This recipe for Grilled Chicken Breast is a quick and easy way to make dinner in 30 minutes or less! We’re sharing all our tips and tricks on how to keep your chicken extra juicy when cooked on the grill.
Why You’ll Love This Grilled Chicken Breast Recipe
Grilling used to give me anxiety and I used to leave all the grilling to my husband since he is the grilling expert. I finally got over my fear and I slowly figured out that it is not that difficult after all! Here are just a few reasons why you’ll love this cooking technique:
- Keeping It Simple: For the recipe below, we skipped a marinade to keep things extra simple to show you exactly what to do and what not to do when learning how to grill chicken breasts. If you want to use a marinade, nothing changes, just marinade your chicken as desired the night before!
- Tender and Juicy: Simply basting the chicken with olive oil, adding a little seasoning, and following our tips below will produce grilled chicken breasts that are extra tender and juicy.
- Get Comfortable With the Grill: Grilled chicken is a great way to learn and get comfortable with the entire grilling process and with all of our tips and tricks, we promise you won’t fail!
Love this recipe but don’t have a grill? No problem! Try our recipes for baked chicken breasts or pan seared chicken breast.
What You’ll Need
Only 4 ingredients are need to make grilled chicken breasts and 3 of them are probably already in your pantry! Scroll down to the recipe card for exact amounts.
- Chicken Breast: Choose chicken breast that are close in size/weight so that they cook evenly. We typically buy thick chicken breast when grilling, they take a little longer to cook but do not dry out as easily. If you don’t mind a little longer cook time, I highly recommend using bone in chicken breasts. They will stay the juiciest of all chicken breasts!
- Olive Oil: Or you can use avocado oil.
- Garlic Salt: Using garlic salt gives the chicken flavor, but keeps the seasoning neutral enough to use the cooked chicken in other recipes. Feel free to use regular salt if you’d prefer.
- Pepper: Use freshly cracked black pepper for best flavor.
How to Grill Chicken Breast
If you’ve ever wondered how to grill chicken, it really is as easy as heat, grill, and flip! Check out the recipe card for detailed instructions.
- Prepare: Heat the grill to medium heat 350°F. Clean and trim the chicken and pat dry. Brush each side with olive oil and then season generously.
- Grill: Place chicken breast directly onto the prepared grates. Close the lid and keep an eye on the temperature. If you have thinner chicken breast they will cook very quickly, so keep the meat thermometer handy to watch the temperature.
- Flip: Flip the chicken after 10 minutes and continue to grill for approximately 10 more minutes. Grill the chicken until you reach an internal temperature of 165°F degrees. (If you are grilling thinner cuts of chicken flip between 6-8 minutes.)
- Rest: When the chicken has reached 165°F, remove chicken from the grill and wrap the breasts in foil for 5 minutes before serving. Wrapping the chicken in foil and letting the breasts rest will help the chicken become much more tender and juicy.
Tips and Tricks
With just a few quick tips and tricks, you’ll be a chicken grilling master in no time!
- Open Lid/Closed Lid: There are lots of mixed reviews regarding leaving the grill lid open or shut. If you have a thicker cut of meat, you will need to shut the lid in order for the internal temperature of the chicken to reach 165°F. If the chicken breast is thinner, you can leave the grill open and watch it carefully so that the meat does not cook to quickly on the outside and leave the inside undercooked.
- Thermometer: The thickness of the chicken breast will determine the amount of cooking time. Using an instant read thermometer is the best way to know if the chicken has reached 165°F. Remember a thicker cut chicken breast will take longer to grill, but should come out more juicy than a thinner cut breast.
- Know Your Grill: Watch out for hot and cold spots while grilling. You will want to keep an eye on the flames and move the chicken around, as needed, until the pieces are cooked evenly.
- Olive Oil: Don’t forget to add olive oil to the grates before you place the chicken on them. This simple step will help to keep the chicken from sticking to the grates.
- Rest: After the chicken is fully cooked, remove it from the grill and wrap the breasts in foil. Wrapping the chicken will produce much more tender and juicy cooked chicken.
Meal Prep: How to Use Grilled Chicken Breast
Do you like to meal prep for the week? We do! It saves so much time during the week and keeps us from making unnecessary take out choices. This grilled chicken breast can also be used in so many different types of recipes! Here are a few of our favorite recipes that utilize already cooked chicken:
- Chicken, Spinach and Artichoke Baked Tortellini
- Chicken Skillet Enchiladas
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta
- Cajun Chicken Casserole
- White Chicken Lasagna Rollups
We like to grill our chicken, let it rest until cooled, then store it in an airtight container in the fridge. We do not slice our chicken before storing it. We find if you pre-slice or chop the chicken, it tends to dry out more once reheated. By storing the breast whole, it stays much juicer when reheated.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
As we mentioned, this grilled chicken breast recipe is practically begging to be used for meal prep. Here’s how to handle those versatile leftovers.
- Store: Grilled chicken breast is so easy to prepare ahead and can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, making them one of the best choices of meat for meal prepping.
- Reheat: How you reheat depends on how you’re using the chicken. You can reheat individual breasts for salad or sandwiches in the microwave or simply use the chicken in any recipe you’d like!
- Freeze: You can freeze cooked chicken in an airtight container for up to 3 months. We recommend letting it thaw overnight in the fridge before using or reheating.
More Chicken Breast Recipes
- Crockpot French Onion Chicken
- Spanish Chicken And Rice
- Crispy Chicken Piccata
- Stuffing Stuffed Chicken Breasts
- Crockpot Mexican Chicken
Grilled Chicken Breast
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken breast, boneless or on bone
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly cracked pepper
Instructions
- Clean and trim chicken breasts and pat dry with paper towels. Brush olive oil on both sides of chicken. Generously season chicken breasts with garlic salt and pepper.
- Heat the grill to medium heat 350°F. Brush olive oil on the grill grates or use a high heat non-stick spray.
- Place chicken breast directly onto the prepared grates. Close the lid and keep an eye on the temperature. If you have thinner chicken breast they will cook very quickly, so keep the meat thermometer handy to watch the temperature.
- Flip the chicken after 10 minutes and continue to grill for approximately 10 more minutes. Grill the chicken until you reach an internal temperature of 165°F degrees. (If you are grilling thinner cuts of chicken flip between 6-8 minutes.)
- When the chicken has reached 165°F, remove chicken from the grill and wrap the breasts in foil for 5 minutes before serving.
Equipment
- Grill
