Our Favorite Chicken Marinade

Our Family LOVES Grilled Chicken!

This marinade recipe with garlic, lemon and honey makes juicy, delicious, healthy grilled chicken (that you can marinate overnight!)

I’ve been grilling chicken for years and marinating too, but it took me a while to write down what I actually put in the marinade – I used to just open the fridge and start pouring dressings, sauces and flavorings into my zip-top bag – and the results were great sometimes and other times not-so-much.

The purpose of a wet marinade is to tenderize, add flavor and moisture to your protein. Most marinades have oil, flavorings and an acid. This marinade combines:

Marinade Ingredients:

• Oil
• Salt & Pepper
• Italian Seasoning
• Lemon Juice – tenderizes
• Red Wine Vinegar – tenderizes
• Soy Sauce – umami (flavor)
• Worcestershire Sauce – umami (flavor)
• honey – helps chicken brown
• Garlic

Best Way to Mix a Marinade:

You can just stir everything together or you can mix it in a chopper, blender or food processor. The benefit of blending – is that it emulsifies (rather than having the oil and vinegar separate) the mixture, makes it a little thicker and seems to coat the chicken better.

How Long to Marinate Chicken?

The longer the better (to an extent). You want to marinate at least an hour. I usually go for 5-6 hours myself, making the marinade in the morning and grilling by dinner time. You don’t want to go much past 12 – hours, the acid in the marinade will start negatively affecting the texture of the chicken (ie: mushy, stringy.)

10 Grilling Tips for GREAT Grilled Chicken:

1. Gently pound the thick end of the chicken breast to even it out a bit.
2. Marinate chicken 1-12 hours – (see section above)
3. Heat grill to medium heat.
4. Clean and oil grill grates to help prevent sticking.
5. Wipe excess marinade off chicken before grilling – helps prevent flare-ups.
6. Don’t press or squeeze chicken with spatula. Flip it once and let it be.
7. Generally, the chicken will release when it’s ready to flip.
8. Use an instant read thermometer to help prevent overcooking – I usually take mine off right before they reach 165 degrees. Remember they’ll continue to cook for a couple minutes when they come off the grill. Just tent them with foil.
9. Try to avoid cutting into the chicken to see if it’s done – lets the juices run out.
10. Let chicken rest at least 5-10 minutes after grilling – helps keep it juicy!

Grilled Chicken Recipe Idea?

Try my Creamy Parmesan Pasta with Broccoli and Chicken! Family Favorite!

Pin this Picture on Pinterest! ⬇️

Print Recipe

Chicken Marinade

This marinade recipe with garlic, lemon and honey makes juicy, delicious, healthy grilled chicken (that you can marinate overnight!) Makes enough marinade for 2 pounds of chicken.

Votes: 2
Rating: 5
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Rate this recipe!

Course

Main Dish

Keyword

chicken, grill, marinade

Prep Time

10 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Passive Time

6 hours to marinate

Servings

6 servings

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
• 3 cloves fresh garlic 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic, 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning 1 tablespoon fresh herbs (thyme, rosemary)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

Course Main Dish Keyword chicken, grill, marinade Prep Time 10 minutes Cook Time 20 minutes Passive Time 6 hours to marinate Servings 6 servings Ingredients 1/2 cup oil 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 2 tablespoons soy sauce 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar 2 tablespoons honey 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce 3 cloves fresh garlic 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic, 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning 1 tablespoon fresh herbs (thyme, rosemary) 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon black pepper

Votes: 2 Rating: 5 You: Rate this recipe!

Instructions

1. Combine all marinade ingredients in chopper, food processor or blender. Mix until garlic is minced and all is combined. You can also just mince the garlic by hand and stir together all the ingredients - make sure the honey is all mixed in.
2. If using boneless skinless chicken breasts, pound the thick end a little to even out. Add chicken and marinade to zip top bag and refrigerate for 1-12 hours. I usually marinate in the morning and grill at dinner time (5-6 hours marinating time.)
3. Wipe excess marinade off chicken. Grill chicken over medium heat (oil grill grates to help prevent sticking.) Cook for about 6-8 minutes per side or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. Remove, cover with foil and let rest 5-10 minutes so juices redistribute.

Recipe Notes

10 Grilling Tips for GREAT Grilled Chicken:

1. Gently pound the thick end of the chicken breast to even it out a bit.
2. Marinate chicken 1-12 hours - (see section above)
3. Heat grill to medium heat.
4. Clean and oil grill grates to help prevent sticking.
5. Wipe excess marinade off chicken before grilling - helps prevent flare-ups.
6. Don't press or squeeze chicken with spatula. Flip it once and let it be.
7. Generally, the chicken will release when it's ready to flip.
8. Use an instant read thermometer to help prevent overcooking - I usually take mine off right before they reach 165 degrees. Remember they'll continue to cook for a couple minutes when they come off the grill. Just tent them with foil.
9. Try to avoid cutting into the chicken to see if it's done - lets the juices run out.
10. Let chicken rest at least 5-10 minutes after grilling - helps keep it juicy!