This marinade for chicken gives juicy, soft grilled chicken a delicious taste boost and a gorgeous caramel color. Try this simple recipe right away! Avoid marinating the chicken for longer than 4 hours because the texture will be impacted by the lemon juice.
| Prep Time: | 5 mins |
| Cook Time: | 20 mins |
| Additional Time: | 1 hr |
| Total Time: | 1 hr 25 mins |
| Servings: | 4 |
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup olive oil
- ⅔ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons liquid smoke flavoring
- 2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
- 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
Instructions
- Gather the ingredients.
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- Mix olive oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, liquid smoke, mustard, pepper, and garlic powder together in a large glass or ceramic bowl.
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- Place chicken in the bowl and turn to coat with marinade. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 to 4 hours. For best results, do not marinate longer than 4 hours.
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- Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat and lightly oil the grate.
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- Remove chicken from the marinade and shake off excess. Discard the remaining marinade.
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- Cook chicken on the preheated grill until no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, 6 to 8 minutes per side. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
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- Serve and enjoy!
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- The nutrition data for this recipe includes information for the full amount of the marinade ingredients. Depending on marinating time, ingredients, cooking method, etc., the actual amount of the marinade consumed will vary.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 549 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 7 g |
| Cholesterol | 67 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Protein | 28 g |
| Saturated Fat | 7 g |
| Sodium | 1574 mg |
| Sugars | 1 g |
| Fat | 46 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Tried it; loved it and shared it with friends and its my go-to recipe for all dinners and get togethers!! Did not use the amount of Olive Oil as 2/3 cup was excessive; used 1/4 cup the next time and it was perfect. Not added salt either.
Very salty (lots of soy) and the chicken came out way too tough. Clarify cooking temp/procedure maybe. 8 min on each side is too much for sure.
The chicken turned out flavorful and juicy. I grilled it for about 12 minutes total then put it in the oven for 18 – 20 minutes more. Also, I added 2 tbsp brown sugar and grated a teaspoon of ginger.
I followed the recipe. The chicken breasts ended up that beautiful color that is shown. Unfortunately, the flavor was pretty darn bland. A bit of saltiness from the soy sauce and some smoke flavor from the liquid smoke. On the whole, the bbq grilled chicken breasts were less than memorable. I experimented a bit as they were too bland by using lemon juice and sriracha as condiments. That perked it up. If I ever make it again I will add more lemon juice to the marinade, as well as adding some cayenne pepper. In summary, pretty ho hum as published, but it can form the base for a good recipe with some experimentation.
Much better than some other marinades I’ve used. The only issue I have is the high level of salt. Yes, I used low sodium soy sauce.
I didn’t have liquid smoke and did not remove skin from boned thighs. I cooked it in the oven. I thought it would be too salty but it was delicious! For less salt I would have removed the skin.
Wonderful! Didn’t have liquid smoke so I substituted Sesame Oil … just a few drops. Chicken was to tender and fill of flavor. Great recipe!
No changes. Very delicious and tender chicken. I passed this on to my kids for their summer grilling.
She’s right, it really is the best. I added a tsp of sugar to balance the acid a bit. And I blenderized it before marinating. This will be my new go-to for grilled chicken.
Followed the recipe but marinated for around 6 1/2 – 7 hrs and it turned out wonderful. Served with cheesy broccoli…. The reviewer that said they followed the recipe but it was tough must of did something wrong:)
I don’t have a bbq grill, so I would like to know what oven temp and length of time. Would this be better fried or is it the same as normal baking.
I made this for dinner but didn’t have any liquid smoke. Marinated the chicken for about an hour and used my oven broiler. Chicken breasts were done in about 7 minutes and were juicy, flavorful and tender. My husband gave it a thumbs up! Super fast and easy to make chicken recipe.
A perfect pairing with roasted veggies and a pasta salad.
I am bored of my chicken recipes, so I decided to try this one since it is rated so highly. I only made one modification because I don’t like smoke flavor, I used kitchen bouquet. It was easy to make and tasted delicious. This will become a regular in my family’s rotation.
First time I made it I crowded the chicken in the marinade and I don’t think there was enough surface area they got exposed to the marinade. Second time I made it I left more room some more chicken got exposed and it was delicious! Grilled it on my pellet grill. New favorite chicken recipe!??
Simple and great flavor. Only had regular soy sauce so used half for that. Different flavor notes came through and the charred parts of the chicken were incredible! Cant wait to use it again.
This chicken was tasty and came out perfectly!
I made this exactly as the recipe stared and it was DELICIOUS! I used my air fryer at 380°F for 20 minutes, flipping half way through. They came out so juicy and seriously downright delicious! Definitely adding this recipe to my regular rotation!! Best marinade ever!
Whole family loved!
Terrific marinade, chicken was tender and tasty after three hours in marinade. I used a freezer bag instead of a bowl and as I am not a fan of liquid smoke (I read how it’s made) I substituted smoked paprika. Next time I will reserve some of the marinade before mixing it with the chicken and serve it with the grilled chicken.
I thought this was very good! I followed the recipe as written. I will definitely be using this recipe again!