These hot summer nights are perfect for juicy grilled chicken – all the flavor without turning on the oven! If you love grilling, you’ll love these favorites: all-purpose grilled chicken, balsamic chicken, cilantro lime chicken, lemon basil chicken, and Greek chicken.
HOW TO MAKE Italian Chicken VIDEo
Ingredients for Italian Chicken Marinade
This is an incredibly versatile recipe for Italian Chicken Marinade that can be used on any cut of chicken, cooked using whatever method you prefer. To make the marinade and chicken, you’ll need the following easy-to-find ingredients (recipe measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post):
How to Make Italian Chicken Marinade
The Italian Chicken Marinade comes together quickly, but you need to let the chicken rest in the marinade for at least 30 minutes to infuse it with flavor. I’ll go into detail about how to cook Italian Chicken in the section below, but here’s how to make the actual marinade:
Step 1: Whisk the Italian chicken marinade ingredients together in a freezer bag or glass bowl. Step 2: Add the chicken and turn to coat. Step 3: Marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes or refrigerate for up to 12 hours (see tips below for marinating chicken). Step 4: When ready to cook, remove the chicken from the refrigerator and let it rest 20-30 minutes before cooking.
How to Cook Italian Chicken Breast
Once the chicken breasts have had time to soak up all the flavors of the Italian Marinade, it’s time to get cooking! You can either grill, bake or pan-sear the Italian Chicken – all methods result in ultra-juicy, flavorful chicken so pick whichever cooking method is best for you.
Italian Chicken Pasta: Stir chopped Italian Chicken into any of your favorite pasta recipes such as cacio e pepe, fettuccine Alfredo or healthy Alfredo, margherita pasta, roasted red pepper pasta, mushroom spaghetti or mushroom orzo. You can also create your own pasta by tossing warm pasta with garlic infused tomatoes (or any other veggies) sautéed in plenty of olive oil. Add some reserved pasta water to thin out the pasta or make it creamy with heavy cream or tangy with some balsamic. Add desired amount of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Italian Chicken Pasta Salad: Add chopped up chicken to your favorite Italian Pasta Salad, Caesar Pasta Salad, or Pesto Pasta Salad. To make an easy pesto version, make a dressing of pesto mixed with a little olive oil and toss it with medium cooked pasta. Add any of your favorite fixings such as cherry tomatoes, cucumbers mozzarella pearls, fresh basil, pine nuts, etc. Bruschetta Chicken: Top the cooked Italian Chicken with slices of mozzarella, allow to melt, then pile on the bruschetta. Chicken Caprese: Top the cooked Italian Chicken with slices of mozzarella, tomatoes, fresh basil and drizzle with balsamic reduction. Italian Chicken Risotto: Stir chopped chicken into Parmesan Risotto, Spinach Risotto, Mushroom Risotto or Butternut Squash Risotto. Italian Chicken Soup: Add chicken to any of your favorite soups such as Creamy Italian Soup, Minestrone Soup, Chicken Tortellini Soup, Lemon Soup, Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup etc. You may need to adjust the seasonings in the original soup recipe because the chicken is so wonderfully flavorful. Italian Chicken Bowls: Top your favorite grains (rice, couscous, quinoa etc.) with chopped chicken, roasted veggies, and your favorite toppings: shredded lettuce, artichokes, tomatoes, olives, pickled red onions, white beans, almonds, etc. Italian Chicken French Bread: Cut a loaf of French Bread in half. Spread with a layer of pesto or pesto combined with Alfredo sauce. Top with chopped chicken, tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and any other desired toppings. Bake at 350 degrees F until the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes. Italian Chicken Pizza: Top store-bought or my homemade pizza dough with Alfredo sauce, mozzarella cheese, chopped up leftover chicken and favorite toppings such as sun-dried tomatoes, olives, bell peppers, tomatoes, roasted butternut squash, etc. Bake according to pizza directions. Italian Chicken Flatbread: Follow the same toppings as for pizza but use your favorite flatbread. Italian Chicken Salad: My recipe coming this week! In the meantime, slice the chicken and serve it in a big green salad with spinach, tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, etc. and some fun fixings: mozzarella pears, sliced almonds, garlic croutons, etc. You can add additional oil and a splash of lemon juice to some pesto to make a pesto vinaigrette. Italian Chicken sandwiches: Go Caprese style by smothering bread with pesto and layering with sliced tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and Italian Chicken, then drizzling with some balsamic, or better yet, balsamic reduction. Add any additional toppings your belly desires such as avocado, bacon, sprouts, etc. Italian Chicken Panini: Mix pesto and mayo or Greek yogurt together and spread on each side of sliced ciabatta bread then layer with mozzarella cheese, arugula, tomatoes, basil and sliced chicken. Top chicken with bread and grill in a greased grill pan, placing a heavy pan on top of the sandwich. Grill panini for 3 minutes per side or until cheese is melted. Italian Chicken Wraps: Spread a light layer of pesto down the middle of a tortilla or make it creamy by mixing pesto with mayo or Greek yogurt. Add chopped up Italian chicken and desired filling ingredients such as tomatoes, mozzarella, bell peppers, olives, red onion, lettuce, cucumber, bacon, etc. You can also swap the tortillas for low carb bib lettuce. Italian Chicken Potatoes: Stir chopped chicken into roasted potatoes like my pesto bacon roasted potatoes recipe.
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