The Best Chicken Marinade Recipe makes chicken extra juicy and flavorful. This savory marinade makes grilled chicken mouthwatering!
The Best Chicken Marinade Recipe
When we were newly married, we lived near Dean's brother, his wife, and two kids. We were living in an apartment, going to college full-time, and working crazy hours to pay the bills. We were poor little college students and would love when Deron and Sarah would invite us over for dinner. Their go-to meal was grilled chicken in a delish marinade. They knew how much we loved it so we ate it almost every time we had dinner at their home.
So I had to ask her what was in this amazing chicken marinade recipe. It is beyond simple! I decided to tweak it and add a few more flavors to make it extra tangy and zesty.
This Grilled Chicken Marinade Recipe is made with extra virgin olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, salt, and pepper. You have such a variety of seasonings in this marinade.
The extra virgin olive oil keeps the chicken extra moist and juicy. The fresh lemon juice and balsamic vinegar break down the fibers in the chicken to make it tender. The soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce give it a salty depth of flavor. The brown sugar adds some rich sweetness and gives the chicken a nice crust when grilled. All of the ingredients work together in such harmony to make the perfect chicken marinade!
The key is to let the chicken marinate for at least 30 minutes. Pierce the chicken breasts with a fork all over to ensure the marinade can seep into the chicken to make it juicy. An idea marinating time is 4 - 5 hours.
To grill the chicken, set your grill at medium heat. Allow it to preheat before adding the chicken. To keep the chicken from sticking, brush a bit of oil on the grill. Cook for about 5 - 6 minutes per side, depending on the thickness of the chicken breast. The chicken needs to reach 165 degrees to ensure that it is completely cooked through.
Use whatever types of chicken you prefer -- chicken breasts, thinly sliced chicken breasts, chicken tenders, or chicken thighs. Chicken tenders and thinly sliced chicken breast will cook much quicker than thick chicken breasts so watch carefully.
The Best Chicken Marinade Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. Chicken Breasts Tenders, or Thighs
- ⅓ - ½ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil depending on preference
- 3 Tablespoons Fresh Lemon Juice
- 3 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
- 2 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
- ¼ cup Brown Sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 3 Garlic Cloves minced or ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Pepper
- Garnish:
- Fresh Parsley
Instructions
- In a bowl, stir together oil, lemon juice, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Pierce chicken breasts with a fork all over. Place in a large Ziploc bag. Pour marinade over chicken.
- Let marinate for at least 30 minutes. 4 - 5 hours is ideal.
- Preheat grill to medium heat. Brush grill with oil to prevent sticking.
- Place chicken on the grill. Cook for approximately 5 - 6 minutes per side, depending on the thickness of chicken. The internal temperature of the chicken should reach 165 degrees.
- Remove chicken from grill and let rest for 5 minutes.
Nutrition
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Happy Cooking, my friends!
Megan
Well, I didn’t expect it to live up to the name, but I’m happy I was wrong! It is truly amazing. The family (including my husband who doesn’t love chicken) absolutely adored this!!!
Modern Honey
Hi Megan! I am so glad you agree that it is the best chicken marinade recipe ever. 🙂 Thank you for trying out the recipe!
Sydney
I’ve been dying to make this for a while so I’m shooting for tonight to try it out! Just out of curiosity what was your sister-in-laws original regular recipe or how did you tweak it?
Modern Honey
Hi Sydney! So she added some Italian dressing and I just changed it up a little bit. I hope you love this chicken marinade recipe!
Suellen
This is our most favorite recipe! Thank you so much!
Modern Honey
I appreciate that so much! I am so glad you all love the recipe too. 🙂
Scott
This is SOOO delicious and easy to make, either on the outdoor gas grill or on a the stovetop grill pan. My whole family loved how flavorful and juicy the chicken was. Echoing a comment above, reduce the olive oil to 1/4 cup. It's much less greasy.
Modern Honey
Hi Scott! So happy to hear your whole family loved the grilled chicken. Great tip about reducing the oil -- this recipe is so versatile.
ENCS
This marinade was absolutely fantastic. Piercing the chicken breasts all over really gave the chicken a great flavor throughout, and it did not come out dry at all. This is my new go-to. Thank you!
Modern Honey
I am so happy to hear you loved the chicken marinade. I love when the flavor infuses the entire chicken breast. Thank you for trying it!
Eileen
This is a good recipe to use up some refrigerator items ( Soy and Worcestershire) sauces that usually go to the back of the shelf. Very easy to assemble the marinade, although I did not put in the brown sugar, afraid it would burn on the grill. I only marinaded the chicken for 40 minutes, but I came out very tender and very tasty. I think piercing the chicken with a fork is a great idea that really helps the marinade get in there. I also scored the chicken lightly with a knife. Definitely will make again.
Modern Honey
Hi Eileen! I agree -- you usually have most of the chicken marinade ingredients on hand. Thank you so much for trying out the recipe!
Amber Yerger
I’m so pleased to have found this marinade recipe. Thank you! It was so full of flavor even with only marinading it for 45 min. It’s in my favorite recipes folder now!!
Modern Honey
Hi Amber! Love when I hear that the chicken marinade recipe makes it to the favorites folder. Thank you so much for trying my recipe!
Norma
This is amazing!! I use this for all kinds of recipes. I've shared with everyone. Thank you!😋
Modern Honey
Hi Norma! I agree -- it is such a versatile marinade recipe and can be used on so many meats. Thank you so much!
Catherine
Delicious 😋🤤
Modern Honey
Thank you so much! So glad you loved the chicken marinade.
Betty Ford
Fabulous ✓
Baked added smoked paprika to the marinade mix, tasted like it was bbqed outdoors!
Modern Honey
That's a brilliant idea to add smoked paprika. Sounds amazing!
JP
Should you BBQ with the grill open or closed?
Kim
Definitely- closed. You don't want the drippings to catch fire and dry it out.
Modern Honey
I grill the chicken with the grill closed. Hope that helps!
Dale
Awesome moist and very flavorable
Modern Honey
Hi Dale! You hit the nail on the head -- moist and flavorful chicken. Thank you for trying my recipe!
Automogator
We make a LOT of chicken as we don’t do red meat, so I’m always on the lookout for new recipes and techniques. Seriously fantastic. This is indeed the best chicken marinade we’ve ever tried. Highly recommended exactly as written.
Modern Honey
Awww I appreciate this kind comment so much. Thank you! I am so glad you agree that it is the best chicken marinade recipe!