Easy Grilled Chicken Breasts
These easy grilled chicken breasts come together quickly with a simple blend of pantry seasonings. With smoked paprika, garlic, onion, and mustard powder, these juicy chicken breasts have a smoky, savory flavor and are great on their own or sliced and served on salad, wraps, or sandwiches. They are simple to prepare and can be cooked and stored in the fridge for chicken throughout the week.
Grilled boneless, skinless chicken breasts are quick and easy. Juicy and flavorful, this chicken is great as part of a main meal or sliced and served with salad, sandwiches, or wraps.
Use it to make a delicious Chicken Caesar Salad, or use it to fill a tasty Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadilla.
I always have cooked chicken in the fridge.
Having a protein cooked and ready allows me to get meals on the table quickly, without reaching for the take-out menu. I find it especially helpful for quick lunches when I find I’ve lost track of time.
One of my favorites is grilled chicken, and especially during the warmer months, I like to sit outside for an hour on the weekend, grilling enough chicken to use throughout the week. It’s simple to prepare and from start to finish is ready in about 45 minutes.
This easy grilled chicken breast recipe is perfect because, while incredibly flavorful, the seasonings are versatile enough to use in almost any recipe.
The seasoning blend in this recipe is made from a combination of brown sugar, smoked paprika, garlic, onion, and chili powder for a slightly sweet and smoky flavor with just a bit of heat. But if you want to make things even easier, you can use any of your favorite store-bought seasoning blends.
One of my favorite ways to use it is to add a few chicken breasts to my Elote Pasta Salad and eat it for lunch for the next few days. But I’ve also used this chicken in recipes such as BBQ Chicken Quesadillas, Buffalo Chicken Flatbread, and Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad.
And while this chicken is a great addition to salads and sandwiches, it is also delicious on its own with a few simple sides. An Air Fried Baked Potato, Air Fried Corn on the Cob, or a simple side of Blackstone Garlic Bread complements this chicken nicely.
This chicken breast is great hot or cold, and leftovers will keep for about 4 days in the refrigerator.
Ingredients & Substitutions
For a full list of ingredients and measurements, see the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Chicken breasts – This recipe uses boneless skinless chicken breasts. You could also use boneless, skinless chicken thighs, but depending on the thickness, you will need to adjust the cook time.
Seasoning – The seasoning blend on this chicken is a combination of simple pantry seasonings. We’ve used brown sugar, smoked paprika, onion, garlic, mustard powder, chili powder, and cayenne for a bit of heat, and salt and pepper. The nice thing about this recipe is that you can adjust but adding additional seasonings, or removing ones you don’t like.
If you want to make things even easier, you can use premade blends such as BBQ seasoning, Cajun, or any other specialty spice blend you like.
Preparing the Chicken
The trick to keeping this chicken juicy and ensuring it cooks evenly is in the preparation.
Before seasoning the chicken, place it on a cutting board and cover it with a piece of plastic wrap. Then, using the heel of your hand or a meat mallet, gently pound the thicker end of the chicken breasts to make them an even thickness throughout.
Next, season the chicken and let it rest for 10-15 minutes to allow the moisture of the chicken to absorb the dry seasoning. This will help prevent burning and keep the chicken juicy when cooking.
Once the chicken is cooked, place it on a plate and wrap it in tinfoil to let it rest for 10 mintues. This will help the chicken retain its moisture, resulting in delicous, juicy, chicken breasts.
Food Safety and Storage
Cooked chicken breasts can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
You can also wrap tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, or place in an airtight container and store in the freezer for several months.
More Easy Chicken Recipes
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Easy Grilled Chicken Breast
Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 tbsp brown sugar lightly packed
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp mustard powder
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- Place the chicken breasts on a cutting board and place a sheet of plastic wrap over top.
- With the heel of your hand, or a meat mallet, gently pound the thick end of the chicken breasts so that the chicken breasts are an even thickness throughout.
- In a small bowl, combine the seasonings, then sprinkle over both sides of the chicken.
- Cover with plastic wrap and let rest 10-15 minutes until the seasoning no longer looks dry.
- Place the chicken on a preheated grill, close the lid, and allow to cook for about 8 minutes.
- Flip the chicken and cook for another 8-10 minutes, or until it is cooked through.They are cooked when the juices run clear when pierced with a fork, or the internal temperature reads 165°F when tested with an instant-read thermometer.
- Remove the chicken to a plate, cover with foil, and allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
