Valentina Ablaev
Take your summer grilling to the next level with the best chicken marinade for grilling! This simple and delicious marinade is the perfect way to elevate your chicken. The marinade is so versatile and can be used with any cut of chicken – so versatile!
A marinade is the best way to customize your grilled chicken! There are so many marinades to choose from! Use teriyaki sauce as a marinade, and now you have teriyaki chicken! This classic marinade is flavorful and makes an excellent cutlet for a grilled chicken sandwich.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This classic chicken marinade for grilling is the simplest, but it tastes so flavorful! This marinade is the easiest way to elevate your grilled chicken. From a simple chicken breast to chicken thighs, and even wings or drumsticks, this is the marinade that works for all parts of the chicken.
Grilled Chicken Marinade Ingredients
- Chicken – we use boneless chicken breasts for this recipe.
- Oil – an oil with a high smoke point is best for grilling. Avocado oil or vegetable oil is best for cooking at high temperatures.
- Spices – a simple mix of salt, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, italian seasoning, and black pepper.
See the recipe card below for a complete list of ingredients and quantities.
Substitutions and Variations
- Add spice: Add cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes to add heat to your chicken.
- Add zest: Add lemon juice or lemon zest to the marinade to add a refreshing flavor to your chicken.
- Add sweetness: A little bit of honey or sugar goes a long way in enhancing the flavor of a homemade marinade.
- Make kabobs: We like to grill whole chicken breasts or cut them into cubes and make chicken and vegetable kabobs!
How to Make Chicken Marinade for Grilling
- Marinade chicken. Add the chicken to a bowl along with the oil. In a separate bowl, mix together all the seasonings. Top the chicken with the seasoning and mix well. Marinate until ready to use.
- Grill chicken. Heat the grill to 400°F and add the chicken to the grill. Cook on medium-high heat for 6-8 minutes, flipping the dish halfway through. Rest the chicken for 5 minutes before slicing.
Expert Tips:
- Marinade time: Marinade the chicken for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight to get the best flavor.
- Perfectly cooked chicken: Check the chicken’s internal temperature to ensure it’s perfectly cooked. Once the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165°F, it is fully cooked and ready to serve.
Serving Suggestions
There are so many delicious ways to use grilled chicken; here are some of our favorites:
- Chicken salad: Add grilled chicken to greens and your favorite vegetables for the best grilled chicken salad.
- Chicken wrap: Make a spicy buffalo chicken wrap with this grilled chicken salad.
- Chicken bowl: Add sliced grilled chicken to a bowl of quinoa for a healthy chicken quinoa bowl!
FAQ’s
This marinade can be used for grilled shrimp and even grilled vegetables for the perfect flavor.
Marinate the chicken for at least 30 minutes, or up to 24 hours.
For optimal meat quality, don’t marinate chicken for longer than 24 hours.
Store & Reheat
- Storage. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container, in the refrigerator for 3-5 days for peak freshness.
- Reheat. Warm up leftover chicken in a pan or the air fryer until reheated.
- Freeze. Leftover grilled chicken can be frozen for longer storage. Add grilled chicken to a freezer-safe container and store for up to 3 months. Reheat: Thaw the chicken in the fridge overnight before using it, or reheat it from frozen!
More Grilling Recipes
If you enjoyed this chicken marinade recipe, be sure to try our other easy grilling recipes; here are some of our favorites:
If you tried this chicken marinade for grilling recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below – we appreciate it!
The BEST Chicken Marinade for Grilling
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast
chicken marinade-
- 4 Tbsp oil
- 1 ½ tsp salt, or to taste
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- ½ tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper, or to taste
Instructions
- Add the chicken to a large bowl or a plastic bag. Toss the chicken in oil and set aside.
- Mix salt, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, italian seasoning, and black pepper in a small bowl.
- Add the seasoning to the chicken and toss until it is evenly coated.
- Marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight.
- Once you are ready to grill the chicken, remove it from the fridge and let it sit for about 15 minutes.
- Heat the grill to 400°F before adding the chicken. Cook the chicken for 6-8 minutes, flipping halfway.
- Remove the chicken from the grill and let it rest for 5 minutes, then use it as needed.
Notes
- Marinade time: Marinate the chicken for 30 minutes or overnight for the best flavor.
- Perfectly cooked chicken: To get perfectly cooked chicken, use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. Once the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165°F, it is ready!
- Storage. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for 3-5 days for peak freshness. Warm up leftover chicken in a pan or the air fryer until reheated.
- Freeze. Leftover grilled chicken can be frozen for longer storage. Add grilled chicken to a freezer-safe container and store for up to 3 months. Reheat: Thaw the chicken in the refrigerator overnight before using it, or reheat it directly from frozen.
