These easy grilled lemon pepper chicken breasts are perfect for a simple weeknight dinner or to meal prep your protein for the week. With only a few ingredients, they cook quickly without much hands on time or dirty dishes. These Whole30 grilled chicken breasts are juicy with a bright lemon flavor that pairs well with a little kick from the pepper. It’s a family friendly recipe that is gluten-free, low carb and paleo so they can please a crowd, too!
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Grilled Lemon Pepper Chicken Ingredients
What I love most about this Whole30 recipe is that it’s so few ingredients! You likely have everything you already need at home and it only takes a few minutes to get together. You’ll need lemon juice (or the juice from 2 lemons), black pepper, salt, olive or avocado oil, and chicken breasts. That’s it!
How to Prep Your Whole30 Chicken Breasts
To make the lemon pepper marinade, you’ll first use a zester to zest one of the lemons into a bowl. Next, you’ll juice your lemons and add it to the bowl. Then simply add in the oil, salt and pepper and use a fork to mix it together. Place your chicken breasts into a leak-proof storage bag, my go-to being my Ello Reusable Bags.
These BPA free bags have helped me replace using and throwing away plastic bags and they come in different sizes so they’re perfect for food storage, lunchboxes, snacks and chopped veggies. They’re also freezer safe, which I love for when I want to freeze my leftovers!
Once your chicken is in a bag, pour in the marinade. Shake it to evenly distribute the marinade, seal it, and place it into the fridge for at least 30 minutes, up to overnight.
Grilling Lemon Pepper Chicken Breasts
Once the chicken has been marinaded, heat your grill to about 450 degrees F. Once hot, place your chicken directly onto the grill grates and close the lid. You’ll only need to cook the chicken about 6-8 minutes per side, which will depend on how thick your chicken breasts are.
You’ll know the chicken breasts are ready to flip once they slide off the grill grates easily. You shouldn’t have to pull or tug on them with tongs to get them to flip, and the chicken shouldn’t stick to the grates. If it is sticking, let it grill an additional minute before trying to flip again.
The chicken should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F., or until the juices run clear. Remove them from the grill and let them rest for about 10 minutes to lock in all of the juices before eating or storing.
Storing Your Grilled Chicken Breasts
If you’re grilling these for meal prep, you can enjoy them throughout the week for up to 4-5 days. Place them into an airtight container, my favorite being my Ello 7-Cup Round Container, as it’s the perfect size to store 4-6 large chicken breasts! It’s also dishwasher, oven and microwave safe, which makes reheating the chicken breasts a breeze! These glass containers also come in handy for serving. I love making pasta salads, fruit salads or potato salads for family nights and then being able to just set the container out to serve it from, too.
Save 15% off of your glass meal prep containers using the code BAILEY15 with your online order from Ello Products!
When storing the chicken breasts for meal prep, I prefer to keep them whole. That way there’s more flexibility when I’m ready to make something for lunch or dinner. I can keep it whole and pair with some vegetable sides, or I can shred or dice it to put into a salad. It gives you more options on ways to use them up!
Other Healthy, Whole30 Chicken Recipes You’ll Love:
Easy Garlic Butterfly Chicken & Veggies
Instant Pot Sweet & Sour Chicken
PrintGrilled Lemon Pepper Chicken Breasts: Whole30, Paleo, Gluten-Free
These easy grilled lemon pepper chicken breasts are perfect for a simple weeknight dinner or to meal prep your protein for the week. With only a few ingredients, they cook quickly without much hands on time or dirty dishes. These Whole30 grilled chicken breasts are juicy with a bright lemon flavor that pairs well with a little kick from the pepper. It’s a family friendly recipe that is gluten-free, low carb and paleo so they can please a crowd, too!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Grill
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 2–2.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tbsp avocado or olive oil
- Juice of 2 large lemons (about 3/4 cup)
- 2 tbsp lemon zest
- 1 tbsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Combine all of the marinade ingredients into a small bowl and stir to combine. Add both the marinade and the chicken breasts into an airtight container or reusable bag and shake to coat the chicken
- Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (a few hours preferable), up to overnight
- Heat the grill 450 degrees F. on medium-high heat. Place the chicken breasts onto the grill and grill for 6-8 minutes per side, depending on how thick your chicken breasts are
- When the chicken is ready to be flipped, it will come off of the grill grates easily without sticking. If a chicken breast doesn’t come up easily, let it grill on that side an additional minute before flipping
- Once the chicken is done (internal temperature is 165 degrees F. and juices run clear), remove from the grill and let rest for 10 minutes prior to serving or storing
Notes
- You can easily double this recipe for a larger meal prep or gathering
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Marianne says
Made these for Labor Day and doubled it. Everyone loved them, and I loved how easy the prep was!
Julie says
SO good!! Will be making again. Perfect for easy dinner for everyone