For more quick-and-easy ideas for prepping chicken, check out my recipes for Chicken Marinades, Chicken Dry Rub, and my Healthy Grilled Chicken recipe. There’s just no getting around the fact that chicken is one of the easiest meats there is to cook, bake, or grill; to marinade, rub, or dip and even to dice, slice, or fillet. It takes on the flavors of just about anything with ease and is the star in millions of recipes, all around the world, making its appearance in ethnic foods of all sorts. And, while all of this is true, sometimes you just want something quick and easy right? When that happens grab the chicken and get to making this super simple chicken marinade!
WHAT INGREDIENTS ARE NEEDED FOR A QUICK AND EASY CHICKEN MARINADE?
Grab yourself some chicken and a few pantry staples and get to work on the easiest grilled chicken marinade ever!
Boneless skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs Olive oil Apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar Fresh-squeezed lemon juice Honey Dijon mustard Italian seasoning or Herbs de Provence Garlic powder Salt Onion powder Cracked black pepper
HOW DO YOU MAKE AN EASY GRILLED CHICKEN MARINADE?
I can only call it like I see it: This marinade is EASY to make! First, stir together the wet ingredients (olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, honey, dijon mustard) with the dry spices (Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt, onion powder, and pepper). Then put the chicken in a large resealable bag and pour the marinade over it. Seal the bag and shake the marinade around. If you are out of bags, you can do this in a large bowl with a lid too. Put in the fridge to chill for 30 quick minutes. Bake the chicken at 375 degrees for 15 minutes in the oven in a heat-proof dish or baking sheet. It’s done when the juices run clear. Alternately, you can grill this chicken over medium heat for 6-10 minutes on each side until it’s cooked all the way through.
TIPS & TRICKS FOR MARINATING AND GRILLING CHICKEN
If you have several different sizes of chicken breasts, you can pound some of the bigger ones down until they are all of equal size. This will help them to cook all at the same time so you don’t run the risk of overcooking some and undercooking others. Letting the chicken “rest” or cool down for about 5 minutes after baking or grilling will allow the juices to reabsorb into the meat, thus rendering a juicer chicken breast all around. Unlike shrimp, which only need a few minutes to marinade, chicken can stay in a marinade for a few hours, even overnight. Chicken will grill most easily on a clean grill. Make sure you scrape off any old bits of past grilling adventures and oil the grates too if needed. Cook chicken over medium heat so that it cooks evenly and you don’t end up searing/burning the outside to a chewy chicken jerky before you even have time to cook the inside. Lower and slower is the name of the chicken grilling game here. Toss out the marinade that you used for the chicken. You don’t want to re-use it and get sick. That’s no good. If you want to make up a big batch of marinade, use only what you need for the chicken you have then save the rest in an airtight container for another day. Any unused marinade will keep for up to 1 week in the fridge.
IDEAS FOR SERVING GRILLED CHICKEN
Chicken goes great with so many other foods. I like to grill up a big bunch of this chicken in the healthy chicken marinade and serve it the following ways:
All by itself with a side of rice, noodles, or even a plain dinner roll. Slice the chicken into thin strips and serve over a salad. Cut the chicken and roll it up into a tortilla with your favorite taco toppings. Add the chicken to a big mound of mashed potatoes and even a side of gravy if you’re feeling in a gravy mood. Add diced, grilled chicken to a pasta salad or make a chicken salad.
Now you know you’ll always have an answer to the question: “How should we make this chicken tonight?” Your answer? This Easy Chicken Marinade!
