One of the BEST recipes for grilled lemon pepper chicken breasts! This savory, delicious Lemon Pepper Grilled Chicken comes together quickly and easily, making it the perfect healthy dinner solution. Great with chicken breasts, legs or thighs!
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Why this Lemon Pepper Marinade is the secret to juicy chicken
As an experienced recipe tester, home cook and griller, I’ve easily grilled 100’s of chicken breasts over the years. The key to getting juicy, flavorful chicken breasts is a great marinade. This lemon pepper chicken marinade infuses flavor and tenderizes it perfectly, giving you juicy chicken breasts every time.
The marinade uses just a few simple ingredients, including olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, lemon pepper seasoning and garlic. These ingredients are quick to whisk together and pour over chicken breasts or thighs. This Lemon Pepper Grilled Chicken is an amazing option for a simple weeknight dinner, meal prep and perfect for your summer cookout, BBQ or potluck dinner.
What do I need to make a lemon pepper chicken marinade?
Don’t be intimidated by making your own marinade. You need just a few simple ingredients, and it comes together in minutes. Here’s your ingredient checklist:
- Olive Oil – this is a key ingredient in most homemade marinde recipes. You can also use avocado oil, as it has a high smoke point making it great for high grilling temperatures.
- 2 lemons (for zest and juice) – go for fresh lemons for the juice and zest. In a pinch you can use bottled lemon juice if needed.
- Lemon Pepper seasoning – this is a spice mix that can be found in the spice section of your grocery store. Great for using on chicken. I also use this spice mix in my Sheet Pan Chicken and Potatoes recipe.
- Minced Garlic – feel free to use jarred minced garlic or mince individual cloves of garlic.
Is it okay to marinate chicken in lemon juice?
Yes, however don’t over-marinate. Marinade time can be anywhere from 30 minutes, but no longer than 2-3 hours for boneless chicken breasts or thighs. The high acidity of the lemon juice will quickly break down the meat proteins. If left in the marinade for too long, the meat will become grainy and rubbery in texture.
Tips for Marinating Chicken Breasts
To marinate the chicken, simply place the chicken in the bag and pour the marinade over the top of the chicken. I prefer using resealable bags versus containers or pans – mostly because the marinade can reach all sides of the meat, versus just one side.
Often times while marinating in a pan or container you’ll need to rotate the meat. With a plastic bag, you can squish the marinade and meat around, and the liquid coats the meat well.
Refrigerate the marinated chicken for at least 30 minutes or up to 3 hours.
Can I use this lemon pepper chicken marinade on other cuts of chicken?
Yes, definitely. This chicken marinade works for all cuts of chicken, both boneless and bone-in. Marinade time will differ slightly for bone-in cuts of chicken. Bone-in cuts of meat (chicken legs, quarters, bone-in breasts and thighs) can handle the citrus acidity a little better, and can be marinated for up to 6 hours.
Here’s the standard grill times for each cut of chicken:
- Boneless Chicken Breasts (medium thickness): approximately 6 minutes per side
- Boneless Chicken Thighs (medium thickness): approximately 4 minutes per side
- Chicken Legs: approximately 10 minute per side, turning 3 times (30 minutes total)
- Bone-In Chicken Thighs: approximately 35 minutes total
- Bone-In Chicken Breasts: approximately 25-30 minutes total
Could you use other chicken breast recipes? Check these out:
- Baked Italian Chicken
- Sheet Pan Chicken and Potatoes
- Sheet Pan Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
- Healthy Cashew Chicken
- Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
- Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Chicken
- Pollo Asado Recipe
- Grilled Caprese Chicken
- BBQ Chicken Skewers
Tips for Grilling Chicken Breasts Perfectly
Cooking chicken breast for the right amount of time will keep them tender and juicy. Depending on the size and thickness of your chicken breasts, and how hot your grill gets will determine the cook time of the chicken breasts. On my gas grill, when heated to 375-400 degrees, chicken breasts of medium thickness need approximately 6-7 minutes per side to cook to an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Thinner chicken breast cutlets will need less time, approximately 4 minutes per side.
Please note that chicken breasts vary in size greatly. The thicker the chicken breast, the longer it will need to cook. Additionally, if the chicken is a bone-in breast, it will also need additional time.
For best results, I highly recommend investing in an instant-read digital meat thermometer. (shown above) You know your chicken is done cooking when the internal temperature, taken on the thickest side of the breast reaches 165 degrees. When cutting into the chicken, the juices should run clear.
How do I prevent chicken from sticking to the grill?
I’ve grilled hundreds of chicken breasts over the years. In my experience, the best way to make sure your chicken breasts don’t stick to the grill grates, is to ensure there is an ample amount of oil on the chicken or grates. You can either spray the grill grates (before the grill is lit) with avocado oil spray, or spray the chicken directly with the avocado oil spray. Spraying the oil directly on the chicken seems to be more effective, as the chicken is adequately coated.
How do you grill chicken without drying it out?
The best way to dry out chicken is to overcook it. Because chicken breast meat has little to no fat, it retains very little moisture. Keep the cook times to 5-6 minutes per side on medium-high heat.
Because sizes of chicken breasts vary greatly, it’s best to use a digital meat thermometer to test doneness. I use and love my Thermapen ONE Instant Read Digital Meat Thermometer. Not only is it great for testing everything on the grill, I use it for oven roasting from everything from baked chicken to my Thanksgiving turkey!
Thermapen ONE Instant Read Digital Thermometer
This is my go-to tool for grilling and roasting! With a Thermapen there’s no guessing if or when the meat is done. The precise temperature will provide you with meat that is perfectly cooked, juicy and delicious EVERY time!
FAQ’s for making Lemon Pepper Grilled Chicken:
I recommend grilling chicken breasts at 375-400 degrees. If your grill gets hotter, you might risk having dry, overcooked chicken.
I recommend marinating chicken breasts in this lemon pepper marinade for no more than 2-3 hours, refrigerated. Because the lemon juice is very acidic, the proteins in the chicken will begin breaking down quickly and the meat will take on a grainy unappealing texture if left in the marinade for longer than 3 hours. You can also marinate chicken for as little as 30 minutes and still have it take on a tender, juicy flavor.
Yes, you can defintely make your marinade and refrigerate your chicken in advance of cooking. In fact, the ideal scenario for marinated chicken is to prep the marinade in advance, add the chicken and refrigerate. Be sure to keep the marinated chicken refrigerated in advance. If you want to prep the marinade a day or two in advance, I recommend keeping it in it’s own container in the refrigerator. Add the marinade to the chicken and marinate for up to 2-3 hours.
The best and most convenient container for marinating chicken or any other meat is a gallon-sized zip-top bag. These accomodate the liquid and meat well, and coat everything evenly. Once ready to grill, the remaining marinade and bag can zipped and neatly discarded. If you don’t want to use a zip-top bag, any resealable container with a tight-fitting lid will work well. Make sure it is big enough to accomodate both marinade and meat. Ensure the chicken and marinade are well refrigerated.
Once your meat is done marinating and is ready to be cooked, the marinade should be discarded. DO NOT save the marinade – it has been in contact with raw meat and is NOT safe to consume. If you want to have extra marinade to brush on the meat while grilling or for serving, I recommend making a fresh batch that has not come in contact with raw meat.
The nutritional macros for this Italian grilled chicken is 41 grams of protein, 300 calories per 4 oz. serving.
What should I serve with lemon chicken?
Salads, vegetables, potatoes and rice are all great side dish to go with lemon chicken. I’ve listed a few below that go wonderfully with this lemon grilled chicken.
- Roasted Brussel Sprouts Salad with Apple and Kale
- Quinoa Chickpea Salad
- Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad
- Zesty Italian Pasta Salad
- Easy Greek Tortellini Salad
- Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
- Garden Vegetable Pasta Salad
- Watermelon Cucumber Salad
- Italian Chopped Salad
- Italian Tortellini Salad
- Deviled Egg Potato Salad
- Pesto Tortellini Pasta Salad
- TikTok Boursin Pasta
- Panera Copycat Strawberry Poppyseed Salad
- Creamy Dill Pickle Pasta Salad by Kylee Cooks
How do I store and reheat leftover grilled chicken (meal prep tips)
For best results, store your grilled chicken in an air-tight container with a tight fitting lid and store in the refrigerator. The chicken will keep for 5 days refrigerated. If you are meal prepping your chicken with rice, vegetables or salad greens, it is safe to refrigerate together in the same container. Check out my post for Best Meal Prep Containers that I use and love.
When meal prepping this chicken for meals later, I’ll often double this batch, and grill up extra chicken for leftovers for salad in the days to follow. It makes a great protein add-on for a healthy lunch and can save serious time on busy weeknights.
Can I freeze Italian grilled chicken?
You can also freeze this chicken. I recommend slicing the chicken before freezing to make the thawing process faster. Store in a freezer container or freezer-safe plastic freezer bags that seal well. The chicken will keep frozen for up to three months? Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
What is the best way to reheat grilled chicken?
I actually recommend reheating grilled chicken in the air fryer or oven. Preheat air fryer or oven to 325 degrees. Heat for 3-5 minutes or until completely heated through. In a pinch you can reheat chicken in the microwave, but results tend to be dry, rubbery chicken – I don’t recommend it.
Another meal prep recipe that has some great Italian flavors are my Baked Italian Chicken and Italian Mini Turkey Meatloaf and my Sheet Pan Garlic Parmesan Chicken and Potatoes recipes. Fantastic for making for dinner and taking to work the next day!
If you loved this lemon pepper grilled chicken, check out some of my other recipes for the grill:
- Grilled Chicken Leg Quarters
- Italian Grilled Chicken
- Grilled Caprese Chicken
- Cilantro Lime Grilled Chicken
- Brown Sugar Balsamic Grilled Chicken
- Grilled BBQ Chicken Quarters
- Hawaiian Ham & Pineapple Kebabs
- BBQ Grilled Chicken Drumsticks
- Apple Cider Glazed Pork Chops
- Grilled Boneless Chicken Thighs
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Juicy Lemon Pepper Grilled Chicken (Easy Marinade Recipe)
Equipment
- Grilling Tongs These stainless steel grilling tongs by OXO are perfect for quick grilling.
- Gallon sized Zip-Loc Bags Ideal for marinating chicken. Keeps the marinade and chicken well submerged.
- Mini Whisk Fantastic for small batch recipes, this mini whisk is ideal for dressings, sauces and marinades.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs. chicken breasts can also use legs or thighs
Marinade:
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup lemon juice juice of 2 lemons
- 2 Tablespoons lemon zest zest of about 1 lemon
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning
Instructions
- In a bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, and lemon pepper seasoning.
- Place chicken into a resealable plastic bag. Pour marinade over chicken. Seal bag, and refrigerate chicken and marinade for at least 30 minutes or up 2-3 hours. (Note: unlike other marinades, because lemon juice is highly acidic, chicken proteins will break down and become grainy or rubbery if left in the marinade too long. Keep the marinade time short, no more than 3 hours.)
- Preheat grill to medium high heat. Brush grill grates with olive oil, or spray with non-stick grilling spray. Place chicken over indirect heat. Grill chicken breasts for approximately 6-8 minutes per side.
- If unsure about doneness, use a meat thermometer to make sure internal temperature reads 165 degrees.
- Serve right away while warm.
Notes
Nutrition
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Beautiful dish. I love lemon pepper. Thanks for sharing at the What’s for Dinner party – hope the rest of your week is great!