Grilled Island Chicken
This grilled island chicken is some of the juiciest, most flavorful chicken around, and is perfect for those warm grilling months!
This grilled chicken is perhaps one of the simplest and most delicious chicken recipes I’ve ever tried.
Marinaded in a flavorful concoction of lemon, oregano, soy sauce and garlic, this recipe is similar to the tasty lemon and garlic grilled chicken that I have waxed poetic about in the past.
The difference with the Island Chicken is that it is a bit more subtle on the robust fresh lemon juice and garlic flavors which allows the soy sauce and oregano to really shine, as well.
After marinating, the chicken is grilled to get some of the juiciest, most flavorful chicken around. It is perfect for those warm months that are creeping up when I want to avoid turning on my oven.
Since making it the first time, I’ve also marinaded the chicken in large chunks and grilled them on skewers with red peppers and onions. Heavenly. And oh, so easy.
What To Serve With This:
I have served it with everything from these sweet potato skewers (also grilled) and corn on the cob, to this Zucchini Mozzarella Medley, to this Black Bean and Corn Quinoa Salad, to this stuffed zucchini. You can serve just about anything with this chicken.
One Year Ago: Samoas Bars
Also One Year Ago: Raspberry Lime Rickey
Grilled Island Chicken
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, from about 1-2 lemons
- 1 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients except chicken in a mixing bowl or large airtight plastic bag. Whisk or shake well until the marinade is well mixed. Add the chicken breasts to the bowl or plastic bag so that they are covered by the marinade. If using a bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap. If using a plastic bag, press out all the excess air and seal the bag tightly.
- Refrigerate and marinate up to 10 hours (I would suggest marinading for at least 3 hours at the minimum).
- Preheat a gas or charcoal grill to medium heat. Grill the chicken for 6-7 minutes per side (depending on how thick the chicken breasts are), until the chicken is no longer pink in the center (if you have a meat thermometer, the chicken should register 165 degrees). Tent with foil and let the chicken rest for about five minutes before serving.
Alternately, the chicken can be baked using the following directions:
- When ready to cook the chicken, preheat the oven to 350° F. Place the chicken breasts in a baking dish and pour the excess marinade over them. Bake in the oven until cooked through and the internal temperature reaches 165° F, about 45 minutes (exact baking time will depend on the size of your chicken pieces.) Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
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Recipe Source: adapted slightly from Annie’s Eats
78 Comments on “Grilled Island Chicken”
Would this go well with a pasta on your site?
It would be super yummy with the tri-color pasta salad. https://www.melskitchencafe.com/tri-color-pasta-salad/
Love this so much! Every time I make it I wonder why I don’t do it more often.
This was amazing Mel!! Thanks so much for the recipe. My husband couldn’t believe how much I ate! I actually cleared my plate! The chicken was so awesome and moist and I got a charred piece! I like the lady’s idea with having pineapple with it! Next time!
Blessings to you!
I made this along side grilled pineapple on a really hot day and it was SO good!
I have been making this recipe for several years and thought I should tell you how much we enjoy it. I don’t make chicken any other way! Sometimes I grill a large package of breasts and freeze some of them. They are great for tacos, quesadillas, salads and many other recipes. Thank you so much for sharing this with us.
Hi Mel! My name is Mel too! I’ve always been an edible dinner cook but not much more. I find your blog about a year ago and have eagerly tried and loved so many recipes. My family would say, “where’d you get this recipe?” I’d answer “Mel’s Kitchen Cafe” didn’t think anything of it until recently I showed one of them and they said, “oh! All this time I thought you were just being clever and referring to our kitchen!” 🙂
Haha! That’s hilarious, Mel!
This is actually not a comment for this chicken only, but to all the recipes I tried from this website.
Thank you. I have the most picky dad. But your recipes really works, and he now eats without complaining. It’s not always easy, to get the recipes translated to danish, but it works. So thanks for making my “cooking-day” a lot easier. 5 stars from me
Thanks, Helena!
Will try this recipe for an upcoming party. Any tips for cooking ahead and keeping warm until crowd arrives? Thinking about starting on the grill in the morning and then finishing in the oven just before serving. What are your thoughts? Thank you.
Cookie47 – I’ve never really made it ahead of time but I think that would work as long as it doesn’t overcook.
I don’t have a grill and have a tendency to over-cook chicken in the oven, so I cooked it in a skillet with a little oil and it turned out fantastic! Simple, easy and delicious! 🙂
Another winner recipe! This chicken was so good!
I actually got a “That was REALLY good chicken” from my tween son. A compliment…from a tween. You KNOW this recipe is a winner.
Hi Mel. So. I would like to use this or one of your other grilled chicken recipes as a freezer meal. Do you know if the chicken and marinade would freeze well to be thawed and used at a later date?
Marie – I haven’t tried it that way but I know a lot of people do that – freeze the marinated chicken to use later so I’d say it is definitely worth a try. My only hesitation is that there is quite a bit of acidity in this marinade which can sometimes “cook” the chicken and I’m not sure if it would cause the outside of the chicken to get those white streaks and change texture. Good luck if you try it!
I just try this recipe for the first time the other day and I must say it was really good, juicy flavorful and very tender definitely a winner in our table….
yum..yum! Fresh and juicy, and ingredients for marinade are pantry staples, always a plus! Perfect dish to enjoy on an island, or, in my case, wish I was on one!