Baked or Grilled Lemon-Lime Chicken Breasts

Chicken is great for a quick meal and is a healthy protein. It can be marinated and seasoned in so many different ways. This lemon-lime marinade is super fresh and light. It’s an excellent recipe for warm weather and my preferred way to prepare chicken when I’m going to put it on a salad. It also holds up as the main dish when served with roasted vegetables. I have made this recipe since I was first married and shared it to many times to count over the years.

INGREDIENTS

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

3 medium cloves of garlic, minced

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

3 Tablespoons Dijon mustard

1/4 cup cider vinegar

juice of 1 lime, juice of 1/2 of a lemon

1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons oil (not olive oil)

fresh ground pepper to taste

Directions

Rinse chicken and pat dry. If one end of the chicken breast half is a lot thicker than the other, pound just the thick end slightly so the breast is more uniform in size. Place in a large ziplock bag.

Combine all marinade ingredients and whisk well. Pour over chicken in bag. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 8 hours (marinating longer will make the chicken tough because of the acid in the marinade). Bring chicken to room temperature before baking/grilling.

Remove chicken from marinade. To grill: place on medium-high grill for about 4-5 minutes per side (depending on the size of the chicken pieces) until temperature registers 165 degrees. To bake: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and place the chicken breasts on prepared pan. Bake for about 15 minutes, checking temperature to ensure proper cooking.

Optional - you can cut lemon halves or wedges and grill or bake with the chicken. Serve alongside, squeezing some of the juice on the chicken. You can also finish with fresh herbs after cooking.