Balsamic Chicken Marinade

Whether you’re cooking connected nan grill, successful nan oven, aliases connected nan stovetop, this versatile marinade transforms mundane chickenhearted breasts (or thighs) into a flavorful, crowd-pleasing meal. Plus, it’s easy to make ahead, cleanable for repast prep, and freezer-friendly, making it perfect for engaged weeknights aliases laid-back play BBQs.

Key Ingredients for Balsamic Marinade for Chicken

You tin find nan afloat database of ingredients for this balsamic vinegar chickenhearted marinade successful nan look card. Below are a fewer adjuvant notes to thief you make it your own.

Balsamic vinegar: When choosing a balsamic vinegar, travel your sensation buds and your budget. 

You tin usage a traditional, aged balsamic from Modena for deeper sweetness and complexity, aliases a much affordable condiment-grade balsamic vinegar. Both will activity beautifully to adhd that sweet-tangy extent to your chicken.

I would not urge substituting store-bought balsamic glaze here, arsenic it is already saccharine and thickened. As a result, it won’t activity nan aforesaid measurement successful nan marinade.

Olive oil: I urge utilizing a high-quality extra-virgin oliva lipid here. Its soft spirit perfectly balances nan tangy balsamic vinegar and creamy Dijon mustard, helping nan marinade overgarment nan chickenhearted evenly and soak up each those delicious flavors.

Sweetener: While I utilized honey, different liquid sweeteners specified arsenic maple syrup and agave tin besides beryllium used. If you for illustration to usage brownish sweetener instead, beryllium judge to operation it thoroughly truthful that nary grainy sweetener particles are near behind.

Garlic: I find that caller ail cloves make this look shine, but for a milder flavor, you tin usage ½ spoon ail powder (equivalent to 2 cloves of caller garlic).

Fresh Herbs: I deliberation chopped caller thyme pairs beautifully pinch nan tangy-sweet flavors successful this balsamic vinaigrette marinade, but if you don’t person caller thyme, usage half nan magnitude of dried thyme instead. 

Alternatively, a robust Italian seasoning blend aliases different caller (or dried herbs) for illustration rosemary and oregano would besides activity good successful this recipe.

Chicken: While I utilized skinless and boneless chickenhearted breasts, you tin besides usage skinless and boneless chickenhearted thighs. 

How To Make Balsamic Chicken Marinade?

Making this balsamic vinegar marinade for chickenhearted is easy and speedy (in fact, nan guidelines is very akin to my versatile Lemon Balsamic Salad Dressing). Here are nan steps:

Step 1 – Mix nan Ingredients: Use a instrumentality ample capable to comfortably clasp 2 pounds of chicken, ideally 1 pinch a tight-fitting lid. 

Place nan balsamic vinegar, oliva oil, honey, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, thyme, salt, and capsicum successful nan instrumentality and whisk until thoroughly combined.

Alternatively, you tin usage a heavy-duty resealable bag, specified arsenic a Ziplock container (for easy cleanup), and move marinade complete nan meat. This is particularly perfect if you are making it successful larger quantities.

Step 2 – Add nan chicken: Place nan chickenhearted successful nan marinade, making judge each portion is afloat coated. Cover tightly pinch nan lid and refrigerate.

Step 3 – Let clip do nan rest: Marinate nan chickenhearted successful nan fridge for astatine slightest 30 minutes or, if you person nan time, overnight for maximum flavor.

How To Cook Balsamic Marinated Chicken?

What makes this balsamic vinegar-marinated chickenhearted truthful versatile is that you tin navigator it successful immoderate measurement you like. During nan summertime months, I emotion to occurrence up nan grill, while successful cooler weather, I fto nan oven do nan dense lifting. And erstwhile I’m short connected time, cooking them quickly connected nan stovetop makes for an easy and delicious lunch. Here’s really you tin do it:

On The Grill:

This is by acold my favourite measurement to navigator chicken marinated successful balsamic vinegar—the precocious power seals successful nan juices and creates those beautiful charred grill marks. Here’s really I do it:

Step 1 – Prepare nan grill: Preheat your grill to medium-high power (about 425–450°F). Clean nan grill grates to guarantee there’s nary residue from erstwhile grilling sessions. Use a pad of oiled insubstantial towels to thoroughly lipid nan grates to forestall nan chickenhearted from sticking.

Step 2 – Remove nan chicken: Take nan chickenhearted retired of nan marinade, letting immoderate excess drip off. This is an important step, arsenic excessively overmuch marinade tin origin flare-ups connected nan grill.

Step 3 – Grill: Place nan chickenhearted breasts connected nan basking grill and adjacent nan lid. Grill for astir 6 to 8 minutes per side. A bully measurement to show erstwhile it is clip to flip is to mildly assistance nan chicken. If it releases easy from nan grill, it is fresh to flip. If it is sticking, springiness it different infinitesimal aliases two. It will merchandise people erstwhile it is decently seared. 

Please statement that nan timing whitethorn alteration depending connected nan thickness of your chicken. Check for doneness by inserting a integer thermometer successful nan thickest portion of nan chicken—it should publication 165°F.

Step 4 – Rest & Serve: Loosely shelter nan grilled balsamic-marinated chickenhearted pinch foil and fto it remainder for 5–7 minutes, allowing nan juices to redistribute earlier serving.

In The Oven:

When I’m aft a much hands-off approach, I fto nan oven do astir of nan activity for me. Below are nan steps:

Step 1 – Preheat nan oven: My go-to oven somesthesia for baking chickenhearted is 425°F (218 °C). I find that immoderate lower, and it takes longer; plus, caramelization happens amended astatine this hotter temperature.

Grab a baking expanse and statement it pinch parchment paper. This helps pinch cleanup later, but if you for illustration a much caramelized, somewhat sticky exterior, you tin skip utilizing it.

Step 2 – Arrange: Place nan chickenhearted breasts connected nan expanse pan. Just for illustration pinch nan grilling method, it is important to fto immoderate excess marinade drip disconnected first. Otherwise, it will steam alternatively of roast, and you will miss retired connected that beautiful caramelized crust.

Step 3 – Roast: Let nan oven do its magic for 20 to 22 minutes, keeping successful mind that nan nonstop timing will dangle connected nan thickness of your chickenhearted pieces. Rotate nan cookware halfway done for moreover roasting.

Again, nan champion measurement to cheque for doneness is by inserting a integer thermometer into nan thickest portion of nan chickenhearted and ensuring that it registers 165°F (74°C).

Step 4 – Rest & Serve: Remove from nan oven, screen loosely pinch foil (or parchment paper) and fto it remainder 5-10 minutes earlier serving.

On The Stove Top:

I usually navigator it connected nan stove erstwhile I americium preparing my balsamic marinated chickenhearted for lunch, to service pinch a speedy crockery aliases atom connected nan side. Here’s how:

Step 1 – Heat your skillet: Heat 1 tablespoonful of lipid successful a ample (10–12 inch) skillet complete medium-high heat. 

Step 2 – Add nan chicken: Place nan chickenhearted breasts successful nan pan, making judge to (1) fto nan excess marinade drip disconnected first and (2) debar overcrowding nan skillet. Giving nan chickenhearted capable abstraction helps it sear and brownish decently alternatively than steaming.

Step 3 – Cook: Let nan chickenhearted navigator for 5 to 7 minutes connected each side. Similar to nan grilling method, if nan chickenhearted releases easy erstwhile you effort to flip it, it is fresh to beryllium turned. If not, springiness it a fewer much minutes to create a bully sear.

Use a integer thermometer to cheque doneness.

Step 4 – Rest and serve: Transfer nan now-cooked chickenhearted to a plate, screen pinch foil and fto it remainder for 5-10 minutes earlier serving.

How To Store, Freeze, and Thaw?

My favourite point astir this balsamic marinade look is that you tin make a batch successful minutes and person it fresh to navigator astatine a moment’s notice. 

It besides freezes beautifully, making it cleanable for those engaged days erstwhile you request a speedy and flavorful meal.

Storage and reheating: The leftover cooked aliases grilled balsamic-marinated chickenhearted tin beryllium stored successful an airtight instrumentality successful nan refrigerator for up to 3 days. You tin reheat it successful a low-temp oven (300 degrees F) for 10 minutes aliases until it is heated through, being observant not to overcook and barren it out.

Freezing: If you for illustration to freeze, I urge freezing nan earthy chickenhearted successful nan marinade alternatively of cooking it first. Simply spot nan chickenhearted and marinade successful a freezer-safe container aliases container, removing arsenic overmuch aerial arsenic imaginable to thief forestall immoderate crystal crystals from forming. It will support good successful nan freezer for up to 3 months.

Thawing: Remove nan stiff chickenhearted and marinade from nan freezer and fto them thaw successful nan fridge overnight.

FAQs

Pairing Suggestions pinch Balsamic Chicken

Starches: Pair it pinch my Seasoned Quinoa for a ray meal, aliases move it into a feast pinch Yukon Gold Mashed Potatoes.

Salads: During nan summertime months, erstwhile I request thing speedy and easy to service pinch grilled balsamic chicken, I usually spell for my 5 Bean Salad aliases Greek Cucumber Salad.

Vegetables: If you’re aft a low-carb dinner, service your balsamic marinated chickenhearted pinch a broadside of my Garlic and Butter Green Beans aliases Sauteed Asparagus.

Make it a dinner: Try my Grilled Caprese Chicken, wherever I usage this marinade and past grill nan chickenhearted pinch sliced caller mozzarella for an easy summertime dinner.

Other Chicken Marinade Recipes You Might Like:

If you enjoyed this recipe, I deliberation you mightiness also:

• Enjoy my Yogurt Chicken Marinade. Similar to vinegar-based marinades, nan lactic acerb successful yogurt mildly tenderizes nan meat, keeping it conscionable arsenic juicy and flavorful.
• Like my Mediterranean Chicken Marinade recipe, it embodies nan characteristics of nan Mediterranean fare pinch caller citrus juice, oliva oil, and caller herbs. And you only request 15 minutes of marinating clip for nan astir succulent chickenhearted recipe.

Photos by Tanya Pilgrim.

Categorized as: 4th of July Recipes, Chicken, Condiments, Dairy Free, Dinner, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Grain Free, Holidays, No Cook, Nut Free, Sauces, Special Diet