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Grilled Pineapple Chicken

Pineapple chicken with juicy, grilled chicken breasts and caramelized pineapple rings. This Hawaiian-style sweet-and-savory marinade keeps the meat tender and finishes with visible grill marks.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
marinating 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Hawaiian
Calories: 520
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Marinade and chicken
  • 4 boneless chicken breasts
  • 1 cup pineapple juice
  • 0.25 cup soy sauce
  • 3 tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp ginger, grated
  • 4 fresh pineapple rings
  • 0.5 tsp salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 cilantro and lime for garnish

Equipment

  • 1 grill

Method
 

Make the marinade
  1. Combine pineapple juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, olive oil, garlic, and ginger in a bowl until the sugar dissolves and the mixture looks uniform.
  2. Reserve 1/4 cup marinade in a separate container, then pour the rest over the chicken so it’s evenly coated.
Marinate
  1. Marinate the chicken for 30 minutes to 2 hours in the refrigerator, keeping it covered, until the surface looks glossy.
Grill chicken and pineapple
  1. Preheat the grill to medium-high heat and season the chicken with salt and pepper right before grilling.
  2. Grill chicken for 6-7 minutes per side, flipping once, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part reaches 165°F and the grill marks are visible.
  3. In the last 5 minutes, grill the pineapple rings for 2-3 minutes per side until caramelized with browned edges.
Finish and serve
  1. Brush the cooked chicken with the reserved marinade while it’s still warm.
  2. Top each chicken breast with grilled pineapple and garnish with cilantro and lime.

Notes

For food safety, keep the reserved marinade separate from the raw-chicken marinade and use it only for brushing after cooking; discard any leftover marinade that touched raw chicken. Refrigerate cooked leftovers in an airtight container up to 3 days; freeze up to 2 months (best without garnish, add cilantro/lime after thawing). For a lower-sugar option, replace brown sugar with a sugar-free brown sugar substitute designed for grilling.