50+ Grilled Chicken Dinners You Can Make All Year Long

Adding tahini to the marinade makes the chicken buttery tender without an overwhelming amount of sesame flavor in the finished dish. It also helps the chicken to char nicely on the grill.

Sweet peaches and tart green tomatoes gain depth from a bit of char on the grill—and they pair beautifully with grilled chicken thighs. Look for peaches that are still slightly firm so they hold up to the heat.

This fruity, boozy take on barbecue has all the characteristics of your favorite sauce—deep caramel notes, a savory backbone, and a pleasant vinegar tang. You can sub sweet cherries for sour, adjusting the amount of honey and vinegar to taste. For a shortcut, start with 1 cup purchased unsweetened cherry juice.

Simple and bright, this is the kind of main that puts us in the mood for spring. If you’ve never thrown fresh lemons on the grill, try it: The slight edge of char intensifies their tartness, and they look gorgeous. The marinade is more of a wet rub since the chicken goes straight to the grill, though you could refrigerate up to a day ahead. This salad is endlessly adaptable for spring and summer vegetables: Try shaved carrot and summer squash ribbons, haricots verts, or even just a shower of fresh herbs.

Make-ahead tip: Mix up the glaze first thing in the morning, and allow the chicken thighs to marinate all day long in the refrigerator to soak up even more flavor. After that, getting dinner on the table is as simple as heating up the grill pan.

Curry paste is a flavor powerhouse, full of roasted aromatics, earthy spices, fiery chiies, and more. Yellow curry powder is commonly used in green curry paste recipes, serving as the flavor backbone; it's convenient, too, providing lots of spices in a single handy ingredient. You can substitute 1 tablespoon lemongrass paste (found near fresh herbs) for the fresh stalks; simply add right to the food processor instead of roasting. 

We turn the traditional appetizer of chicken skewers and dipping sauce into a main course by spooning the satay sauce over sliced grilled chicken breasts.

The vinaigrette doubles as a sauce for the noodles and a glaze before the chicken hits the grill. The noodle mixture and the chicken can also be made a couple of days ahead.

The red onions develop a nice char on the grill, but they finish cooking and develop a depth and sweetness once left to steam. Drizzle any juices from the onion mixture over the grilled chicken. Fresh cilantro and zesty lime add a refreshing brightness to this light summer meal, perfect for the whole family. For a sensitive palate, use less or omit red pepper flakes.

This chicken is wonderfully moist, with a smoky sauce that will have you firing up the grill year-round. In our ultimate BBQ makeover, we remove the skin just before the chicken finishes grilling (saving 128 calories and 2.7g sat fat per breast), then baste with a spicy-sweet sauce. The best part? You'll save 183 calories, 3g sat fat, 26g sugar, and 854mg sodium over the traditional recipe, without losing any of the flavor.

Over the fire, figs caramelize and take on smoky flavor. Because they will cook more quickly than the chicken, skewer the figs separately.

The grill is a healthy cook’s best friend, allowing you to build big flavor and crispiness with minimal added fat. Make this meal meatless by trading the chicken for steamed edamame or rinsed and drained black beans.

We use a combination of peppers for different flavor notes—mini bell peppers for sweetness and Fresnos for moderate spice. Fresnos look like red jalapeños but are less spicy; use the latter if you want more heat.

Time: 30 minutes

Simple Sub: Go meatless by swapping 3/4-inch-thick slices of extra-firm tofu for drumsticks. Glaze and grill 3 minutes on each side.

Serve with Curry Rice Pilaf

Time: 25 minutes

Get Ahead: Grill the chicken and make the spiced pecans in advance. Change up the greens, fruit, and dressing for fast lunches.

Serve with Blue Cheese Toasts

Marjorie Meek-Bradley of Ripple relies on fish sauce to bring a new dimension to marinades and vinaigrettes. She finds that this salty pantry staple is especially appealing in crisp salads. "Fish sauce creates this exotic Thai flavor without being overpowering," she says.

Dinner comes together quickly with some smart convenience products. Cooked flatbreads just need a quick turn on the grill pan, a far speedier process than baking pizza dough. And rotisserie chicken is always great to keep on hand for fast, easy meals.

Over the last decade, Peruvian cuisine has come into Los Angeles' Latin American-dominated food scene, and it has come in swinging. It didn't just bring its famous sashimi-like ceviches; it also brought the Peruvian tradition of yakitori-like anticucho skewers. The brushed-on sauce, loaded with plenty of Peru's bright, fruity, yellow aji pepper, makes these skewers practically habit-forming. Don't say we didn't warn you.

Look for aji amarillo paste, a spicy Peruvian seasoning made from yellow chile peppers, in Latin markets. It's wonderful in marinades and meat rubs.

You probably have all the ingredients on hand to make this quick spice rub. Water or chicken stock can be substituted for rum in the mango sauce.

Flavorful chicken thighs might just be our favorite cut. Here we dress them up with a simple ginger-scallion sauce.

Grill chicken breasts and cook a big batch of grains on Sunday to make for easy and healthy meals during the week. The fresh flavors of this wheat berry tomato salad pair perfectly with the chipotle chicken. If preferable, you can substitute cooked farro or barley.

We love the contrast of the bright, herbaceous sauce with the smoky grilled chicken thighs. Serve the chicken with Grilled Sweet Potato and Bell Pepper Toss. You can spoon any remaining sauce over grilled steak or roasted potatoes, or stir into plain Greek yogurt.

Restaurant chicken satay just can't compete with our lighter and more flavorful version. Light coconut milk, lime juice, brown sugar, fish sauce, fresh ginger, and curry powder combine for a potent and highly flavorful marinade for the chicken pieces. The real magic is with the almond butter dipping sauce though. It's luxuriously creamy with a kick of garlicky heat from the Sriracha. Munch on cucumber slices to cool of your palate between dips in the sauce. To speed up prep time, add the chicken to the marinade and make the dipping sauce before you leave for work in the morning. You'll only need to skewer the chicken and grill when you get home.

Chicken and rice is a classic weeknight staple. Whole grains like quinoa, bulgur, and farro are healthier alternatives to regular white rice. In this dish, nutty farro retains a pleasant chewiness as it absorbs the flavorful stock. Porcini mushrooms and Parmesan cheese are two big sources of satisfying umami. If you have any leftover kale after you use it in this dish, make a simple kale salad side. Let it sit so the leaves soften while the chicken cooks. We like how the marinade really only needs 30 minutes to flavor the chicken, but if you want to speed up prep, you can marinate the chicken overnight in a zip-top plastic bag.

Get boldly flavored meat in a fraction of the time it takes traditional recipes by skipping the daylong marinade. This dish lends huge flavor to the chicken in just an hour. Grilled fruit salsa is the ideal cool complement.

Pollo al mattone (chicken grilled under a brick) is one of Italy's great gifts to global barbecue. The weight of the brick gives the chicken a crisp, compact texture.

For less heat in the dish, use regular chili powder in place of chipotle chile powder.

Tamarind lends the marinade a pleasant sweet-sour note. However, you can substitute 2 tablespoons lemon juice if tamarind paste isn't available.

Sometimes the best fajitas are homemade. And these truly stack up to any local Mexican restaurant’s best. Easy to prepare and packed with flavor, this recipe is one you’ll turn to every time you get a craving for authentic fajita fare.

The dark meat of chicken thighs stands up to the strong flavors of the marinade. If you have any leftover dressing, serve it as a dipping sauce.

Serve with hot cooked couscous. Give the couscous nutty flavor by toasting it in a hot pan before you rehydrate it.

This dish pairs well with vegetables. Slice half an onion into wedges, and halve and seed six mini sweet peppers. Brush the veggies with a bit of oil, grill them, and serve with naan bread to round out the meal.

Grilled chicken gets a dose of delicious when rubbed with a smoky and sweet spice mixture and brushed with cola barbecue sauce. Don't forget to serve with a side of sauce.

When cruising the streets of South and East Los Angeles, you'll be partially hypnotized by the thick fumes emanating from LA's proud charred-chicken street vendors. A one-two-punch of citrus and fearless use of eight spices give this blackened, moist chicken its addictive bite. A nice long bath in spice-laced citrus marinade lends the chicken bold flavor, tender texture, and incredible moistness. Don't fear the flame: A little light charring makes the dish sing.

Look for ground annatto seeds and ground guajillo chile powder in the spice section of Latin markets. If 3-pound chickens are unavailable, buy enough precut, bone-in, skin-on breasts, thighs, legs, and wings to equal 6 pounds.

To reinforce the whiskey flavor in the brine and basting butter, recipe developer and global grilling authority Steven Raichlen says to use Jack Daniel's whiskey barrel chips for smoking—widely available in grill and gourmet shops. This bird is so wonderfully moist and flavorful, it doesn't need added embellishment.

The hands-on time for this recipe is minimal (about 15 minutes), but you'll need to allow 2 hours and 15 minutes to bake the Bourbon Peach Butter. Our hands-free oven method helps prevent the sugary fruit butter from scorching.

If you would rather not use tequila, you can substitute 1/3 cup pineapple juice. Start the grilling over direct heat to get good grill marks and charred bits, and then move to indirect heat to gently finish the cooking.

A teriyaki-like sauce adds tons of flavor to grilled chicken. Serve with rice or rice noodles and steamed baby bok choy.

This fantastic summertime dinner brings all of your favorite flavors to the table. Serve with Grilled Garlic Bread for a complete meal.

For the Grilled Garlic Bread: Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Combine 1½ tablespoons olive oil and 2 minced garlic cloves in a microwave-safe bowl; microwave at HIGH 8 seconds. Brush both sides of 4 (1½-ounce) slices French bread with oil mixture. Place bread on grill rack; grill 1 minute on each side.

To save time, this recipe utilizes chicken cutlets that cook up in a flash on the grill. Serve with Avocado and Orange Salad.

We leave the skin on for moisture while grilling, then discard before serving.

Cooking a whole chicken is easier and more delicious than you might expect. Skip the store-bought variety and try this whole chicken recipe tonight.

The weight of foil-covered bricks helps the chicken cook evenly, leaving the breast moist and tender while the legs cook fully.

This is a family-friendly take on beer-can chicken in which we use an opened root beer can to support a whole bird on the grill. The liquid inside the can adds moisture, resulting in succulent, tender meat. Complete the meal with roasted red potatoes and a sweet-tart broccoli slaw.

Kalamata and picholine olives add salty savor. Serve over couscous, with dressed greens on the side.

Rub chicken breasts under the skin with the spice paste, and grill for a simple, delicious late-summer dinner. Leave the skin on the chicken as it cooks so the breasts will remain juicy, and discard skin just before serving.

Take a mental vacation to Hawaii as you enjoy this grilled chicken marinated in a mixture of pineapple juice, ketchup, soy sauce and ginger.

This versatile stuffed chicken breast dish is easy enough for a weeknight supper but elegant enough for company.

Top grilled chicken breast halves with a sweet-and-spicy tropical salsa of fresh pineapple, mango, jalapeño peppers, and cilantro.  Serve over rice for an easy one-dish meal.

Add a bit of exotic flavor to a basic grilled chicken wrap by marinating the chicken in a yogurt-curry mixture and topping the chicken with mango chutney, ginger, and fresh mint.

These chicken fajitas get their flavor from a homemade marinade featuring dark Mexican beer, soy sauce, lime juice, oil, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic. They can be prepared on the stovetop with a grill pan as directed, or outside over a charcoal or gas grill.

Shawarma is a Middle Eastern dish of garlicky meat or poultry served on pitas. This grilled chicken version is flavored with a savory yogurt sauce.

Speed up prep on this chicken main dish by marinating only 30 minutes. Serve with cabbage-carrot slaw.

Time: 35 minutes

No Seeds: Cucumber seeds are of course edible, but they can dilute the salad and compromise crunch. Remove with a teaspoon.

Serve with Dilly Cucumber Salad with Yogurt

While American ingenuity has produced a variety of beer-can roasters that hold the can in place and stabilize the tipsy chicken, a special roaster isn’t needed for this recipe. Instead, use the beer can as the third leg of a tripod; spread the drumsticks out to support the chicken. The flavors of the hickory wood chips and spice rub permeate the chicken from the outside. The beer infuses the chicken with flavor from the inside. The results will convince you that this unique cooking method is worth the effort.

When you have a bounty of basil, try using the leaves as part of the "lettuce" in salads.

Chives vary in shape from grass-fine to pencil-thick. The thicker the chive, the more flavor it packs. In order to chop chives safely, hold chives in a bunch and place on a clean cutting board. With a sharp knife chop chives to desired size. Keep in the refrigerator until they’re ready to be used. The coating of chopped herbs on the tender chicken breast provides protection from the hot grill as well as subtle flavor.

In this recipe, the chicken is first split and then butterflied (flattened), a technique that allows for quicker and more uniform cooking. Rather than cutting through the breastbone, flip the chicken over and use kitchen shears to cut down the backbone. Once the chicken is cut, it will open up and lie flat on the grill for even cooking.