The ULTIMATE chicken marinade post! Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about making your marinades ahead and freezing, plus seven chicken marinade recipes to stock your freezer.
I’m back with one of my favorite posts…and today it’s all about the chicken marinades.
Each month, I pick a type of meal prep recipe and share seven different varieties with you. I get bored easily, and I know you do too, so it’s always good to have a bunch of flavors to pick from.
Check out: 7 Easy Stir Fry Sauce Recipes You Can Prep Ahead, Healthy Baked Turkey Meatballs 7 Ways, and No Bake Energy Bites 7 Ways.
This month it’s all about the chicken marinades. The concept: after picking up some chicken from the store, you may be in the habit of portioning it out and freezing it. But…what if you portioned it out in a marinade? Then, as you thaw your chicken, it absorbs so much incredible flavor from the marinade and you get one seriously flavorful piece of chicken.
In the process of testing all of these freezer marinades, it became increasingly obvious that not all chicken breasts are equivalent. In fact some of them weigh twice as much as others!
A serving size of chicken is 3-4 oz, about the size of the palm of your hand. So splitting a chicken breast between two people is normally a good bet, however if you get Big Bertha over on the right there, you are getting more than you need.
For these recipes, I am only showing one chicken breast (because of my tiny family), however I have also provided quantities for 1 lb (16 oz, so 4 servings) of chicken, which should be appropriate for the average sized family.
Cook time: Obviously, the cook time will vary depending on the size of your chicken. I bake at 425°F. 18- 20 minutes for the small 5 oz chicken breast and 25-28 minutes for the larger 10.5 oz chicken breast.
Equipment: all you really need for these recipes is a quart sized heavy-duty freezer bag
If you have a more environmentally-friendly alternative, let me know in the comments!
Advanced: check out my baggie holder
Marinating ‘rules’: OK, I’ve read up on chicken marinades quite a bit this month and there is quite a bit of contradictory advice out there. Some people say that marinating in citrus or acid-based marinades leads to mealy chicken but that was not the case for any of these marinades (possibly because they are balanced with oils and other ingredients).
Aside from that, I’ve tried to answer any questions you might have about these recipes below:
- Can I use these marinades without freezing them? Yes, absolutely. Pop them in the fridge for 2 hours all the way up to 24 hours. I don’t recommend marinating longer than that without freezing.
- How long can these be frozen? Up to 3 months. As everything freezes, the marinating process stops, and starts up again as the chicken thaws.
- What if my chicken is already frozen? Do not thaw your chicken if you are going to freeze again. Add the marinades to already frozen chicken, and you will still get a ton of flavor from marinating while it thaws.
- How to thaw the chicken? The safest bet is in the fridge overnight, but you can do a rapid-thaw process in cold water for a few hours. Just make sure your freezer bag is heavy duty so you don’t have any leakage!
- Can these marinades be used on other types of meat? Probably but I’ve only tested with chicken. I would not freeze fish in these marinades but they may be good for a quick 30 minute marinade.
- Can I grill or pan-fry the chicken? I have only tested these recipes in the oven but they should be transferable to the grill and frying pan. You may wish to shake off excess marinade prior to grilling to prevent flare-ups and/or brush more marinade on while grilling for extra flavor.
- One more thing- don’t forget to let your chicken rest after you bake it. Resting 5-10 minutes at room temperature before slicing will help seal in the juices.
Are you ready to check out these chicken marinades? Let’s go!
Continue reading: 7 Chicken Marinade Recipes You Can Freeze
