One of my favorite meals in the summer is grilled chicken over salad. But a plain grilled chicken breast is a no go for me. Today I have the best chicken marinade recipe for you! It works perfectly as a grilled chicken marinade. This is the same marinade that I use when I make my Chicken Kabobs, and those are always a huge hit!
The Reason to Marinate Chicken
There is nothing worse than dry chicken. Marinating chicken is a great way to prevent this, leaving you with the perfect chicken recipe. A simple chicken marinade made with a little acid breaks down the exterior of the chicken. This lets in the other ingredients in the marinade making for a moist and delicious chicken breast
Chicken Marinade Ingredients
I love this combination of ingredients so much and find that it leads to moist delicious chicken every time. For the full measurements of ingredients scroll to the bottom of the post or click that helpful “jump to the recipe” button above the first photo.
Olive Oil is the foundation of this recipe, you want to use a quality olive oil and rather than vegetable oil. There is a remarkable difference in taste. Additionally, avoid extra virgin olive oil, which is better in salad dressings, and doesn’t stand up to the heat as well. Lemon Juice is one of two acids that we are going to use. It brings flavor and helps break down the surface of the chicken. Brown Sugar boosts the flavor of the marinade and also helps brown the chicken when it is cooking. Soy Sauce acts as the salt and a part of the liquid base of the marinade. Though most often a marinade only penetrates the outer layers of a piece of meat, salt is able to go much deeper and help keep meat from drying out during cooking. Balsamic Vinegar is the other acid in this recipe. This vinegar starts out with grapes, and it brings such a deep and delicious flavor to this party. Minced Garlic adds another layer of flavor. Black Pepper is our last ingredient and another flavor enhancer.
Adding Herbs to Chicken Marinade Recipes
A lot of chicken marinade recipes contain fresh herbs like rosemary or thyme. Those would be great additions here. I purposefully left them out to keep this recipe as simple as possible, and I have to tell you that the end result is a delicious piece of chicken. If you plan on adding herbs to the marinade, keep in mind that it is better to use dry herbs over fresh herbs. The dry herbs impart the same delicious flavor but will stand up to the heat of your grill or oven better than the fresh herbs. Rather, you could top your freshly grilled chicken with some fresh parsley at the end.
How Long to Marinate Chicken
There are different schools of thought on how long you should marinate chicken. One thing is agreed upon: It is possible to marinate chicken for too long. When we marinate, the marinade is only able to penetrate the outer surface of the meat. Realistically, you only need about a half hour to make that happen with this recipe. Conversely, once the chicken has sat in the marinade past 24 hours, the salt in the marinade can break down the proteins in the meat and that will result in a gummy piece of chicken.
How to Grill Marinated Chicken
This is just the best grilled chicken breast marinade. And grilling chicken couldn’t be easier.
Baking After Using Chicken Marinade
This works great as a baked chicken marinade too!
What to Serve with Chicken
As mentioned above, I love this chicken cut up and served with a simple salad of Romain, tomatoes, and cucumbers. But if you are grilling and want to round out your table, here are a few suggestions:
Corn Salad is especially delicious when made with grilled corn. Grilled Pineapple with a simple glaze is the perfect dessert when you already have the grill fired up. Cucumber Avocado Salad would be a great companion for this marinated chicken.
If you make this easy chicken marinade or any of my other recipes, leave me a comment and let me know what you think!
