Kalle Bergman is a food writer and media entrepreneur who…
Tired of the same old grilled chicken rubs and marinades? Look no further than this recipe – a Thai-inspired marinade that delivers the perfect balance between spicy, sweet and savory.
There are a couple of not so secret secrets to this recipe.
1) Reuse pickle juice from those store bought burger pickles. It provides the ultimate base for a briny marinade that we can spice up with various other flavors and infuse our chicken with.
2) The beauty of the recipe is that you’ll use the same ingredients for the marinade as you will for the sauce that you’ll coat the chicken with after grilling. The only difference is the amounts are not the same. You want more sweetness on the sauce, and more saltiness on the marinade.
3) As with most grilling, the perfect combination happens when you combine a great marinade with a post-grilling coating of an equally great sauce.
Thai Inspired Chicken Marinade
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 people 1x
Description
Enhance your grilled chicken with this spicy, sweet and savory marinade and sauce.
Ingredients
FOR THE MARINADE
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lime (juice)
- 2 cloves garlic (sliced)
- 1 inch ginger (sliced)
- 1/2 cup pickle juice
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp chili flakes
- 3 tbsp Thai fish sauce
- 1 tbsp parsley flakes
FOR THE SAUCE
- 1 lime (juice)
- 2 tbsp Thai fish sauce
- 1/4 cup pickle juice
- 1/5 cup sugar
- 1 garlic clove (sliced)
- 1 tsp chili flakes
- 1 tsp corn starch
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
Instructions
FOR THE MARINADE
- In a bowl, mix olive oil, lime juice, and pickle juice.
- Add sugar, and whisk vigorously until dissolved.
- Add the rest of the marinade ingredients, mix well.
- Add chicken breast strips, and leave covered over night or for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.
- Grill chicken over medium heat until golden brown on the outside, and juicy on the inside.
FOR THE SAUCE
- Mix all ingredients except for corn starch and water in a pan.
- Bring to a boil while gently whisking. Let simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add corn starch to water in a separate bowl and whisk until dissolved.
- Add half of the corn starch mix to the sauce, and simmer for another 5 minutes. Add more if needed for texture.
- Remove and cool down slightly.
- Pour a third of the sauce on top of the grilled chicken. Save the rest as additional sauce and dressing.
Notes
Makes enough for about 1-2 lbs of chicken breasts
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Appetizer, Side
- Cuisine: American, Thai
Keywords: chicken, marinade, thai
Kalle Bergman is a food writer and media entrepreneur who is the founder of Honest Cooking and PAIR Magazine. As a food writer, his writing has been regularly featured in publications like Gourmet, Los Angeles Times, Huffington Post and Serious Eats. He is obsessed with simple food, more often than not from his native Scandinavia.
Looks Good, but how much chicken to add to this quantity of marinade?
★★★★
I used this with about 1.5 lbs of chicken breast.
How much chicken?
Anywhere between 1-2 lbs should be fine!
Made this today, grilled chicken for about 10 people in our extended family. Was a HUGE success, and I’ll definitely make it again!
★★★★★
Oh my, this was an absolutely fantastic marinade – but I’d say that the sauce is even better. Thank you for a great recipe.
★★★★★
I’ve been looking for a new chicken marinade, and I was so excited when I found this. Whipped this up in no time today, didn’t grill, but rather pan fried and it turned out amazing.
★★★★★
Love Thai food so definitely trying this soon!
★★★★★