6 Healthy Freezer Chicken Marinades {for the Grill}

These healthy freezer chicken marinades are perfect for Summer meal prep, preparing for a new baby, or to streamline the cooking process! Dairy free, gluten free, and loaded with fresh flavor. Make just one, or prepare all 6 delicious chicken marinades at once!

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With summer on its way, I'm faced with the reality of cooking through these hot months without the absolute blessing of an air conditioner. While I'm enjoying the perfectly dreamy weather here in the Northeast, I know that soon enough it will be replaced with stifling heat and humidity that tends to hover at about 98%. Lest it sounds like I'm complaining, know that I view this season as a much needed respite from my work in the kitchen. While I absolutely love working for hours, making my own milk kefir, or crafting some Instant Pot Bone Broth, like all good things, there has to be some rest for a time.

That time, for me, is Summer.

Simple Summer Meal Prep

While I still prepare all of our meals at home, they take a somewhat simpler form. And as for our staple proteins, if I can have my husband grill them, you better believe I'm opting for that! And thus the idea for these freezer chicken marinades was born.

In the past I've prepped easy freezer meals for the summer, but this time I wanted to make something ultra easy AND something that could work with almost any side dish, salad, or meal idea. Chicken breasts lend themselves well to a variety of uses, and so the matter was settled. Some of these have been favorites for years, and some were developed specifically for this post. ALL of them were tested and enjoyed fully by my family. I'm due to make another batch soon, and I'll be printing off the handy meal prep, grocery list, and freezer guide I've prepared to make it extra easy (sign up for my e-mail list here and I'll send it to you for free!)

How to Make Freezer Chicken Marinades

You can select just one of these recipes and prep it for dinner tonight, or you can make all six and stash some in the freezer for a later date! If you want to freeze them, I have a few tips to show you just how to do that!

Prepare Your Ingredients

• Gather all the necessary ingredients (grocery checklist included in my free eBook for e-mail subscribers)
• Chop any veggies and herbs
• Set out all of the sauces and ingredients you'll need
• Label your freezer bags
• Set out any tools you'll need (several clean bowls, a whisk, and freezer bag holders for extra convenience and less mess).

Prepare the Marinade

• Place the chicken breasts in a clean bowl, or in a freezer bag using freezer bag stands (so they don't flop over).
• Combine all of the ingredients for the marinade in a small glass bowl
• Pour over the chicken breasts
• Toss to coat

Freezing Chicken Marinades

• Place in the freezer bag (if not adding directly to the bag) and seal
• Remove any excess air
• Flatten the bag and freeze on a flat surface in your freezer
• Once completely frozen, relocate your freezer chicken marinade pack to a better location in your deep freezer or the back of your refrigerator freezer.

To Prepare

Once your chicken marinades have been prepped and frozen, you're good to leave them in the freezer for a few months. When you're ready to eat, take the freezer chicken marinade of your choose out of the freezer and defrost it in the fridge for about 24-36 hours.

Once its completely thawed, discard the marinade and grill the chicken breast for approximately 5-7 minutes per side and an internal temperature of 165F is reached. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Dietary Concerns

Note for Gluten Free

In order to keep this gluten free, opt for gluten-free tamari in place of the soy sauce in this recipe. Also, be sure to check the labels of any prepared foods (like hot sauce, coconut milk, etc) to ensure they are gluten free.

As for Sugar

Some of these recipes use a bit of brown sugar. Since these are marinades, the brown sugar is present to balance the flavors, and your chicken will retain little of the sugar. Still, if you would like to substitute I would recommend using coconut sugar. You can also omit completely if desired.

Freezer Chicken Marinade Recipes

See the printable recipe card near the bottom for full instructions.

Coconut, Lime and Jalapeno

• 4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, about 1 ½-2 lbs 
• 2 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 2 tbsp. Low Sodium Soy sauce
• Zest of 1 large lime
• Juice of 1 large lime
• 3 tbsp. Brown Sugar
• 1 tsp. Cumin
• 2 tsp. Curry powder
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 1 (15oz) can Coconut Milk
• 1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2 tbsp. Chopped Fresh Cilantro

Basic Grilled Chicken Marinade

• 4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, about 1 ½ to 2 lbs
• ¼ cup White Wine Vinegar
• ¼ cup Low Sodium Soy Sauce
• 3 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 1 ½ tsp. Dried Parsley Flakes
• ½ tsp. Dried Basil
• ½ tsp. Dried Oregano
• ½ tsp. Garlic Powder
• ½ tsp. Salt
• ¼ tsp. Ground Black Pepper

Asian Sesame

• 4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, about 1 ½ to 2 lbs
• ⅔ cup Soy Sauce
• ¼ cup Brown Sugar
• ½ tsp. Ground Ginger or 1 tbsp. Fresh minced ginger
• 2 large garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• ⅛ tsp. Red Pepper Flakes
• 2 Tbsp. Sesame Oil

Orange Lime

• 4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
• ½ cup Orange Juice
• Juice of 1 large lime
• 2 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 1 tbsp. Honey
• 1 tsp. Salt
• ½ tsp. Cumin
• ½ tsp. Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
• 1-2 tbsp. Chopped Fresh Cilantro

Lemon Garlic

• 4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
• ¼ cup Olive Oil
• Juice of 2 large Lemons, about 1 ⅓ cup
• 8 large Garlic Cloves, minced
• 2 tsp. Salt
• 1 tsp. Pepper

Buffalo Chicken

• 4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, about 1 ½ to 2 lbs
• 1 ½ cups Cayenne Pepper Sauce (like Frank’s Red Hot Sauce)

More Chicken Breast Recipes:

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