Simple (And Juicy! And Delicious!) Grilled Chicken Breasts
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My 6th-grade daughter recently asked me if the meat I cooked for our family was “lean”. Propelled by lessons learned in health class, she also had questions about brown rice and whole wheat flour and if I used them. Sometimes. But first: lean meat.
Wellllllll, I replied, not really. I explained I favor dark meat chicken over light and that I only buy 80/20 ground beef. I confessed to never having cooked ground turkey and that bacon was definitely not lean. And the reason she likes those ribs so much is because of the fat.
But I defended my choices, too, noting foremost that we don’t eat a lot of meat, and also that not all fat is bad. I explained that “leanness” is not the only factor to consider when evaluating what’s “healthy.” And I talked to her about factory versus sustainable farming. Despite my efforts, the conversation ended with a request: Can you make me a chicken breast?
Sure Sweetie Pie. I’d love to.
Sigh. As many of you know, chicken breasts do not excite me. There is one and only one chicken breast recipe on this site, and while I love it, my children do not. Would there be any point to this endeavor? Would I make the effort only to watch them push their chicken pieces around their plate? To guess how many seconds might pass before they asked for the ketchup?
I wasn’t sure, but as you can gather from the title of this post, the exercise was a success, and it didn’t take too many tries to get there. When I presented the grilled breasts aside boiled (and well-buttered) broccoli, I waited with bated breath. And when I heard mmmmms all around and requests for seconds, I danced a very happy jig.
This is what I did:
3 Tips for Juicy Grilled Chicken Breasts
- Pound.
- Brine.
- Marinate.
Pound. Pounding not only ensures the thickness of the breast is uniform, it also tenderizes the meat.
Brine. Inspired by a recipe in Cook’s Science, I decided to make the effort to brine the chicken breasts briefly before grilling them. I understand if this step might be a page-turner for you — not too long ago it would have been for me as well — but it truly helps both season the meat and keep it moist during the cooking. And I promise you it’s not hard: simply dissolve 1/4 cup each of salt and sugar in cold water, submerge the breasts, leave for 30 to 60 minutes or up to 4 hours.
Marinate. The marinade I went with here is inspired by a reliable and simple favorite — olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, and lemon pepper — with the addition of a teaspoon of honey for flavor and to encourage browning. You can marinate for as few as 15 minutes or up to 24 hours.
An Interesting Note
In a sidebar in Cook’s Science, the authors name Bell & Evans Air-Chilled Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts as their favorite specifically for its tender texture. And the reason the texture of this particular brand of chicken is more tender than others is that it’s given time to “age.” Once the chicken is broken down into parts, the breasts are aged on the bone for 12 hours before the bones and skin are removed. Why does aging make the meat more tender? Two reasons:
- Enzymes are at work during the aging process. “The natural protease enzymes break down the contracted muscle fibers making them more tender.”
- Boning meat too soon causes “the muscle to contract, and a shorter, contracted muscle is related to tougher meat.”
Interesting, right? Many companies skip this aging step because building time into the process costs money. If you live locally, the Niskayuna Co-op carries Bell & Evans chicken breasts.
Simple Grilled Chicken Breast, Step by Step
Place your chicken breasts on a clean work surface.
Cover with wax paper, parchment, or plastic wrap; then flatten them with a meat mallet.
You want the breasts to be roughly 1/2-inch thick.
Make the brine by dissolving 1/4 cup each salt and sugar in 1.5 quarts of cold water.
Add the breasts and leave for 30 to 60 minutes. I’ve brined them for longer, too, with no adverse effects.
Pat dry.
Whisk together a simple marinade: olive oil, Worcestershire, honey, and lemon pepper.
Add the breasts and let marinate for as few as 15 minutes or as long as 24 hours.
Place a grill pan (or heat an outdoor grill) over medium-high heat, brush with 2 teaspoons of oil, and grill the breasts for roughly 3 minutes a side.
Transfer to a plate to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Serve aside whatever you like. Pictured below: balsamic-roasted mini peppers, kale salad with the addition of ribbony carrots, cucumbers, and toasted sunflower seeds, and focaccia.
So juicy!
PrintSimple (And Juicy! And Delicious!) Grilled Chicken Breasts
- Total Time: 1 hour 6 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Diet: Low Fat
Description
The brine recipe is from Cook’s Science. The marinade comes from this Dead Easy Steak Marinade.
Update: Recently, for time purposes, I skipped the brining step, and they breasts came out as juicy as ever — I pounded them, cut them in half (so I had 6 small-ish breasts) and let them marinate for several hours in the fridge. I do think brining is a wonderful technique for breasts, but perhaps pounding is more of the key to tenderness here.
Ingredients
For the brine (optional, see notes above):
- 1/4 cup salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
For the chicken:
- 3 to 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon honey
- lemon pepper, salt-free if possible, to taste
- 2 teaspoons neutral oil or olive oil
- kosher salt to taste
Instructions
- To make the brine (note I do not do this in anymore… see notes above): In a large bowl, dissolve the salt and sugar in 1.5 quarts of cold water.
- Place the chicken breasts on a clean cutting board. Cover with a sheet of plastic wrap, parchment paper, or wax paper. Use a meat mallet to pound the breasts to a thickness of 1/2 inch. Submerge the breasts in the water and leave for 30 to 60 minutes. I’ve also left the breasts in the brine for 3 to 4 hours without any adverse effects. I brine the breasts at room temperature if the brining period is going to be brief (under 1 hour), and I refrigerate the breasts if it’s going to be longer.
- Remove the breasts from the brine, and pat dry.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, honey, and lemon pepper to taste — I use at least a teaspoon in the marinade. Let the breasts marinate for 15 minutes or up to 24 hours.
- Heat a grill or a grill pan over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, brush with 2 teaspoons of the neutral oil or olive oil. Remove the breasts from the marinade, letting the excess marinade drip off. Place the breasts on the grill or grill pan — if you are using a grill pan, you’ll likely need to do this in batches. Season the top side of the breasts with salt. I like to sprinkle on a little more lemon pepper at this step. Cook 3 minutes. Flip. Season the cooked side with salt, and cook for 3 minutes more or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Transfer the chicken to a plate to cool. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
- Prep Time: 60 minutes
- Cook Time: 6 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Grill
- Cuisine: American
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
103 Comments on “Simple (And Juicy! And Delicious!) Grilled Chicken Breasts”
These were delicious/easy as promised. Quick question tho – I made a dozen breasts to bring to Tanglewood for a July 4 picnic. I made them in the morning. Am wondering going forward the best way to keep them from drying out if I must grill in.advance as I did. Also made your delicious pasta w simple cherry tomato sauce.Anothet winner from Ali! Thank you- xo, Meryl
So nice to hear all of this, Meryl 🙂 🙂 🙂 Hope you and your family had a wonderful Fourth. My only thought would be to maybe make a simple oil-and-vinegar dressing? Maybe pack the breasts tightly on top of one another and drizzle with some of the dressing?? I’m not sure Meryl. If I think of anything else, I will report back. xoxo
HI Ali, I make 3 lbs of chicken when I cook for my family. If I do not double this will the brine not be as effective? I’m just wondering about adding too much salt from the brine because I use kosher chicken and that has already been salted.
Great question… I don’t think you need to double the brine for 3 lbs. of chicken. I would brine them for the shorter period of time — 30 minutes should be fine.
I’m only cooking for two 99% of the time, so I use a grill pan on the stove. Works great.
Great to hear, Julie! I often use my grill pan, too 🙂 Thanks for writing!
My picky 4 year old LOVES this chicken. THANK YOU!!
Great to hear, Laura! Nothing better than when something pleases the picky one!! Thanks for writing 🙂
I love eating chicken breast but I HATE cooking it. There’s a fine line between juicy and gummy for me. My family prefers bone in, skin on breasts roasted in the oven. Everyone liked these (like is high praise for “plain” chicken breast). I didn’t use our grill or grill pan – I used a toaster and then finished them in the oven.
Question – do you think you could defrost and brine at the same time?
Hi Cristy! Great to hear. You probably could defrost and brine at the same time. Some liquid will seep from the chicken as it thaws, but I don’t think enough to throw off the brining ratio.
This recipe sounds fantastic! The brine with both sugar and salt is a great way to ensure that the chicken breasts stay juicy and flavorful, which is sometimes a challenge when grilling chicken. The Worcestershire sauce, honey, and lemon pepper marinade also sounds delicious and simple to put together.
The detailed instructions make this recipe easy to follow. I like how you suggest both brief and longer brining times, depending on one’s schedule, and how you give the option for the chicken breasts to marinate for up to 24 hours for deeper flavor.
I also appreciate the suggestion to pound the chicken to an even thickness for consistent cooking. The step of letting the cooked chicken rest for 5 minutes is an excellent tip to ensure the juices redistribute throughout the meat.
This recipe seems perfect for a summer barbecue or a simple family dinner. I can’t wait to try it. Thank you for sharing!
Alex, I have to post having just grilled this tonight once again, It is so delicious, it’s as if it’s better than it should be!! Grilled boned chicken breast, tasty, juicy, tender…unheard of! I always use the largest breasts from the package to make this so they never overcook while getting brown on the gas grill. My husband was swooning again so thought I should tell you and others who aren’t boneless breast fans. Yum and thank you.
So nice to read this, Denise! This has become a once-a-weeks staple for us… kids love it, I love it. And the leftover chicken is so nice to have on hand for salads and wraps, etc. Thanks for writing!
Hello Ali-
This looks great.
Do your have a juicy pork chop method to share?
Hi! I don’t, but I think this brining method would work well for pork chops. And I think the marinade would be great, too 🙂
I have a grill pan just like the one in the grilled chicken recipe. I find it really hard to clean. Any suggestions?
I just use a sponge thats a little more abrasive, and I use soap and water. I never get it completely clean, but a sponge should get it clean enough.
Was wondering if the salt used for the brine is kosher vs table?
I use kosher! Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt is my preference.
Brining and marinating is key and produced a delicious protein! Yum and thumbs up from my 14 year old son. Thanks, Alexandra!
Wonderful to hear this, Paula! Thanks for writing!
Your daughter’s got it right. I made this recipe for the first time last night and I can tell you my opinion of chicken breasts has changed 180 degrees. I followed your recipe exactly except for the brand of chicken you used, and they turned out splendidly. First time I’ve used my meat tenderizer, a wedding gift of 40 years ago (surprised I still have it). Thanks, Ally.
Great to hear, Elizabeth 🙂 🙂 🙂 And nice work unearthing the meat tenderizer!
Thank you for all your amazing recipes! I’m wondering how dry brining would work? Seems like it would be easier?
Can you recommend a meat mallet? I need to buy one, and at first glance they all look pretty much the same to me, but if you have a recommendation I would love to know.
Claire, I wish! I dislike mine a lot. It’s very old and it’s made of an icky metal material. I will do some research. Stay tuned!
Proving once again that simple is often better. Made this for company on Saturday and I’m making it again for my wife and me tonight. I added a small glug of honey mustard to the marinade and i liked the sweet/sour note it added. I suspect that this will be in heavy rotation as we finish the summer. It’s perfect with the Ohio corn and tomatoes we eat with practically every meal 🙂
Sounds like a perfect summer meal! Thanks so much for writing and sharing this, Patrick!
I didn’t have a grill pan ( Are you listening Santa Claus?), so I used a large iron skillet instead.
Worked great! Loved the taste! I’ll be brining all my chicken breasts from now on.
Great to hear, Wendy! Thanks so much for writing. Santa no doubt is listening 🙂 🙂 🙂
Hi Ali. I skipped the brine as you suggested, and used b/s chicken thighs with your marinade. Grilling for just a couple + minutes is a perfect way to cook thin breasts/thighs without ending with dry and chewy. I don’t see how this method can ever be improved unless the chicken objects..
Great to hear Butch! Thanks so much for writing and sharing these notes. I know I’ll love it with thighs 🙂
Hi Ali-for the lemon pepper what brand are you using? I never buy that seasoning. I’ve seen Mrs Dash. Thank you and happy mother’s day :)).
Hi! Just a generic brand at my grocery store… I finished the bottle otherwise I would give you the name. It wasn’t actually salt-free bc I couldn’t find any, and it turned out just fine — not too salty at all and I did salt the breasts, too. I’ll report back on a name the next time I pick up a bottle.
Absolutely delicious. No lemon pepper in house, so I substituted for 1tsp of white pepper with a splash of lemon juice. This will be on repeat this summer!
Great to hear! On the menu tonight here as well 🙂