Grilled Hawaiian BBQ Chicken
Take BBQ Chicken up a notch with Grilled Hawaiian BBQ Chicken, which is a delicious and simple combination of pineapple juice, soy sauce, BBQ sauce, fresh ginger, and garlic. This easy summer grilling recipe can be prepped ahead of time, and can be used with chicken breasts, chicken thighs, or chicken legs!
One of my favorite summer dinners growing up was BBQ chicken legs, cooked on the grill, served with a big slice of buttery corn on the cob and some watermelon. Is there any combo that screams "SUMMER!" more than that?! Not to me, there isn't. While I appreciate a simple BBQ sauce on chicken, I wanted to jazz it up a little bit and create a Hawaiian-inspired BBQ chicken recipe. This Grilled Hawaiian BBQ Chicken is such a simple recipe made easy ingredients, that you will be making over and over again this summer.
Ingredients in Hawaiian BBQ Chicken
- BBQ Sauce
- Pineapple Juice
- Soy Sauce
- Fresh Ginger
- Garlic Powder
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs
What Kind of Chicken to Use
Since I grew up eating BBQ chicken legs, I prefer a darker meat when I make it now. For that reason I like using boneless skinless chicken thighs for this recipe, which are a lot easier (to me!) to grill than the skin-on and bone-in chicken thighs. They will grill a lot faster than the bone-in version.
If you prefer a white meat, you can definitely use chicken breasts or chicken tenders. You will have to adjust the cooking time accordingly, but as long as you use a meat thermometer and cook the chicken to 165 degrees F, you should be okay. Also, if you want to use chicken legs or wings, go for it! Again, just adjust cooking time.
How to Make Grilled Hawaiian BBQ Chicken
As mentioned, this recipe is super easy to pull together. To start, mix the marinade ingredients together - BBQ sauce, soy sauce, pineapple juice, fresh ginger, and garlic powder. Combine the marinade with the chicken and marinate for at least 30 minutes, or up to 8-12 hours. I like to make this the day in advance so it has a lot of time to marinate and it saves me a lot of mealtime prep.
Once you're ready to cook, preheat your grill to medium-high heat. Once the grill is preheated, add the chicken and cook for 4-6 minutes on each side, or until the chicken reads 165 degrees F. Serve and enjoy!
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Grilled Hawaiian BBQ Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 cup BBQ sauce
- ½ cup pineapple juice
- 2 teaspoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon fresh minced ginger
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 2-3 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
Instructions
- In a bowl, whisk together the BBQ sauce, pineapple juice, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic powder.
- Place chicken thighs in a Tupperware container or Ziplock plastic baggie.
- Add the marinade and marinate for at least 30 minutes ideally 8 hours.
- Preheat the grill to medium-high heat.
- Grill the chicken for 4-6 minutes on each side, or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.
- Enjoy!
