One taste of this Teriyaki Grilled Chicken Marinade and you'll never need another recipe again! The thick, sweet-and-savory glaze yields a beautifully charred piece of meat that's tender and juicy on the inside. It's summer cookout perfection!
Can you tell that I'm ready for summer?! Between my turkey burgers and this grilled chicken marinade, I've basically got you set for the season...and it's still just May!
Grilled chicken always has been (and always will be) one of my favorite summertime meals.
It's a warm-weather dinner that I grew up on, and it's one that I continue to serve to my own family now. You just can't beat the ease, nutrition, or versatility of a grilled chicken breast!
That said, the humble piece of meat can get pretty darn boring if you don't make an effort to add some serious fla-vah!
With the season of cookouts, picnics, and potlucks almost upon us, there's no time for boring, ho-hum chicken around here.
Instead, I'm presenting you with platters of the most juicy, sweet, sticky, and savory grilled chicken that you'll ever taste...thanks to this Teriyaki Grilled Chicken Marinade!
How do you marinate teriyaki chicken?
In my opinion, the key to a good grilled chicken marinade is all in the balance of the ingredients.
You want to create a sauce that offers a variety of rich, strong flavors that can slowly infuse the meat while it marinates. Thanks to soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, onion powder, white wine, garlic, and olive oil, this teriyaki marinade hits all of the important flavor notes...using easily accessible ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen.
That means that you can whisk together a batch of the grilled chicken marinade any time a craving strikes -- without making an extra trip to the store!
And just like the recipe suggests, be sure that you set aside some of the teriyaki sauce for basting and dipping at the end. You'll want as much of the good stuff as you can get!
How long do you marinate chicken?
The longer, the better! I suggest that you marinate this chicken for about 3-4 hours, but you can leave the meat in the marinade for up to 24 hours. And don't worry -- if you're planning a last minute meal and you don't have much time, this chicken will still be delicious with just 15 minutes of marinating time. Make it work for you!
Serving Suggestions for Teriyaki Grilled Chicken:
I like to serve the chicken with rice, scallions, and broccoli on the side for an Asian-inspired meal. Grilled pineapple is a nice touch, too!
But this is grilled chicken we're talking about, so it's VERY versatile. Slice it and serve it on top of a salad, in a sandwich, in a wrap, or just on a plate by the side of the pool. You won't believe how tender, juicy, sweet and savory this chargrilled meat really is!
If you love the teriyaki grilled chicken marinade, you can also use it as a stir-fry sauce in a skillet, or in a dump-and-bake chicken teriyaki dinner like this one. As I said, after one taste of this special recipe, you will never need a different marinade again!
If you’ve tried this Teriyaki Grilled Chicken Marinade or any other recipe on The Seasoned Mom, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! You can follow me on Facebook, on Instagram, on Pinterest, and on Twitter!
Teriyaki Grilled Chicken Marinade
Ingredients
For the Marinade (Yields 1 cup of marinade):
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ cup white wine (or substitute with chicken broth)
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon Lawry’s seasoned salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
For Grilling:
- 1 - 1.5 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts*
Optional, for serving:
- Cooked rice
- Sliced green onions
Instructions
Prepare the Marinade:
- Whisk together marinade ingredients in a large measuring cup or bowl.
- Place chicken in a large dish or in a zip-top plastic bag.
- Set aside ¼ cup of marinade for basting. Pour the rest of the marinade over the chicken and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes (or up to 24 hours).
GRILL THE CHICKEN:
- When ready to grill, remove chicken from the marinade.
- Discard marinade from the dish.
- Heat a grill pan or outdoor grill over medium-high heat. Coat grill or pan with about a teaspoon of oil so that the chicken doesn’t stick. Grill chicken on each side until golden, crispy and cooked through (about 5 minutes per side, or until meat reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees F). Use the reserved ¼ cup of marinade to baste the chicken once or twice while it cooks on the grill.
- Allow meat to rest for about 5 minutes before slicing and serving over rice and garnishing with sliced green onions.
Roll the ball
looks delicious! I think this is a good meal for dinner, I will make it tonight, hope I succeed
Kristy from Southern In Law
I need to try this over the weekend! Yum!!
Linda
The chicken marinade recipe couldn't have come at a better time since I just bought a ton of chicken! And, I really appreciate the option on your site to jump right to the recipe. Sometimes you just don't have time to read everything and it is nice to get the recipe and go cook! I don't know of any other sites that do that...but wish many more would. Thank you!!!
Blair
Yay! I'm so glad that you'll use the marinade recipe, Linda! And yes -- I hope that "JUMP" button is useful. 🙂
color switch
Great article and interesting, thank you for sharing.
Jane
Can you make the marinade a week in advance?
Blair
Hi, Jane! Yes -- you can definitely prepare the marinade a week in advance. I would just take it out of the refrigerator an hour or two before you want to use it, let it come to room temp, and then shake (or whisk) it up again when you need it. The ingredients will likely separate in the refrigerator, so a quick shake should make it perfect again.
Andy
Turned out as delicious as I had hoped... this one's a keeper.
Blair
Excellent! Thanks, Andy!
Kim
This the third marinade recipe of yours I've tried and all of them are great! As you mentioned in the recipe description, this marinade has a perfect balance flavors, and it's so versatile. In fact, I used it as a stir-fry sauce for the chicken, along with some brown rice and veggies. Super good!
Blair Lonergan
That's so good to hear, Kim! I'm glad that you enjoyed it and that you've found other ways to use it, too. Thank you for taking the time to let me know! 🙂