• Home
  • Beef
  • Chicken
  • Pork
  • Sauces and Dips
  • Seafood
  • Sides
↑

Grilling, Smoking, Living

Living the Barbecue Life

  • Beef
  • Chicken
  • Pork
  • Seafood
  • Sauces & Rubs
  • Sides
  • Misc
    • Dessert
  • Home
    • About Me
    • Privacy Policy
  • Tips & Tricks

Grilled Bourbon Chicken

February 25, 2020 by Lyuba 1 Comment

Pin
Share
Post
Share
Pin
Share
Post
Share
Jump to Recipe

There is so much flavor packed into this Grilled Bourbon Chicken, you will want to make it over and over again. It’s so easy to make but make sure to give the chicken enough time to marinate. Bourbon marinade is the bomb too, made with bourbon, garlic, oil, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, ginger, salt, and cayenne pepper.

bourbon chicken breast on the grill

GRILLED BOURBON CHICKEN

If grilled chicken breast is where you turn for a when you can’t think of what to make for dinner, I have the perfect recipe for you. One simple bourbon marinade will take any boring chicken breast to the level of “wow!” It’s sweet, salty, a little spicy, and boozy. There is a lot of flavor in this marinade and for the best results, let it marinate overnight or for 8-12 hours.

Chicken breast is not even the only chicken cut you can use. This recipe will be just as great with chicken thigh meat, chicken drumsticks, or a whole broken down chicken. The only difference will be in time to cook the chicken because bone-in chicken will take longer to cook. It’s best to start cooking bone-in chicken over direct heat first to get some sear, and then moving it over to indirect heat to finish cooking. Most boneless chicken breast and boneless chicken thigh meat is thin enough to cook over direct heat.

This chicken recipe will be great with rice, salads, and grilled vegetables. The flavors come through great even after reheating the leftovers. I actually find it even more delicious in a salad or a wrap the next day. Probably because the smokey grill flavors seem so much stronger when you haven’t been standing over the grill smelling it while cooking. So the aroma seems so much stronger the next day.

chicken in a bag with marinade

BOURBON CHICKEN MARINADE

This is a simple, throw-it-all-together kind of chicken marinade. Just combine the ingredients in a bowl, whisk it together, and pour over the chicken in a zip-lock bag. Make sure chicken is coated well with marinade and place it on a plate in the fridge to do it’s job.

What is in Bourbon Marinade?

Canola oil (can also use vegetable oil)

Bourbon

Worcestershire sauce

Garlic

Brown sugar

Ground ginger

Cayenne pepper

Salt

raw chicken on the grill

GRILL NOTES:

Coals: briquettes or lump coal

Grill temperature: medium: 350°-425° (1/2 to 2/3 filled chimney)

Placement on the grill: indirect for bone-in chicken and direct for boneless chicken breast and chicken thigh meat

Wood if desired: hickory, oak

cooked chicken on the grill

HOW TO COOK GRILLED BOURBON CHICKEN

Prepare chicken and start marinating the night before or in the morning. Make sure to give it about 10 hours to marinate. You can, of course, give it a little more time beyond 10 hours but it is not recommended going over 12 hours.

How To Marinate:

First of all, ALWAYS marinate meats in the refrigerator.

Use food-safe plastic bags or a glass container with an air-tight lid. If using a zip-lock plastic bag, place the bag inside another container, bowl, or on a large plate.

If you want to make some of the marinade into the sauce, make extra and save it separately without coming in contact with raw chicken. Mix cold marinade with some cornstarch and simmer until thickened.

Marinate the chicken overnight or for up to 12 hours.

Discard the bag and leftover marinade when ready to cook the chicken.

Cooking the Chicken:

Start the coals and build a two-zone fire when coals are ready. (Or set your gas grill to medium.) Close the lid and let the grill preheat for about 10 minutes. Make sure the grill grate is clean and seasoned.

Cook chicken breasts over direct heat for 6-8 minutes per side. Exact time will depend on the size of each breast. Cook chicken until internal temperature of the thickest part reaches 165°.

Cook bone-in chicken directly over the coals for 4-5 minutes per side and then move the chicken over to indirect heat. Close the lid and let the chicken finish cooking until internal temperature reaches 165°.

grilled chicken on the plate

SOME MORE GRILLED CHICKEN RECIPES TO TRY

Apple BBQ Grilled Chicken

Bacon Ranch Chicken Foil Packets

Pineapple Grilled Chicken Kebabs

Grilled Hawaiian Teriyaki Chicken

Easy Cajun Grilled Chicken

cut grilled chicken

If you made any of my recipes and shared them on Instagram, make sure to tag me @grillingsmokingliving and #grillingsmokingliving so I can see all the things you tried!

Connect with Grilling Smoking Living!

Be sure to click below and follow me on my social media, so you never miss a recipe.

   

PIN THIS RECIPE

Grilled Bourbon Chicken

No ratings yet
Delicious grilled chicken marinated overnight in amazing bourbon marinade.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
CourseMain Course
CuisineAmerican
Prep Time5 minutes minutes
Cook Time16 minutes minutes
Marinading time:10 hours hours
Total Time10 hours hours 21 minutes minutes
Servings4
Calories499kcal
AuthorLyuba

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast

Bourbon Chicken Marinade:

  • 1/4 cup canola oil or vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup bourbon
  • 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 3 tbsp brown sugar
  • 4 garlic cloves pressed
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne (more or less per personal preference)
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Marinate chicken:

  • Place chicken breasts into a large zip-lock bag.
  • Whisk all ingredients for the marinade together in a bowl and pour it over the chicken in the bag.
  • Let all the air out and seal the bag tight. Place it in to a clean mixing bowl or on a large plate and place it in the refrigerator to marinate.
  • Let chicken marinate overnight.

Grilling Chicken:

  • Start the coals and build a two-zone fire when coals are ready. (Or set your gas grill to medium.)
  • Close the lid and let the grill preheat for about 10 minutes. Make sure the grill grate is clean and seasoned.
  • Cook chicken breasts over direct heat for 6-8 minutes per side. Exact time will depend on the size of each breast. Cook chicken until internal temperature of the thickest part reaches 165°.

Notes

All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©GrillingSmokingLiving. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe. Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have a slight variation.

Nutrition

Calories: 499kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 48g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 145mg | Sodium: 1222mg | Potassium: 931mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 172IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 33mg | Iron: 2mg

bourbon grilled chicken long collage

Pin
Share
Post
Share
Pin
Share
Post
Share

Thank you!

You have successfully joined our subscriber list.

.

Filed Under: Chicken

Trackbacks

  1. Lemon Herb Grilled Chicken - Grilling, Smoking, Living says:
    March 4, 2020 at 2:02 am

    […] or chicken drumsticks. You can even use boneless chicken breast or thigh meat, just follow these grilling instructions as bone-in chicken is different to grill than boneless […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Let's get grilling!

Welcome, everyone! I’m Lyuba Brooke, come in, grab a beer, and head to the backyard. Here, I love to grill, barbecue, and share everything I make. You will find a ton of recipes for grilling, smoking, and the sauces to dip it in.

Our Popular Recipes

  • Smoked Spatchcock Chicken

  • Grilled chicken legs marinaded and cooked stacked on a plate. Grilled Chicken Legs (With Chicken Marinade)

  • Smoking Sausage

  • top view of spices of the beef rub on baking sheet Beef Rub Recipe

  • adding BBQ sauce to pulled chicken Smoked Pulled Chicken

  • starting to scoop the smoked baked beans with a spoon in a skillet Smoked Baked Beans

  • holding a smoked turkey leg Smoked Turkey Legs

  • cooked smoked tenderloin on a cutting board Smoked Pork Tenderloin

Categories

Thank you!

You have successfully joined our subscriber list.

.
Privacy Policy
Copyright ©2025, Grilling, Smoking, Living. All Rights Reserved.
Design by Pixel Me Designs

 

Subscribe to the

Grilling, Smoking, Living Recipe Newsletter

 

Thank you!

You have successfully joined our subscriber list.


.

Rate This Recipe

Your vote:




A rating is required
A name is required
An email is required