Grilled BBQ Chicken
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Charred edges, a sticky-tangy glaze, and smoky barbecue flavor all the way through—this grilled BBQ chicken is a go-to for summer cookouts.
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
We have a running joke about chicken in my family. Whenever I say we’re having chicken for dinner, my husband says, “Chicken again?” and then rattles off a seemingly endless list of chicken dinners his mother used to make: chicken parm, chicken cutlets, chicken schnitzel, chicken pot pie, and so on. The kids immediately pile on, groaning about all my chicken dinners. Luckily, these BBQ chicken breasts always win everyone over. They’re smoky, saucy, and loaded with barbecue flavor. I guarantee clean plates all around—proof there’s always room for one more chicken dinner!
“I made this chicken twice in the past week and received raves both times. Easy peasy and definitely crowd-pleasing!”
What You’ll Need To Make BBQ Chicken
- Chicken: You can use chicken tenderloins or boneless breasts. If using chicken breasts, it’s important to pound them to an even ½-inch thickness before marinating. This both tenderizes the breasts and ensures they cook evenly. (Pounding is not necessary if using tenderloins, as tenderloins are naturally very tender.)
- Marinade: Vegetable oil, garlic, salt, light brown sugar, smoked paprika, cumin, chili powder, and cayenne pepper.
- BBQ sauce: You can use a good quality store-bought sauce or make your own. My homemade BBQ sauce is quick and easy.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Make the marinade. In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, garlic, salt, brown sugar, smoked paprika, cumin, chili powder, and cayenne pepper. Unlike many BBQ chicken marinades, this one skips acidic ingredients like vinegar or citrus, which can make lean chicken breasts dry and a bit leathery.
Step 2: Marinate the chicken. Add the chicken to the bowl and toss with tongs until evenly coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours.
Pro tip: Marinating in spices rather than BBQ sauce is the secret to deep BBQ flavor — spices penetrate the meat and season it throughout, while sauce sits on the surface and its high sugar content can burn before the chicken is cooked through.
Step 3: Grill the first side. Preheat the grill to high and oil the grates. Grill the chicken, covered, for 2 to 3 minutes.
Pro tip: If you’d prefer to use bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces, preheat the grill to medium (350 to 375°F), oil the grates, and place the chicken, skin-side up, on the cooler side of the grill. Cook covered for 35 to 40 minutes, turning occasionally to prevent flare-ups. If the skin isn’t crispy yet, move it, skin-side down, to the hotter side for a few minutes — just keep a close eye on it.
Step 4: Flip and sauce. Flip the chicken and brush with some of the barbecue sauce. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes more.
Step 5: Serve. Transfer the chicken to a serving platter and serve with the remaining barbecue sauce alongside. Enjoy!
Video Tutorial
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Grilled BBQ Chicken
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 1¾ lbs chicken tenderloins or boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1¼ teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon (packed) light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- About 1 cup store-bought barbecue sauce or homemade BBQ sauce
Instructions
For the Chicken
- If using boneless skinless chicken breasts, place the chicken breasts one at a time in a 1-gallon zip-lock bag; using a meat mallet, pound the breasts to an even ½-in (13-mm) thickness. (Skip this step if using tenderloins.)
- In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, garlic, salt, brown sugar, smoked paprika, cumin, chili powder, and cayenne. Place the chicken in the bowl and, using tongs, toss until the chicken is evenly coated with the marinade. Cover the bowl and place in the refrigerator to marinate for at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours.
- Preheat the grill to high and oil the grates. Grill the chicken, covered, for 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the chicken, and then brush with some of the barbecue sauce. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes more. (Note that tenderloins will cook faster than breasts.)
- Transfer the chicken to a serving platter and serve with the remaining barbecue sauce alongside.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Would the marinate work for chicken thighs and legs? If so, how much to increase the ingredients?
Sure! And the amount of marinade depends on the amount of chicken you’re using. How many pounds of chicken are you planning on?
Made this last night. Only had one hour to marinate and it was still amazing. I am adding this comment because I tried to find others that hadn’t had a ton of time to marinate to see if it would still be ok, and it was! Another winner and so easy.
Loved this recipe the first time we made it. Have the chicken marinating in the fridge and the homemade sauce coming to room temp on the counter now. So excited! Was thinking of serving with your white bean ragout and steamed asparagus because I happen to have all the components on hand. Tomorrow your Cedar Plank Salmon and Peach Burrata salad. Haven’t tried anything I am making tomorrow so can’t wait to try them. Thank you for curating the most trustworthy collection of recipes. They make cooking a joy and the results are consistently impressive. My 8 y/o daughter says she wishes she could have dined at the restaurant you cooked at and my husband tells my mother in law he doesn’t enjoy eating out anymore because your recipes always blow away the best version of any dish we’ve tried in even the nicest restaurants. I have one of your cookbooks on display in my kitchen at all times- they’re part of the family! I found a homemade Mother’s Day card from a few years back and the prompt was “I know my mom loves be because she” and my daughter wrote in “makes me the best Kofta.” Your lamb Kofta really knocks my daughter’s socks off. Lol. Thank you for everything you put into your books/recipes.
❤️❤️
I made this chicken twice in the past week and received raves both times. Easy peasy and definitely crowd- pleasing!
One question on this recipe, which was delicious—I didn’t have light brown sugar, so used dark. I suspect it doesn’t make that much of a difference, but can you help me understand what is the difference between dark and light brown sugar? and why it is typically specified in recipes? Thanks
Hi Karen, dark brown sugar has a little more molasses than light brown. Recipes that call for dark brown sugar are typically aiming for a slightly stronger molasses flavor, but if you don’t have one or the other on hand, they’re pretty interchangeable.
This was a real crowd pleaser with my family! They loved every bite of it, and that is coming from my 14 year old daughter who typically doesn’t like chicken! This is definitely a keeper that will go into the regular recipe column!
This was absolutely delicious and easy to prepare. Deeply marinated, moist, perfect chicken! I have a delicious homemade bbq sauce recipe that I make frequently but decided to try your recipe last night, it is excellent and paired perfectly with the chicken.
This is a great go-to recipe for grilled chicken. It uses pantry ingredients and takes minimal time or effort to prepare. I used bone in, skin on thighs and grilled over indirect heat, so the cook time was a bit longer. The skin was beautifully charred and the meat was moist and nicely flavoured. The only change I made to the recipe was to add ancho chili powder and omit the cayenne. I basted with a molasses barbecue sauce but the skin was so nicely caramelized and tasty from the residual marinade that the sauce really didn’t add much and wouldn’t have been missed if I’d left it off.
Yum yum from your old.old admirer!
Ok to marinate for about 28 hours?
Sure – enjoy!