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The best summer meal! Whether you’re entertaining friends for a cookout or just preparing a quick weeknight meal, this grilled bbq chicken breast always wins rave reviews. Season the boneless, skinless chicken breast with a simple rub, throw it onto a gas or charcoal grill, and baste with barbecue sauce. Served with pasta salad, mac and cheese, cornbread or coleslaw, this grilled chicken recipe is a picnic favorite!
Table of Contents
Grilled BBQ Chicken Recipe
There’s nothing better than grilled BBQ chicken breast on a warm summer evening. It’s flavorful, light, and versatile — and with a few simple tips it stays juicy and moist (not dry or tough). Plus, this easy meal is incredibly fast! You only need about 10 minutes of prep and 10 minutes to cook the meat, so the entire dinner is ready in 20 minutes.
Serve the grilled bbq chicken with your favorite sides, slice it on top of a crisp green salad, or tuck it into a sandwich. Leftovers are great on salad, on pizza, or in wraps, too! And if you love grilled chicken as much as we do, you should definitely try this garlic and herb grilled chicken breast, these marinated chicken thighs, or this chicken shawarma!
Ingredients
This is a quick overview of the ingredients that you’ll need for grilled bbq chicken breast. As always, specific measurements and complete cooking instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts: you can also substitute with boneless, skinless chicken thighs.
- Olive oil: helps the chicken brown, adds flavor, and prevents it from sticking to the grill.
- BBQ dry rub: we always use this simple homemade BBQ seasoning blend, which we keep in a big jar in our pantry for easy access. It includes brown sugar, smoked paprika, kosher salt, chili powder, onion powder, and garlic powder. If you prefer, you can substitute with your favorite store-bought BBQ rub or just use kosher salt and black pepper (the chicken will get a lot of flavor from the BBQ sauce).
- Barbecue sauce: use your favorite homemade bbq sauce or pick a high-quality store-bought sauce. We like Stubb’s sauce (which has a vinegary tang) or Sweet Baby Ray’s (a sweeter, thicker option).
How to Make Grilled BBQ Chicken Breast
Detailed instructions for both a charcoal and a gas grill are included in the recipe card below, so pick your favorite method. An indoor grill pan on the stovetop will also work, but you can’t beat the smoky char from a classic outdoor grill! Here’s the quick overview:
- Pound chicken breasts until ½-inch thick. You don’t want them as thin as cutlets, but pounding them to an even thickness will help the chicken cook quickly and evenly so that it stays tender and juicy.
- Rub chicken with olive oil and season with bbq rub.
- Grill the chicken until the meat reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.
- Baste the chicken with the bbq sauce towards the end.
- Let the chicken rest before slicing and serving.
What is the Best Meat Mallet to Pound the Chicken Breasts?
If you don’t have a meat mallet to thin out the chicken breasts into even pieces, check out this list of the best meat tenderizers. It includes the one I own, the Oxo Good Grips, which is a mallet-style pounder and is available on Amazon for $26.
What to Serve with Grilled BBQ Chicken
The best grilled chicken is delicious when served on top of a green salad or when tucked inside a grilled bbq chicken sandwich. You can also pair the meat with any of your favorite picnic sides. Here are a few easy ideas:
- Coleslaw or Vinegar Coleslaw
- Wedge Salad with Buttermilk Ranch Dressing, Southern Caesar Salad, Green Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette, House Salad with Candied Pecans, Mixed Greens with Dijon Vinaigrette, or Classic Caesar Salad
- Baked Potato Wedges, Crispy Parmesan Potatoes, Twice Baked Potatoes, 3-Ingredient Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes, Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream and Chives, Skin On Mashed Red Potatoes, Baked Potatoes, or Easy Potato Salad
- Cast Iron Cornbread, Sour Cream Cornbread, Southern Cornbread, Pumpkin Cornbread, Cake Mix Cornbread, Skillet Cornbread, Sweet Cornbread, Jiffy Cornbread with Creamed Corn, Corn Sticks, Honey Cornbread, Broccoli Cornbread, or Cornbread Muffins
- Creamy Baked Mac and Cheese, Duke’s Homemade Mac and Cheese, Pumpkin Mac and Cheese, Crock Pot Mac and Cheese, No-Boil Overnight Mac and Cheese, Shells and Cheese, or Creamy Stovetop Mac and Cheese
- 3-Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits, Cathead Biscuits, Southern Buttermilk Biscuits, Flaky Biscuits, Aunt Bee’s 3-Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits, Sweet Potato Biscuits, Cheese Biscuits, Easy Drop Biscuits, or Cheddar Biscuits with Chives and Bacon
- Rice Pilaf or Charleston Red Rice
- Pumpkin Bread or Pumpkin Muffins
- Corn Salad, Jiffy Corn Casserole, Fried Corn, or Corn on the Cob
- 3-Ingredient Sour Cream Muffins
- Refrigerator Dill Pickles, Cucumber Salad with Vinegar, Tomato Cucumber Onion Salad, or Cucumber Dill Salad
- Arkansas Green Beans with Bacon or Southern-Style Green Beans
- Broccoli Cauliflower Salad
- Fried Apples or Baked Apple Slices
- Southern Succotash
- Southern Collard Greens
- Fried Okra
- Broccoli and Cheese
- Easy Pasta Salad
- Homemade Baked Beans with Bacon or Cowboy Baked Beans
- Okra and Tomatoes
- Southern Squash Casserole
- Cheese Grits
- Fried Cabbage with Apples and Onion, Braised Red Cabbage, or Roasted Cabbage
Preparation and Storage Tips
- Prep ahead: pound the chicken and rub with seasoning up to 24 hours in advance. Cover and refrigerate until ready to grill.
- Wrapped tightly, the grilled chicken breast will keep in the fridge for up to 1 week. You can also store the chicken in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Use leftover barbecue chicken on sandwiches, wraps, or salads for easy lunches or dinners throughout the week.
Recipe Variations
- Grilled BBQ Chicken Thighs: substitute boneless, skinless chicken thighs for the chicken breast shown here. Thighs are generally more of an even thickness, so you don’t need to pound them flat. Thighs will cook in about 3-5 minutes per side.
- Use homemade bbq rub, pick your favorite store-bought bbq rub, or just season the chicken with kosher salt and ground black pepper.
- For a shortcut, baste the chicken with a high-quality store-bought barbecue sauce (we like Stubb’s brand or Sweet Baby Ray’s, but any similar variety is great). You can also make your own barbecue sauce if you prefer.
Tips for the Best Grilled BBQ Chicken Breast Recipe
- Pound the chicken breast to an even thickness. This will help to ensure that the meat cooks evenly and quickly so that you don’t end up with half of a breast that’s too dry, while the other half is still raw.
- Get the grill nice and hot. Chicken breast is a very lean meat, so it stays juiciest when cooked quickly over high heat.
- Wait to brush on the barbecue sauce until the final 3-4 minutes of grilling. This will prevent the chicken from burning on the grill. Serve additional sauce on the side.
- The total grilling time will vary depending on a number of different factors, such as the temperature of your grill, the temperature of your chicken when it goes on the grill, and the size and thickness of your chicken. As a result, it’s always best to use a meat thermometer to know exactly when your chicken is done. You’re looking for an internal temp of 165°F for chicken breast.
- Allow the meat to rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing. The juices will redistribute throughout the meat so that the chicken breast stays nice and juicy.
More BBQ Chicken Recipes to Try
Crockpot BBQ Chicken
3 hours hrs 5 minutes mins
Baked BBQ Chicken Thighs
30 minutes mins
Oven BBQ Chicken
1 hour hr
Grilled BBQ Chicken Breast
Ingredients
- 4 (6-8 ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breast, trimmed (or substitute with about 1 ½ lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs)
- 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1-2 tablespoons BBQ rub seasoning (or substitute with just kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste)
- ½ cup barbecue sauce, plus extra for serving
Instructions
- Cover chicken breast with plastic wrap and pound gently with meat mallet or rolling pin until ½-inch thick.
- Rub each piece of chicken with olive oil; season on all sides with BBQ rub (or kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste).
- FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open the bottom vent completely. Light the large chimney starter filled with charcoal briquettes. When the top coals are partially covered with ash, pour evenly over grill. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent completely. Heat grill until hot, about 5 minutes.
- FOR A GAS GRILL: Turn all burners to high, cover, and heat grill until hot, about 15 minutes. Leave all burners on high.
- Oil the cooking grate. Place the chicken on the grill and cook (covered if using gas) until the chicken has nice grill marks, about 3-5 minutes. Flip the chicken over and continue to cook until the meat reaches an internal temperature of 165° F, about 3-5 more minutes. Baste with barbecue sauce during the final 3 minutes.
- Transfer chicken to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve with additional sauce on the side.
Notes
- Grilled BBQ Chicken Thighs: substitute boneless, skinless chicken thighs for the chicken breast shown here. Thighs are generally more of an even thickness, so you don’t need to pound them flat. Thighs will cook in about 3-5 minutes per side.
- Use homemade bbq rub, pick your favorite store-bought bbq rub, or just season the chicken with kosher salt and black pepper.
- For a shortcut, baste the chicken with a high-quality store-bought barbecue sauce (we like Stubb’s brand, but any similar variety is great). You can also make your own barbecue sauce if you prefer.
- Pound the chicken breast to an even thickness. This will help to ensure that the meat cooks evenly and quickly so that you don’t end up with half of a breast that’s too dry, while the other half is still raw.
- Get the grill nice and hot. Chicken breast is a very lean meat, so it stays juiciest when cooked quickly over high heat.
- Wait to baste the chicken with the barbecue sauce until the final 3-4 minutes of grilling. This will prevent the chicken from burning on the grill. Serve additional sauce on the side.
- The total grilling time will vary depending on a number of different factors, such as the temperature of your grill, the temperature of your chicken when it goes on the grill, and the size and thickness of your chicken. As a result, it’s always best to use a meat thermometer to know exactly when your chicken is done. You’re looking for an internal temperature of 165°F for chicken breast.
- Allow the meat to rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing. The juices will redistribute throughout the meat so that the chicken breast stays nice and juicy.
Can you cook the barbecue chicken in oven? How long would I cook?
Hi, Nicolette! Sure, it just won’t have the “grilled” flavor or the smoky char. That said, I would bake boneless, skinless breast at 425 degrees F for 20-25 minutes, basting with the sauce towards the end. The total baking time will vary, though, depending on the size and thickness of your chicken, and on the temperature of the chicken when it goes into the oven. As a result, your best bet is to use an instant read meat thermometer to know when the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Hope you enjoy!