Grilled Chicken Marinade
This really is the best grilled chicken marinade! It’s easy to prepare and takes chicken to the next level. The chicken ends up so tender and infused with incredible flavor!
A SUPER FLAVORFUL CHICKEN MARINADE
I started making this Grilled Chicken Marinade about 25 years ago when we were stationed in London. Many of us Americans would get together and have Super Bowl parties. It was a comaraderie thing. Nothing like being with your fellow countrymen and eating all your favorite foods from home. My little chicken on a stick soon became a favorite of our friends and it was regularly requested at get-togethers. And I’m happy to say it is still a favorite in our home.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ’S)
Chicken on its own is pretty bland. Especially chicken breasts. Like most marinades, this Chicken Marinade has a base of oil and acid (the lemon juice.) Marinades generally have some sort of acid, like vinegar, that helps to tenderize the meat slowly. What really gives this marinade that oomph of flavor is the soy sauce, mustard and garlic. You’ve got a bit of salty, a bit of tang and the garlic just pushes it over the top. It may sound like a really odd combination of flavors, but I promise that they end up working perfectly together.
To keep food from sticking to your grill, you need to make sure you scrub off any baked-on food that might still be on your grill grates or your chicken is just going to stick to that blackened char.
For this marinade recipe, you can keep chicken in the marinade in the fridge. I suggest a minimum of 4 hours in the marinade but you can leave it to marinate overnight for even more flavor.
Don’t have a grill brush? Just preheat your gas grill to high for a few minutes and close the lid. Open it up, turn down the heat, and scrub grates with a wad of aluminum foil. Works for me every time!
If you have wooden ones, be sure to soak your skewers in water for at least 30 minutes. this will keep them from burning. Or if you have metal skewers simply use those. Also, when cooking anything on a skewer, never touch or turn them with your hands. Always use a pair of tongs to keep your hands well away from the heat and from burning them by touching the skewer.
The options are endless! Here are a few of my favorite things to serve with this Grilled Marinated Chicken: baked beans, potato salad and macaroni salad.
Not unless you want to end up sick with salmonella poisoning. You have to get rid of any leftover marinade after the chicken has soaked in it. Since you put raw chicken in the marinade, you’d risk contaminating other food by reusing it elsewhere.
We never use dipping sauce for this. Once you try it, you’ll see why. It just doesn’t need any because it really packs a ton of flavor all on its own. I suppose if you insist on some type of dipping sauce, you could try making some Alabama White BBQ Sauce.
Leftover grilled chicken can be stored in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer. You can use this marinated chicken in other dishes as well (I love it in a salad!)
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- olive oil – any oil would work here as long as it doesn’t have a strong taste. Vegetable or canola oil work just fine.
- soy sauce – if you need to cut back on the sodium, you can use a lite soy sauce. I do not add any additional salt to this marinade as there is already plenty in the soy sauce.
- lemon juice – I really recommend fresh squeezed. I just do not like the bottled stuff. I think it gives things a really weird and artificial taste that it just throws off all the other flavors.
- mustard- Dijon or yellow mustard both work here. I’ve used both and I think they each work well. I think the yellow mustard gives you a bit more punch of flavor but if you like it more mild, go with Dijon.
- Worcestershire sauce – there are low sodium Worcestershire sauces if you are cutting back on the sodium.
- minced garlic – freshly minced garlic is going to give you the best overall flavor. The jarred stuff is okay but I don’t think it always gives the best garlic flavor in marinades.
- chicken tenderloins– can be substituted for or chicken thighs. Just slice them up so they can thread on the skewer easier.
HOW TO MAKE GRILLED CHICKEN MARINADE
Combine all marinade ingredients and whisk together well. Put chicken tenders into a lidded container (or a Ziploc bag) and pour marinade over top of chicken. Make sure all the chicken is coated. Snap on the lid. And pop it into the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.
When chicken is ready, soak your wooden skewers in water for at least a half an hour (so they don’t burn on the grill). Obviously you can skip this step if using metal skewers. Preheat grill on medium-high heat. Once skewers have soaked, begin threading chicken onto skewers. Keep going until you are done with all of them. You can put either one or two chicken tenders on each skewer.
Preheat grill to medium high heat. Place skewers on clean grill. Cook for about 5-6 minutes per side (until internal temperature is 165F degrees). It’s really important that you flip the chicken using tongs and you handle it by the meat portion of the skewer. Don’t try flipping using the skewer itself. Metal ones will be too hot to handle at this point and the wooden ones might break.
Allow to cool for a couple of minutes before serving.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES?
- Grilled Honey Lime Chicken Skewers
- Grilled Teriyaki Chicken Skewers
- Grilled Italian Lemon Garlic Chicken
- The Best Steak Marinade
- Grilled Pork Chops
- Grilled BBQ Chicken Thighs
- Crock Pot Baked Beans
- Comeback Sauce
Originally published: January 2011
Updated photos & republished: March 2024
Grilled Chicken Marinade
Ingredients
- 1 cup olive oil
- ¾ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- ¼ cup mustard (Dijon or yellow)
- ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1-½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- 2 pounds chicken tenderloins
- 6-8 wooden meat skewers (or metal skewers)
Instructions
- Combine 1 cup olive oil, ¾ cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup lemon juice, ¼ cup mustard, ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce, 2 teaspoons minced garlic and 1-½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper and whisk together well.
- Put 2 pounds chicken tenderloins into a lidded container or ziptop bag and pour marinade over top of chicken.
- Make sure all the chicken is coated, then snap on the lid or zip the top closed.
- Pop it into the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.
- When chicken is ready, soak 6-8 wooden meat skewers in water for at least a half an hour (so they don’t burn on the grill). Obviously you can skip this step if using metal skewers.
- Once skewers have soaked, begin threading chicken onto skewers.
- Preheat grill to medium high heat (about 350F). Place skewers on clean grill.
- Cook for about 5-6 minutes per side (until internal temp. is 165F degrees).
- It's really important that you flip the chicken using tongs and you handle it by the meat portion of the skewer. Don't try flipping using the skewer itself.
- Allow to cool for a couple of minutes before serving.
Video
Notes
- Please refer to my FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions) and ingredient list above for other substitutions or for the answers to the most common questions.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Hi Brandie,
Thank you so much for this marinade recipe! I made it last night with some boneless chicken breast portions (my grocery store’s version of Perdue Perfect Portions) and cooked them inside on our Foreman grill. They came out perfectly, and were so flavorful juicy, and tender that we didn’t need any dipping sauce. This recipe will definitely be one I reach for often!
Hi Kim! Thanks so much for coming back to comment. I’m SO thrilled you loved this one and really appreciate hearing you loved it!
how long do marinades last in fridge?
What do you mean exactly? Are you making the marinade but not putting chicken in it?
Used this marinade on chicken thighs for Labor Day barbecue. It was a big hit.
Thanks so very much Sandra!! I absolutely love hearing when a recipe is a success!
Made last night and we loved it! Plenty of flavor but not overpowering. I like that it’s easy to do, can sit in fridge till dinner time and mostly pantry staples.
Thanks so very much Lori! I really appreciate you taking the time to come back and comment!
We don’t like garlic so didn’t use any of that but we like the tang of mustard so we doubled that.
I would like to keep a little of the marinade aside to brush on while grilling
These are so so amazing. My son, the pickiest eater in the world, loves these marinated tenderloins. Thank you!
Great marinade, my husband loved it! I had to substitute lime juice for lemon juice but it tasted great. Thanks for sharing!
OMGOODNESSSSSSS…No exaggeration, this was BY FAR the best tasting marinade I’ve ever made!!!!!!
Our family was obsessed with how DELICIOUS my chicken was. Thank you for sharing and creating.
This was so good! A keeper for our little family, thank you!!!!!
My son loved this! He asked me to keep the recipe and make it again!
Really the best marinade. So delicious! When I made it for a gathering, I got so many compliments. I do half the marinade ingredients for the two pounds of chicken tenderloins and it turns out perfect. I also use a fork to poke the chicken so more marinade can soak in. No need for me to use another marinade, love this recipe!
Great recipe! Easy and delicious!
Thanks so much! I appreciate you taking the time to come back and review and comment!
We had these last Sunday. Amazing! Flavor was wonderful and the chicken was so tender. We will certainly have them again, SOON!
I made these. Fabulous marinade recipe. It truly is great and super easy.
Made this for dinner and my husband and I loved it! Thank you for sharing it.
Hey Karen – thank you so much for coming back to comment. Absolutely makes my day to hear when a recipe turns out good!
I tried this today and it tastes amazing! Thank you ????
This seems like a lot of marinade (2 c) for 2lbs of chicken. I just marinated 2.5lbs of chicken tenders, and used about 1c of marinade, and that was plenty. I wonder if you could use half, then save the other half off as a sauce or basting?
I made this too with 2lbs of chicken tenders and to me it seemed like way too much oil and soy sauce. It came out way too salty and the pan burned too easily. I would suggest baking it.
I was looking for a great recipe for chicken when I stumbled across this one. It was awesome!! Everyone liked it and my toddler also enjoyed it. THank you for sharing your recipe.
I have no way to grill so was wondering how this could be done in the kitchen. Maybe the broiler or oven. Am clueless 8(
I made these for dinner for a special friend and I ;). I used cut chicken breast. I watched these babies like a hawk and kept an eye on the temperature of the chicken. I have had one too many dry grilled chicken kebabs! I took them off the grill when they were around 160-163 degrees. These were great! The flavor from the marinade was nicely balanced. They were very juicy as well. I will be using this recipe again! Besides the soy sauce, these were all ingredients I had at the house. I am learning to grill by trial and error. Thank you for making a recipe that's simple and oh so delicious! 🙂