The Secret To The Best Grilled Chicken Is Always In Your Kitchen

After steak and burgers, chicken is the third-favorite meat to grill among Americans (per Statista). From bone-in legs and wings to boneless breasts and thighs, numerous cuts and pieces are available to enjoy, making it quite versatile. However, chicken is one of the more difficult types of meat to cook. White meat, in particular, lacks the fat collagen or connective tissue that beef cuts have to keep them moist. Thankfully, the secret ingredient to keeping your chicken juicy on the grill is water.

Marinating chicken in a simple fat (like olive oil), acid (like lemon juice), and salt mixture is one of the best ways to make it flavorful since the meat itself tastes mild. While adding water to your marinade seems like it would hinder that goal, it creates a kind of brine that locks in moisture. This technique is commonly used in Chinese cooking, typically with bite-sized portions of meat.

To use this technique yourself, you want to tenderize the chicken first: Pound the meat with a mallet, rolling pin, or the blunt side of a cleaver. Doing so breaks down the tough fibers so that they can readily absorb the water from your pseudo brine. Also, tenderizing chicken thins it out to an even thickness, so it cooks faster and more equally over high heat. Then, you'll massage some water into the chicken prior to adding your marinade. It's ideal to allow pounded chicken to marinate overnight, but smaller pieces of meat won't take as long to soak up the flavor as bone-in cuts.

Aside from avoiding common mistakes with marinades, such as using too many ingredients, you can utilize some extra tips to keep your chicken moist as it grills. For starters, you can get more out of your marinade by switching out the fat. Oil is a popular go-to, but consider using mayo for juicier chicken. The mayonnaise allows the mixture to spread evenly so the other ingredients uniformly adhere to the meat for a more balanced flavor.

Another tip is to preheat your grill with multiple zones: One for medium and one for high heat. The medium heat will ensure that the chicken cooks thoroughly without burning, while the high heat will deliver a nice outer crisp. Keep in mind, too, that you should only grill one type of meat at a time because each requires different cooking temperatures and times. On top of that, it's important to put dark meat on the grill first. These parts of the chicken, such as the legs and thighs, take longer to cook than white meat since they contain more connective tissues and fat.

Finally, you should always let your meat rest after cooking. Letting your chicken sit under some foil or an overturned plate for at least five minutes will hold in even more moisture and allow the juices to redistribute through the meat as they settle.