The best Chicken Marinade ever! This marinade produces so much flavor and keeps the chicken incredibly moist and outrageously delicious! This easy chicken marinade recipe is sure to become a staple in your kitchen. Great for grilling and baking!
Grilling tonight? Make sure to try my steak marinade and grilled potatoes too!
Best Chicken Marinade Recipe
For many years now I have been perfecting my chicken marinade recipe and it’s finally exactly what I want. I love this easy recipe because it quickly transforms an ordinary chicken breast (or any other cut of chicken) into something extraordinarily delicious – just in time for dinner.
It really is the BEST chicken marinade I’ve ever had and I’m confident you’re going to love it as much as we do.
Easy Chicken Breast Marinade
I keep chicken breasts on hand at all times because there is just SOO much you can do with a chicken breast…(Make sure to check out my book for ONE HUNDRED chicken recipes!)
Having a good grilled chicken breast marinade on hand is essential if you live in a hot area like I do. It’s a quick, no-brainer dinner option that we rely on several times each month.
Let me be clear, this is not to say that this marinade won’t work on other cuts of chicken. It most certainly does and is insanely delicious so use what you have on hand.
One of our other favorite ways is to use this as a chicken thigh marinade or even drumsticks. It really will work for any piece of chicken. (I’ve had lots of reader write in saying it’s also delicious with veggies, pork and beef!)
What To Serve With Grilled Chicken
Since we grill multiple times a week, I’ve become quite an expert at quickly whipping up one or two side dishes that pair perfectly with grilled chicken. Here are some of our favorites:
- Fruit Salad
- Grape Salad
- Creamy Cucumber Salad
- Twice Baked Potato Casserole
- The Best Coleslaw Recipe
- Grilled Potatoes
- Easy Baked Sweet Potato (How To Bake Sweet Potatoes)
Grilled Chicken Marinade
This is really my very favorite grilled chicken marinade. I love to make up a big batch of grilled chicken and this recipe is great for that. It makes enough marinade for about 6 large chicken breasts or 3 to 4 pounds of chicken pieces.
Chicken Marinade Ingredients
While the list looks long, most if not all of these ingredients will likely be in your pantry. What we’re doing here is just building layers of flavor in this easy marinade. Let’s take a quick look at what you’ll need:
- extra virgin olive oil – this is the base of the marinade and keeps the chicken so juicy and moist.
- balsamic vinegar – a balsamic chicken marinade is my very favorite. It is definitely one of the key ingredients in this recipe and adds loads of flavor.
- soy sauce – I like to use low sodium.
- Worcestershire sauce – so many flavor in this ingredient, it’s a must for this marinade.
- lemon juice – fresh is best for flavor but you can use bottled if you need to.
- brown sugar – I have lots of readers that reduce or even eliminate the brown sugar but I personally love it in this recipe.
- dried rosemary – a little herbaceous flavor is always nice to round out a marinade.
- Dijon mustard – or Spicy Brown mustard or even plain yellow mustard will work in a pinch.
- salt and ground black pepper – for seasoning.
- garlic powder – I prefer garlic powder instead of fresh garlic because the fresh garlic will burn on the grill.
How To Make Chicken Marinade
This easy marinade comes together in just minutes!
- Prepare marinade. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and whisk together. Cheater method: put them straight into a large ziploc bag that will also be used for marinating the chicken.
- Reserve. Remove a half a cup of marinade and reserve for basting the chicken later.
- Marinate Chicken. Place chicken in a large resealable plastic bag and pour marinade over the top. Close securely and gently massage marinade into breasts. Marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours.
Cooking Methods
Marinated chicken can be cooked on the grill, in the oven or on the stovetop. Here are my tips for cooking it best:
- Grilling: Preheat grill to medium high heat and lightly oil the grates. Remove the chicken from the marinade, letting the excess drip off. Grill chicken for 5 to 6 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Chicken needs to reach an internal temperature of 165°F. Baste the chicken occasionally with the reserved marinade. Remove chicken from grill and tent with foil. Let chicken rest for at least 5 minutes before serving.
- Baking: Preheat oven to 400°F. Place marinated chicken on a shallow baking sheet or baking pan and cook for 18 to 22 minutes (or 450F for 15 to 18 minutes if you’re in a hurry) or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. Let chicken rest for at least 5 minutes before serving. Baste as often as you can for best flavor.
- Stovetop: Preheat a skillet over medium high and lightly grease. Cook chicken for 8 to 10 minutes on each side or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. Let chicken rest for at least 5 minutes before serving. Use a stovetop grill pan for those pretty sear marks!
FAQs
Any kind of chicken you like. Breasts, thighs, drumsticks, tenders, skin on or off, bone in or out. Now, keep in mind that different cuts will take more or less time. Always check on the internal temperature to check doneness. Chicken needs to reach an internal temperature of 165°F.
A minimum of 30 minutes and as long as overnight. I find the chicken starts to get tough if I marinate it for more than 24 hours. If you have less time, consider poking holes in the chicken with a fork to allow the marinade to penetrate quickly.
Yes, absolutely. After adding the marinade to the chicken breast in a freezer safe resealable bag, freeze chicken for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before using.
The chicken can be grilled, baked or cooked on the stovetop. See the previous section for more information or check out the recipe card below for instructions.
More Chicken Recipes
- Homemade Chicken Nuggets
- Chicken Enchilada Soup
- Chicken Piccata – Ready In 20 Minutes!
- The BEST Chicken Salad
- Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
- Air Fryer Teriyaki Chicken
- Greek Chicken – A Sheet Pan Dinner
How to Make the Best Chicken Marinade
The BEST Chicken Marinade
Ingredients
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar or other vinegar
- ¼ cup soy sauce I use low sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
- â…› cup lemon juice
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 2 tablespoon Dijon mustard or Spicy Brown mustard
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 6 chicken breasts or 3.5 lb chicken
Instructions
- Combine all marinade ingredients in a large mixing bowl and whisk together. Remove a half a cup of marinade and reserve for basting the chicken later.
- Place chicken in a large resealable bag and pour marinade over the top. Gently massage chicken breasts and be sure to close bag securely. (If you have less time, consider poking holes in the chicken with a fork to allow the marinade to penetrate quickly.)
- Refrigerate chicken and marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours. I find 4 to 6 hours to be perfect.
To grill
- Preheat grill to medium high heat and lightly oil the grates.
- Remove the chicken from the marinade, letting the excess drip off. Grill chicken for 5 to 6 minutes on each side or until cooked through.
- Baste the chicken occasionally with the reserved marinade.
- Once the chicken has reached 165°F, remove chicken from grill and tent with foil. Let chicken rest for at least 5 minutes before serving.
Optional.
- If you bring the reserved marinade up to a boil, let simmer until slightly reduced, it makes a wonderful sauce to go on top of the chicken.
Kathy says
This was delicious. I blended all ingredients in my ninja then poured over chicken that I had punctured with a fork many times to get marinade into and throughout the chicken. Did not want to grill so put some green onions in a grill pan on stove. poured some marinade in and boiled for about 2 minutes then added chicken and cooked through and letting the marinade caramelize on the chicken. Plated with green onion on top. It was outstanding and a keeper. The only change next time will be to cut the chicken breasts in halves. We really liked the outer caramelized layer. Thanks for a terrific marinade.
JP Pendleton says
This marinade mirrors what I’ve been doing for years, and I must say Trish… you hit the nail on the head! The only thing I can add is that you can’t marinade chicken for a long period of time (as opposed to beef, which you can marinade overnight), Chicken can only be marinated for a couple to few hours, because any longer than that and the meat “chemically cooks”, and will be tough after cooking it. Other than that, you hit a home run.
Cheryl says
Amazing marinade! The whole family loved it and can’t wait for me to make it again! Thank you!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
So awesome to hear Cheryl! Thanks for stopping by!
Danni says
Wonderful recipe, very easy and tasty!!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Excellent! Thanks so much Danni and have a great weekend!
Andreea says
Thank you for this recipe! I marinated the chicken like you said and noted this recipe in my cookbook.
Greetings from Romania! 🙂
Andreea
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
You are so welcome! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Caitlin says
Hey! I think someone may have copied your recipe so I wanted to give a heads up. I was looking at a bunch and ended up using yours, but came across this site with pretty much the same recipe except for more rosemary, and it was published like a year after yours.
http://www.auntbeesrecipes.com/2017/06/the-best-ever-grilled-chicken-marinade.html
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Yep, it sure looks like it. Unfortunately, there’s nothing I can do about it but THANK YOU for coming to Mom On Timeout 🙂
Carol lemond says
Could you bake the chicken in oven and what temp and time—great marinade?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
It would depend on the type of chicken but many readers have done 400F for about 20 minutes and had a lot of success. Just make sure to check the internal temp 🙂
Angie says
hi! any chance this can be done as a chicken skewer?? or do you recommend grilling the breasts first then dicing them up and putting them on the skewers after?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
A skewer would be fantastic! They would cut down on the marinading time as well. Enjoy!
Alison says
This looks delicious! Would anyone know how to calculate the calories on this? It looks like it would be great.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Google “nutrition calculator” and you’ll be able to figure it out. It really is an amazing marinade – I’m only *slightly* biased 😉
Tim says
I really hate mustard, is there any substitute?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
I cant think of one but you can omit if you’d like.
Natasha Kurchaba says
This recipe was sooo good! I left it to marinade all day while I was at work then baked it in the oven for 45 minutes.
Delicious!
Stacey says
Can this be made without the brown sugar. I am low carb and do not eat sugar.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Yes, it sure can but the flavor will be different as well as eliminate any sweetness. Still yummy though!
Petra says
Love this recipe so much but I always burn the skin on the grill…. any tips for avoiding this?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Lower heat will help. I usually use this marinade with skinless chicken breast but it can be done with the skin on. Just make sure your grill doesn’t have any flare-ups and grill at a lower temperature.
Herb says
This marinade is excellent on pork and beef as well as chicken
Rebecca says
Hi,
I’m going to try this tonight. I just wondered if it’s possible to freeze the uncooked chicken after marinading (as in, put the entire zip lock bag with chicken and marinade together straight in the freezer)?
Thanks.
Bec
Jana says
I freeze chicken breasts in this marinade and it is wonderful. I usually put 2 chicken breasts in a bag with some marinade, freeze them and then I can pull them out for a quick meal as needed.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Thanks so much Jana!