Plain chicken doesn't have to be bland chicken! With the right seasoning, you can transform simple chicken into a flavorful and exciting meal. Making your own chicken seasoning is easy, cost-effective, and guarantees a delicious result every time. This article provides a comprehensive guide to creating healthy chicken seasoning recipes, offering a variety of options to suit your taste preferences and dietary needs.
Why Make Your Own Chicken Seasoning?
While store-bought chicken seasonings are convenient, making your own offers several advantages:
- Control over Ingredients: When you create your own seasoning blends at home, you know exactly what’s going into them - simple herbs and spices. If you aren't careful when buying chicken seasonings in the store you can end up with a cart full of MSG and additives like silica. Additives are often mixed into store-bought seasonings to preserve or enhance flavor and serve as anti-caking agents.
- Healthier Option: My chicken seasoning recipe only uses all natural ingredients you likely already have in your spice rack - paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, and cayenne pepper. It helps to stimulate the digestive system, and spices are excellent antioxidants too. You can avoid unwanted additives, excess sodium, and unhealthy fats often found in commercial blends.
- Customization: This recipe is a great base recipe that allows for unlimited customization. You can easily make your own healthy chicken seasoning by adding your favorite spices.
- Cost-Effective: You don’t have to buy another seasoning blend when you probably have all the ingredients to make one at home. Homemade spice blends are much cheaper than store-bought versions, especially if you already have a well-stocked spice rack.
- Freshness: Homemade seasonings typically last approximately six to twelve months. Using fresh spices ensures the most potent flavor in your dishes.
Essential Pantry Seasonings
There is a good chance you have all (or most) of these seasonings on hand. I wanted to make this recipe easy and accessible to anyone who may not have time, money, or access to ingredients some recipes will call for when they claim they make the best chicken. While chicken needs some love to make it tasty, it doesn't need to be that complicated. For a versatile but minimal pantry, I recommend: garlic powder, onion powder, KOSHER salt, black pepper, dried parsley, smoked paprika, and extra virgin olive oil. Now, there are plenty of other spices I love, but for simplicity's sake let's start there.
A well-stocked pantry is the foundation for creating delicious homemade chicken seasonings. Some must-have spices include:
- Garlic Powder (or Granulated Onion): The only difference between granulated onion and onion powder is that the powder has been ground finer, than the granulated onion.
- Onion Powder (or Granulated Onion): Adds a savory depth to the seasoning.
- Sea Salt (or Kosher Salt): Both sea salt and kosher salt can be used interchangeably when cooking. Enhances the flavor of all the other spices.
- Black Pepper: Provides a mild heat and earthy flavor.
- Dried Parsley: There’s no denying that chicken pairs perfectly with herbs. Adds a fresh, herbaceous note. You can easily swap it out (or add in) basil, oregano, thyme or rosemary instead.
- Paprika: Basic paprika is just fine for this recipe. It adds a mild flavor and beautiful red color. Smoked paprika adds a smoky depth.
- Cayenne Pepper: For those who like a little heat, cayenne pepper adds a spicy kick.
- Dried Oregano: Lends a classic Mediterranean flavor.
- Dried Thyme: Offers an earthy and slightly minty flavor.
- Dried Basil: Provides a sweet and aromatic flavor.
- Cumin: Adds a warm and earthy flavor, commonly used in Southwestern and Mexican cuisine.
- Coriander: Offers a citrusy and slightly sweet flavor.
- Chili Powder: A blend of spices that adds a mild to moderate heat.
Basic Chicken Seasoning Recipe
This simple recipe is a great starting point for creating your own custom blends.
Read also: Healthy food access with Highmark Wholecare explained.
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried parsley
- 1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions:
- Add all ingredients to a small bowl and mix to combine.
- Store in an airtight glass jar and use as needed.
- For best results, use in 6 months to 1 year but will last up to 2 years. Yield is about 4 tablespoons of chicken seasoning. This recipe can be doubled, tripled, etc.
- Store the chicken seasoning in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.
Flavor Variations
This basic chicken seasoning recipe can be adapted to create a variety of flavor profiles. Here are a few ideas:
- Lemon Herb: Add 1 tablespoon of dried lemon peel and 1 teaspoon of dried thyme to the basic recipe.
- Spicy: Add 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper or crushed red pepper flakes to the basic recipe.
- Smoked Paprika: Substitute smoked paprika for regular paprika in the basic recipe.
- Mediterranean: Add 1 tablespoon of dried oregano and 1 teaspoon of dried basil to the basic recipe.
- Southwestern: Add 1 tablespoon of cumin and 1 teaspoon of chili powder to the basic recipe.
- Old Bay Inspired: Make your own healthy chicken seasoning by adding your favorite spices. The lemony flavor of Old Bay seasoning and thyme would brighten the spice nicely, while smoked paprika and fresh ground black pepper would create a more robust spice.
How to Use Chicken Seasoning
This chicken seasoning can be used as a dry rub for chicken (or other protein). Dry rubs add a lot of flavor in a very short amount of time. It’s a great way to add flavor to meat when you don’t have extra time to marinate it.
To use this homemade seasoning, use a tablespoon of seasoning for every pound of meat. An easy way to use this dry rub is to rub the chicken all over with a bit of olive oil to ensure the spices stick to it. Then, sprinkle your chicken seasoning on the chicken pieces and rub it in, making sure the spice mix gets on it evenly. Make sure the chicken is at room temperature before using the seasoning.
Read also: Healthy Eating on the Run
For chicken breasts, if you're not using skinless chicken breasts, make sure you liberally rub the spices under the skin.
The possibilities really are endless when it comes to this chicken seasoning recipe. Use it to season a whole chicken, chicken breasts, wings or thighs. Here are some cooking method ideas:
- Grilled Chicken: Lightly coat one pound of chicken wings, breasts, drumsticks or thighs with olive oil, then toss with 1 tablespoon seasoning mix. Heat a grill over medium-high heat. Grill the chicken on all sides until it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F for wings or breasts and 170°F for chicken thighs or drumsticks. In my opinion, the key to a perfectly grilled chicken recipe is not touching the chicken when it’s on the grill. Set your timer for 4-7 minutes, depending on the thickness of your chicken and flip. If the chicken sticks to the grill it’s not done yet. Chicken is considered “done” when the internal temperature reaches 165° F. Use a meat thermometer to check the temperature. Do NOT cut into the chicken to see if it’s pink this will release all the juices and make your chicken dry. The best part about today’s recipe is it’s done in under 20 minutes, it’s gluten free, and paleo! Yes!
- Baked Chicken: Pound 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts until they’re 1 inch thick. Lightly coat with olive oil, then toss with 1 tablespoon seasoning mix.
- Instant Pot Chicken: The easiest way to make shredded chicken for salads, tacos, dips and wraps, is to make it in the Instant Pot, or an electric pressure cooker.
- Rotisserie Chicken: Coat a whole chicken with olive oil, then with the seasoning mix. Place in a roasting pan and into a 425°F oven for 70-80 minutes. Baste the chicken every 15-20 minutes with juices from the bottom of the pan.
- Slow Cooker Chicken: Add 2 pounds of chicken breasts or thighs, or a combination of both, to a slow cooker. Coat the chicken with 2 tablespoons of the seasoning mix. Add 1 cup of chicken broth and slow cook on low for 7-8 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours.
- Fried Chicken: Instead of simply seasoning the flour for fried chicken with salt and pepper, add 2-3 teaspoons of this seasoning mix to the flour. Soak the chicken in milk, then dip in the seasoned flour.
- Air Fryer Chicken: Pound 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts until they’re 1 inch thick. Lightly coat with olive oil, then toss with 1 tablespoon seasoning mix. Place the chicken in an air fryer. Cook at 400°F for 8-12 minutes, flipping half way through the cooking process. Use an instant-read thermometer to make sure the chicken reaches 165°F internally before removing it from the air fryer.
- Pan Seared: Season any protein with just salt and pepper can be great if it’s done right, but sometimes I’m just looking for something a little more flavorful.
Tips for Making the Best Chicken Seasoning
- If your spices do not have an aroma, it’s time to replace them. While dry herbs and spices to not “go bad”, they lose their flavor and aroma after time. Using old spices will result in a dry rub without much flavor.
- For best flavor, use within 6 months to a year.
- You can double or triple this recipe to make a big batch of chicken seasoning. It’s great to have on hand during grilling season!
Marinades
I don’t always have time (or the ingredients) for a marinade. A chicken marinade is “wet” and in addition to herbs and spices, it has a fat and acid, usually oil and vinegar or citrus juice. You can use this dry rub in a marinade by combining it with oil and acid. This is a great way to get that BBQ taste without the grill.
Here’s a simple recipe for a flavorful chicken marinade:
Greek Chicken Marinade
This marinade incorporates garlic, shallots, paprika, oregano, lemon juice and lemon zest to create juicy, tender chicken.
Read also: Mobile Dining Revolution
Ingredients:
- 2 organic boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 3 tbsp. olive or avocado oil divided
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 small shallot peeled and minced
- 1 tbsp. dried oregano
- 2 tsp. paprika
- 1 tsp. kosher salt
- 1 tsp. pepper
- Lemon juice
Instructions:
- Prep chicken by trimming any fat, then dicing into even bite-sized chunks, about 1" cubes.
- In a bowl, place cubed chicken with only 2 tbsp. of the oil, then all other ingredients. Gently mix so all chicken is evenly covered.
- Place in refrigerator for 10 minutes.
- In a nonstick skillet over medium heat, warm 1 tbsp. olive oil. When warm, add in diced chicken into one even layer.
- After a few minutes, gently stir chicken and cook until no longer pink, about 5 or so minutes.
- Once cooked, remove chicken from pan and let rest slightly before serving!
Marinate for Best Results: Marinate the chicken for at least 10 minutes, but if you have the time, letting it sit for longer (even overnight) in a ziplock or plastic bag will really allow the flavors to soak in.
Don’t Overcrowd the Pan: When cooking the chicken, try not to overcrowd the pan. This helps it cook evenly and get a nice sear on each piece.
Leftovers? This recipe isn’t just limited to dinners; it’s also perfect for quick lunches. Use the cooked chicken in salads, bowls, wraps, or even chicken gyros. The Easiest Way to Store Leftovers: If you have leftover marinated chicken, store it in freezer bags or stasher bags. Then freeze whole pieces of grilled chicken by wrapping each piece in plastic wrap and placing it in a ziploc bag. This helps prevents freezer burn and also ensures that your grilled chicken won’t stick together.
Serving Suggestions
This chicken is a great option for salads, bowls, wraps or over your favorite starchy side like my Feta Couscous Salad! This chicken is perfect for meal prep. You know those recipe lists out there that call for a rotisserie chicken? This is perfect for those too. This is a truly versatile and easy chicken recipe. On my blog, you can find a bunch of recipes that call for cooked chicken, but here are some of my favorites.