Spicy Chicken Marinade ($1.78/batch)

Want to spice things up this week? Try this Spicy Chicken Marinade to add flavor and kick to your grilled chicken.

Pair your grilled or broiled chicken with Seasoned Corn Off the Cob, Homemade Mexican Rice, and a green salad for an easy, delicious meal.

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• Why Make This
• Ingredients
• Step-by-Step Instructions
• FAQs
• Recipe Costs
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• Spicy Chicken Marinade

You come home from a busy day. It’s beautiful outside. You want to enjoy it. The last thing you want to do is spend the next couple hours indoors.

Good thing you planned ahead. You’ve got chicken breasts marinating in a spicy, chicken marinade — all ready to throw on the grill.

Evening made.

Why Make This

It’s easy to make-ahead. This Spicy Chicken Marinade is incredibly easy to make. So easy, you can pull it together in the morning before you leave the house and let the chicken just bathe in the fresh herbs, veggies, and spices until you get home.

It makes for delicious spicy chicken. This chicken is great on its own alongside rice, beans, and salad. It’s also a great filling for tacos, burritos, and burrito bowls.

Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need for this spicy chicken marinade:

tomato – I use fresh tomatoes but you can used canned if that’s what you have.

onion – A brown onion is ideal, but you can use purple or even a bunch of green onions.

jalapeño – The chili is what gives this marinade its spice. Make it more or less spicy by adjusting the amount of jalapeño.

cilantro – I love the salsa-feel that fresh cilantro gives to this spicy marinade.

garlic – Use fresh garlic, either whole cloves or chopped, for best flavor.

oil – Use whatever oil you regularly have on hand for cooking.

soy sauce – Soy sauce gives the marinade a salty tang. If you’d like to make this gluten-free, be sure to use coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce.

lime juice – Fresh lime juice adds a sweet-tart element to the marinade. You can also use bottled lime juice.

chicken pieces – Once the marinade is prepared, you’ll need chicken. I use boneless, skinless chicken breast, but you can use whatever chicken pieces you like.

Step-by-Step Instructions

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Many chicken marinades are made by simply whisking together acids, oil, and spices together. This Spicy Chicken Marinade takes one extra step. Since the marinade is made with onion, jalapeño, tomatoes, and fresh herbs, you’ll need to blend it up together in a blender or food processor.

1. Combine the tomato, onion, jalapeno, cilantro, garlic, oil, soy sauce, and lime juice in the bowl of a blender or food processor fitted with a metal blade. Blend until smooth.
2. Place the chicken pieces in a container with a lid or a ziptop freezer bag. Add the marinade. Massage the bag or move the chicken pieces around in the container to coat completely with the marinade. Allow to marinate for 2 hours.
3. Heat an outdoor grill or grill pan. Remove the chicken from the marinade and cook on the hot grill, turning once, until an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Cover and rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Freezing Instructions

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If I know that I’m going to freeze the chicken in the marinade, I place it in a ziptop freezer bag, labeled with the name and date. If I’m going to cook it that day, I just use a large container with a lid. Either way, it needs to be refrigerated or stored in the freezer right away.

FAQs

Recipe Costs

Knowing how much it costs you to prepare a recipe can help you decide if it’s the type of recipe to make regularly or one you might want to save for special occasions. Let’s crunch some numbers and see how this recipe pencils out.

• tomato – $0.40
• onion – $0.25
• jalapeño – $0.10
• cilantro – $0.15
• garlic – $0.02
• oil – $0.16
• soy sauce – $0.40
• lime juice – $0.30

Shopping at a mid-range grocery store at non-sale prices, you can expect to pay about $1.78 for a large batch of marinade.

Save even more:

Here are some of the strategies I use to make this recipe more economical:

• Meal plan around what’s on sale. Don’t decide to make this when chicken is $5/pound and you have none in the freezer. Next time you see chicken on sale, add this to your meal plan!
• Do a price comparison. I know that ALDI is the best place for me to buy chicken when there isn’t a great sale elsewhere. It’s normally $1.89/lb! I keep track of prices so that I know who has the best deal where. 
• Stock up on ingredients when they are on sale. Buy extra chicken as well as marinade ingredients and stash them away in your pantry so you can make this dish whenever you want.

More Great Chicken Recipes

This post was originally published on August 16, 2019. It has been updated for content and clarity.