comes out so juicy. Thanks for a great marinade!