I like using salad dressings as well. If you get salad dressing on sale it ends up being much cheaper than marinade and it is convenient for a quick meal. Italian dressing as Huntress mentioned is good. I've also used sesame/asian dressings, honey mustard, raspberry or fruit dressings, balsamic, and even low calorie ranch! I don't use the whole bottle, just part of it watered down with the cooking method below.
A quick way to cook flavorful frozen chicken breast is to put it in a big skillet on the stove top add the chicken some dressing or marinade and some water and boil/steam the chicken with lid on for about a half an hour. Until it is cooked you don't want it to get too dry so keep adding water as you go. I read somewhere that most marinades don't penetrate the surface of meat anyway and this can really make the chicken yummy.
I don't eat chicken, but my current favorite tofu marinade is soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ginger, garlic, sherry, and chili paste. It's amazingly tasty.
Every week I defrost a bag of chicken breasts, poke holes in them with a fork and marinate them in some cheapie dressing just like Renwomin! Then DH grills them. They're awesome right away and still awesome later in the week sliced on a salad, if DS14 doesn't eat all of them.
Salsa. Although technically I don't marinade and then cook. I add it to chicken breasts in the crock pot, and then cook it all together. I like it as a sauce served over whatever grain I'm having or with the chicken and salsa shredded together and put on top of spinach and other raw veg.
1. Mix the oil, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, mustard, salt and pepper, and brush on the chicken breasts. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
2. Preheat the grill.
3. Grill the breasts for 5 to 6 minutes on each side, depending on the thickness. Let the chicken rest on a plate for 1 or 2 minutes before serving.
Serving Size: 1 breast
Number of Servings: 6
Per Serving
Calories 166 Carbohydrate 0 g
Fat 6 g Fiber 0 g
Protein 26 g Saturated Fat 1 g
Sodium 243 mg
I use this all the time - it's for Chicken but I put it on all kinds of meats. I probably do it once a week - my boyfriend loves it too.
1/3 cup your fav bbq sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp honey (I always leave this out)
2 tbsp lemon or lime juice
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp chili powder
4-5 dashes hot pepper sauce (optional)
I usually just dump it on my chicken and bake it. It's actually a recipe from a cookbook called Eat, Shrink and Be Merry - they use it to make faux hot wings with chicken thighs. In the orginal recipe they mix the sauce after baking with cornstarch to thicken it up and dip the wings in, I never do that. I usually drizzle the runny sauce over my veggies, mmmm. Now I am craving this.
Also, FYI - I put my garlic pre-chopped at Costco in a huge container for $3-4. It's not as good as fresh garlic but it works awesome for stuff like this. I also buy my lemon juice, hot pepper sauce and bbq sauce at costco too - that's how often I make this. I always leave out the honey, my bbq is sweet enough. Also, depending on the bbq sauce you use it really changes the flavour.
Salsa is a favorite of mine. Then at target I found this Ground Chipotle Peppers, and I just dump some of that on it and grill it. It is HEAVEN on a romaine salad...ooooohhhh I seriously eat it several times a week and have yet to get sick of it! Just a word of caution though. If you get some on your fingers, don't lick it unless you have a bunch of water handy. It is spicy by the way. But so good....
Favorite chicken marinades?
