Asian Chicken Marinade

With just a few common Asian-inspired ingredients, you can create this easy Asian Chicken Marinade for your favorite cut of chicken. After cooking the chicken (choose from four different methods), serve it in wraps, on salads, or with rice.

Ingredients Needed

This complex-tasting chicken marinade recipe requires mostly pantry staples to turn that lackluster cut into something that makes your tastebuds sing.

• Avocado or peanut oil – A fairly neutral oil keeps things moist without an overpowering flavor.
• Rice vinegar – This traditional Asian vinegar provides the acid component to the marinade. Make sure to buy the “unseasoned” kind, not “seasoned”.
• Soy sauce – Adds saltiness and that mouthwatering “umami” flavor.
• Honey – Just a hint of sweetness to balance out the saltiness of the soy sauce.
• Sesame oil – A touch of this oil adds a deep nuttiness. Don’t go overboard.
• Pepper – Gives a little bite. Add more if you’d like.

How to Make Asian Chicken Marinade

Place the marinade ingredients straight into a large Ziploc bag and give it a good shake. This saves you an extra dish. You could also mix the ingredients in a small mixing bowl and pour it over the chicken. Options galore!

Add the chicken to the ziplock bag with the marinade. Close securely and gently massage it into the meat. Marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours.

4 Ways to Cook Marinated Chicken

Chicken breasts are by far the most popular cut to marinate and cook, so we’re giving you several cooking options below. You can grill, bake, slow cook, or pressure cook your boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or thighs).

Here are four easy ways to cook marinated Asian Chicken:

Preheat oven to 400°F. Place chicken in a casserole dish or on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake uncovered for about 20-25 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chicken, until done.

Place chicken and marinade in slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW for 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours. Really! That’s all it takes to get it done, otherwise, you’ll overcook and dry it out.

Here is a whole post about how long to cook chicken in the Crockpot if you’re interested!

Place chicken, marinade, and 1/3 cup chicken broth in a 6-quart Instant Pot. (Note: If using an 8 quart, add an additional 1/2 cup of broth.)

 Lock and seal the lid. Cook at high pressure for 7 minutes and use a quick release of the pressure when the cook time is up. (Note: It will take 10-15 minutes to come to pressure before the cook time starts.)

Pound out the chicken to about 3/4 inch thick (or cut it in half lengthwise) to help with fast and even cooking.

Preheat grill to medium-high heat (400-450°F) and clean the grates well. Grill for 4-6 minutes per side, closing the lid in between flipping. The cook time may take a little longer, depending on the thickness of the chicken.

Ideas for Serving Asian Chicken

Once you cook your marinated Asian Chicken, try serving it in one of these ways.

Idea #1: A Simple Asian Chicken Dinner with Brown Rice

Just serve the cooked chicken with rice and slaw or stir-fried veggies. You can find a bag of stir-fry veggies in the freezer section to make it easy. Again, you can boil the marinade, strain it, and use it as a sauce over the veggies, rice, and chicken. So simple and healthy!

Idea #2: Asian Chicken Wrap

One unique way to serve this marinated chicken is in an Asian Chicken Wrap. To make it, grill the chicken, chop it, and serve it in a wrap with thinly shredded cabbage, shredded carrots, julienned water chestnuts, and a little brown rice. Boil the remaining marinade, strain out the solids, and use as a sauce.

Idea #3: Asian Slaw Salad with Chicken

Grill the chicken and chop it up. Boil the marinade, strain out the solids, and let it cool. Create a salad of shredded coleslaw, shredded carrots, frozen edamame (that’s been thawed), roasted sunflower seeds, roasted almonds, and dried cranberries. Feel free to add chopped apples or pears, too. Top it with the chicken and cooled sauce, which works as a dressing! It’s delicious.