Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken
Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken is a perfect easy summer grilled chicken recipe. The chicken tenderloins are marinated in a sweet and savory honey mustard sauce with sprigs of fresh rosemary and lemon juice, then quickly cooked on a hot grill. So good!
Creating this Recipe for Honey Mustard Grilled Chicken
One of the kids absolute favorite easy recipes that we have for dinner is my Easy Baked Honey Mustard Chicken. I love that it comes together in about 5 minutes and the bulk of the recipe time is totally hands off.
I’ve been wanting to make honey mustard chicken on the grill for a while and we finally got around to testing the recipe! It doesn’t disappoint and it is equally as quick to prepare.
This version is perfect for summertime when I have absolutely no interest in turning the oven on, plus I also love how quick the clean up for this recipe is.
Why I Love this Honey Mustard Grilled Chicken Recipe
- This recipe for Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken is super simple to prepare! Whip up the easy marinade in the morning, or the night before, and stash it a shallow dish with a lid (or a resealable bag) with the chicken in the refrigerator until dinner time.
- Chicken tenderloins cook fast, making this a recipe that doesn’t require a lot of cooking time – perfect for busy nights!
- It is freezer friendly! I love to make a big batch of the honey mustard marinade and then buy several packages of chicken tenderloins. Then, I’ll label multiple gallon sized freezer bags with the recipe and instructions, add the chicken, add the marinade, flatten and zip shut, and then transfer to the freezer. Then on days I don’t know what to make or don’t have time for something fancy, dinner is mostly done.
- This Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken is kid approved – need I say more?
- It keeps the heat out of the kitchen in the summer. I love to grill during the summer because then stove or oven aren’t competing with the air conditioner!
- Preparing this Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken recipe doesn’t make a lot of dirty dishes! Another benefit to cooking on the grill: no nasty pots and pans to wash by hand.
How to Make Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken
This recipe is one of my favorites because it is such an easy chicken recipe, and you can do all the prep work in about 5 minutes.
Honey Mustard Marinade Ingredients
First, make the honey mustard chicken marinade. Super easy and fast! all you do is combine a few ingredients in a 2 cup size glass measuring cup.
- Coarse Mustard (I recommend this Stone Ground Mustard)
- Dijion Mustard
- Honey
- Olive Oil
- Lemon Juice
- Seasonings: minced garlic, minced fresh rosemary, salt, and pepper
For the complete ingredient list and detailed instructions, scroll to the bottom of this post for the FREE printable recipe card.
Making the Honey Mustard Marinade
The chicken is best if you marinade at least an hour, but I like to do it overnight.
- Mix up the chicken marinade (so fast!)
- Optional: reserve some of the honey mustard marinade for basting.
- Combine the chicken and marinade in a bag
- Let marinade in the fridge at least an hour
- Grill
- Optional: baste the chicken with the reserved marinade.
- Rest for 5 minutes
RECIPE TIP: Having a hard time getting enough juice out of your lemons for the marinade? Check out these tips for How to Squeeze the Most Juice from Lemons.
Can You Freeze Chicken Marinade?
Yes, you can totally freeze chicken in the marinade! This is a huge time saver. My daughter, Madeline, and I took a few hours a month ago and mixed up tons of marinades to mix with different meats for the grills.
Follow this basic set of instructions if you’d like to learn how to freeze marinated chicken:
- Label the gallon sized bag with date, contents, and any necessary notes (such as cooking instructions)
- Prepare this recipe through step 4 of “how to marinade the chicken.” Bag the chicken, making sure it is fully sealed.
- Instead of transferring the baking sheet to the refrigerator, transfer it to the freezer.
- When the meat has completely frozen, you can remove the baking sheet from the freezer. At the time of the freezing process this just helps keep the bag flat and the contents dispersed, which helps it take less room up in the freezer for storage as well as to thaw quickly later.
- When you’re ready to cook, remove the chicken from the freezer and allow it to thaw in the refrigerator. (I typically pull it out of the freezer the night before).
- Then, once thawed, you can proceed with the grilling instructions.
How Long to Grill Chicken Tenderloins?
I like to preheat my grill to about 400 degrees F so I can get a good sear when I cook honey mustard chicken on the grill.
Tenderloins are much thinner than chicken breasts and will take less time to cook, usually only about 3 – 5 minutes per side so it is best to have all the other elements of your real ready, or mostly ready before you start.
The best way to get good grill marks on a piece of grilled chicken is to be patient and not turn the chicken too often or too soon. Constantly flipping the chicken doesn’t give the meat enough time to fully develop grill marks.
Cooking times for grilled chicken tenderloins can vary based on the thickness of the meat you buy, so if you have any doubt the ideal internal temperature for perfectly done chicken is 165 degrees F.
I like to use a meat thermometer to test chicken to make sure it is perfectly cooked every time. I recommend either an instant read thermometer or this wireless remote thermometer.
What to Serve with Honey Mustard Grilled Chicken
We usually serve 1 – 2 vegetables plus some kind of carb as sides for our grilled honey mustard chicken. Here area a few of our favorite recipes ideas for your inspiration!
Favorite Vegetable Sides for Grilled Chicken
One of our absolute favorite and most requested vegetable side dish is this recipe for Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Balsamic.
When I don’t want to turn the oven on, I like to make nice cool salads or a vegetable I can thrown on the grill while this grilled honey mustard chicken cooks.
Creamy Jalapeno BBQ Coleslaw is great for summer as a side to grilled chicken. For a lighter option, I love this Zucchini Tomato Basil Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette.
Favorite Potato Side Dishes for Grilled Chicken
The kids are fans of potatoes basically in any form, so we often opt for that as a side dish for those who would like a carb with their meal.
A few summer favorites to go with this grilled honey mustard chicken are Smokey Grilled Sweet Potato Wedges, and Rosemary and Garlic Roasted Potatoes.
In the summer, you also can’t go wrong with classic picnic dishes like this Macaroni Salad or The Best Classic Potato Salad (Kevin’s Grandma Cookie’s recipe and a must have at any family get together in the summer).
How Long Does Leftover Grilled Chicken Last?
When stored properly, this Honey Mustard Grilled chicken will last in the refrigerator for 3-5 days after cooking. Follow these tips to ensure proper food safety for this leftover chicken:
- Make sure you cook the chicken to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
- Transfer any leftover grilled honey mustard chicken to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator.
- Refrigerate leftovers within an hour of serving.
What to Do with Leftover Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken
Leftover Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken is great chopped up and served on a salad for lunch the next day! Check out the salad recipes in the recipe index for some inspiration.
This grilled chicken also tastes great on a bun for a grilled chicken sandwich if you’re looking to use up leftovers. I like to toast the bun, and add mayo, lettuce, and tomato for my sandwich.
★★★★★
Reader says –
“We made your grilled honey mustard chicken last night and it was really good! Pretty easy, not a lot of ingredients, used the grill to keep the heat outside — we live in Florida — and it turned out great.” – Denise
More Easy Chicken Recipes
Looking for more great chicken recipes? Here are a few of our favorites, or go ahead and take a look through all of my chicken recipe archives to see what looks good.
Crock Pot Mexican Chicken is the perfect shredded chicken recipe for your next Mexican recipe. Packed with flavor and super tender thanks to hours in the crock pot, this recipe is sure to please!
I took the concept of this honey mustard chicken recipe and adapted its simplicity with some different flavors to create this Chili Marmalade Baked Chicken.
In need of a potluck dish? Make these Mango Habanero Drumsticks!
Easy Smoked Chicken is a great summer meal. The chicken turns out incredibly flavorful, tender and juicy. Perfect for BBQs or any time you want to cook a whole chicken but want to do something a little different than traditional roasting.
Italian Chicken, Mushroom, and Zucchini Skillet is a super easy dinner recipe for busy school nights. It features pan seared chicken tenderloins, zucchini and sliced mushrooms in garlicky herbed tomato sauce.
Don’t see what you’re looking for here? You can always head over to check out the recipe index to look for more recipes.
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What are your favorite summer grilled chicken recipes?
Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken
Honey Mustard Grilled Chicken is a perfect easy summer grilled chicken recipe. The chicken tenderloins are marinaded in a sweet and savory honey mustard sauce with sprigs of fresh rosemary and lemon juice, then quickly cooked on a hot grill. So good and so easy!
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup of Grainy Coarse Mustard
- 1/3 cup smooth Dijion Mustard
- 2/3 cup Honey
- 2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 2 Lemons, juiced
- 3 cloves Garlic, minced
- 2 sprigs Fresh Rosemary
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- 2 1/2 pounds chicken breast
Instructions
To Make the Honey Mustard Marinade
- Combine the grainy coarse mustard, smooth Dijon mustard, honey, extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, and minced garlic in a 2 cup glass measuring cup.
- Remove the rosemary leaves from the stem. Finely chop them.
- Add the chopped rosemary, salt, and pepper to the measuring cup. Stir to combine well.
- Set 1/4 cup of the marinade mixture aside for basting.
How to Marinade the Chicken
- Add the marinade to a gallon sized zip top plastic bag along with the chicken.
- Seal the bag and flatten the contents, making sure that the marinade is evenly dispersed throughout the chicken.
- Place the bag, flat, on a baking sheet. Transfer to the refrigerator and marinade at least an hour, or up to overnight.
Grilling the Chicken
- Prepare the grill be ensuring the grates are cleaned off completely.
- Preheat the grill, with the lid closed, until the grill thermometer indicates that it has reached 400 degrees F (if you are using a gas grill, or any grill that has a built in thermometer).
- While the grill preheats, remove the chicken from the bag and place on a plate. It is not necessary to rinse the chicken. Season with additional salt and pepper if desired.
- Place the chicken tenderloins on the preheated grill and close the lid. They will only need to cook for about 3-5 minutes per side.
- Flip the chicken, close the lid, and cook another 3-5 minutes.
- When the chicken is cooked through (165 degrees F internal temp), remove it from the grill and transfer it to a clean baking sheet.
- Baste, if desired, with the reserved 1/4 cup of marinade mixture (not the mixture that was in the bag with the raw chicken as this is not safe to consume).
- Let rest for 3-5 minutes, transfer to a platter, garnish with lemon slices and rosemary sprigs if desired.
- Serve.
Notes
How to Freeze Honey Mustard Grilled Chicken
- Label the gallon sized bag with date, contents, and any necessary notes (such as cooking instructions)
- Prepare this recipe through step 4 of "how to marinade the chicken."
- Instead of transferring the baking sheet to the refrigerator, transfer it to the freezer.
- When the meat has completely frozen, you can remove the baking sheet from the freezer. At the time of the freezing process this just helps keep the bag flat and the contents dispersed, which helps it take less room up in the freezer for storage as well as to thaw quickly later.
- When you're ready to cook, remove the chicken from the freezer and allow it to thaw in the refrigerator. (I typically pull it out of the freezer the night before).
- Then, once thawed, you can proceed with the grilling instructions.
adapted from Baked Honey Mustard Chicken
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 246Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCarbohydrates: 1gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 44g
GoodLifeEats.com offers recipe nutritional information as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although GoodLifeEats.com makes every effort to provide accurate information, these figures are only estimates.
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