45 Creative Grilled Chicken Recipes That’ll Shake Up Your Summer Dinners
Love a weeknight chicken dinner? Us too, so this summer, we're taking them to the grill.

Perfect for an stress-free weeknight dinner, there's just so much that you can do with endlessly-versatile chicken. Coupled with our summertime desire to be cooking outside as much as possible while it’s nice out, it was a no-brainer to figure out ALL the best ways to grill our favorite lean protein. Check out our list of 44 grilled chicken recipes for ideas—with a few easy marinades, fruit, and spices, you'll happily be eating grilled chicken all summer long too.
Let’s start with our top tips for how best to grill chicken. We bet you’ve got a favorite cut of chicken, like thighs, breasts, or wings, and luckily, you can put them all on the grill. Simple marinades made of ingredients like balsamic vinegar, pineapple, or soy sauce make chicken extra flavorful, and only really need 20 minutes or so to soak in (though overnight is best!). If you do marinate overnight, bring your chicken to room temperature before grilling to avoid the cold meat seizing and becoming tough. Make sure your grill is super hot too, and once your chicken is on there, resist the urge to flip it around a bunch—once midway through should be enough.
While tasty, the simple act of cooking chicken on your grill doesn't necessarily make a full meal, so we’ve also included all our favorite ways to serve them, from summer salads to pizzas to tacos. Check out our grilled chicken Cajun pasta salad, our elote (Mexican street corn) tacos, or our chicken avocado Caprese salad for ideas. Not looking for a full sit-down meal? Try one of our skewered chicken recipes, like our cilantro-lime chicken skewers, our hoisin chicken kebabs, or our chicken satay. They make a great healthy summer appetizer or side, or can be easily turned into something more substantial if served over rice or in a pita.
On the other hand, there is one way to cook chicken on your grill that guarantees a complete meal—foil packs! Toss together our Santa Fe chicken foil packs, our honey mustard chicken & vegetables foil packs, our Tex-Mex chicken fajita foil packs, and more to see just how versatile they can be. Swap in and out the marinades and veggies, and you'll have enough chicken dinners to last you all season long.
Want even more summertime inspiration? Check out our top 100 grilling recipes, our best summer BBQ salads, and our favorite summer side dishes too.
