The best ever grilled chicken marinade recipe by far!
For years we used Dale’s Steak Seasoning and then switched to Moore’s Original Marinade for the lower sodium content.
I would mix those marinades with bottled Italian dressing and just go with it. Why not make a homemade version, right?
Please don’t let the ingredient list frighten you away. I PROMISE this is the best marinade you will ever try and it’s super easy.
It is 100 times better than any store-bought kind.
Try our Smoked Chicken Wings!
Best Ever Grilled Chicken Marinade Video
Best Ever Grilled Chicken Marinade

This marinade imparts the ultimate flavor experience and produces a juicy tender piece of grilled chicken.
We grill year-round and this chicken was planned for our lunches. Every week I make a large salad to keep in the fridge.
It’s lunch for me most days. But my husband has to be coaxed to eat salad on a regular basis.
Well, this week he actually asked for salads with grilled chicken for his lunches. (We’ll see how long this lasts.)

Just whisk the marinade ingredients together in a small bowl. Pour over the chicken (usually about 2 1/2 to 3 pounds of chicken) and marinate for a minimum of 1 hour.
We usually go for 3-4 hours of marinating the chicken.
We also like cutting the chicken breasts into strips. It’s also a great recipe for chicken thighs.
This infuses more marinade flavor and allows for more grilled crispiness (my favorite part) on the chicken pieces.
If you like, reserve some of the marinade in a separate bowl to baste the chicken while grilling.

Grill the chicken 3-6 minutes per side. This will depend on the thickness of the chicken. Do NOT overcook! Cook to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. No one likes dry chicken.

Serve and enjoy! This marinade also works great for pork too.
Keep it light and healthy by serving some of our favorite side dishes like Healthy Marinated Vegetable Salad or Roasted Green Beans and Mushrooms.
Best Ever Chicken Marinade Recipe
Best Ever Grilled Chicken Marinade
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 Tablespoon molasses
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon thyme optional
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley
- 1 Tablespoon dried oregano
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- In a small bowl whisk all the marinade ingredients together.
- Place the chicken in a zip bag or covered container, pour the marinade over and mix the marinade around to cover evenly.
- Marinate at least 1 hour but 2-4 hours is preferred.
- Preheat the grill to medium heat about 375-425 degrees F.
- Grill the chicken 3-6 minutes each side until cooked through. Chicken should be at 165 degrees F at its thickest part.
Notes
If you’re not a thyme kind of person just omit.
Comments
Kim Philipps
April 21, 2018Meilleure recette de marinade au monde! Simple, rapide et des ingrédients toujours sous la main. Merci pour cette belle trouvaille.
DSTR
April 23, 2018Merci beaucoup, je suis content que vous l’ayez apprécié.. 🙂
Cathy
May 20, 2018I wanted to cook a boneless, skinless turkey breast for supper on a rainy day here and happened upon your recipe thru a Pinterest email. I thought well it’d be just as good on turkey and after marinating a few hours put the breast, marinade and all in the oven to bake. It was awesome and the marinade thickened down to a lovely, flavourful sauce for the turkey! Thanks for a great recipe.
DSTR
May 21, 2018Hey, Cathy! Great idea, we are going to have to try it soon! Thanks so much for coming by to tell us!!!
Jennifer
May 27, 2018This is by far the best marinade recipe I’ve come across is a long time!! Absolutely delicious! Thanks for sharing it!
DSTR
May 29, 2018Jennifer, we are so happy to hear you love the marinade! Thank you so much for coming by!
Liz
June 16, 2018This marinade is my new go to for
a fast, tasty, summer dinner. I’ve made it twice in the one week and the whole family loves it.
Colleen
June 24, 2018We had your grilled chicken recipe tonight. It was wonderful!!! The only things I changed: I used teriyaki sauce instead of soy sauce ( it’s what I had) and I also added crushed garlic. All 7 of us loved it!!!! Used chicken tenders, too, so it grilled quickly and had a lot of your yummy seasoning!!!
Monique
June 29, 2018I’ve got to try this soon looks tempting.
Kathy
August 5, 2018Have you ever made this recipe in bulk to use more than once during a week? What do you think the shelf life would be?
DSTR
August 5, 2018We’ve never made this in bulk but I don’t see why it couldn’t live in your fridge for 5 days or so. Thanks for the good question. If anybody else wants to chime in with an opinion have at it.
Kaye
October 24, 2018This recipe is a winner! Best chicken marinade I have ever tried.
Jonathan W Middleton
March 25, 2019Any idea how much sodium is absorbed into the chicken? For someone who is on a sodium restricted diet.
DSTR
March 29, 2019I have no idea. But I know it’s good! Sorry!! :/
What's for Dinner #27 - Crisp Snaps
April 18, 2019[…] Chicken Marinade – I thought I found a good chicken marinade last summer until I discovered this one that TOTALLY takes the cake. I will probably be making this on repeat this spring & summer. […]
Deanna
August 10, 2019We just tried this on both a whole chicken that we smoked and grilled pork chops. Delicious!