This flavorful Hawaiian Grilled Huli Huli Chicken recipe is the perfect dinner to make on the grill. The sweet and savory pineapple sauce is infused with ginger and soy flavor, turning chicken into a finger-licking good meal that will make you think you’re on a tropical island.
If you are looking for a delicious grilled chicken recipe to whip up for dinner, look no further. This Hawaiian Grilled Huli Huli Chicken recipe is a delicious meal that will have the whole family licking their fingers.
Chicken breasts or thighs aren’t all that exciting on their own, but after swimming in a pineapple-infused marinade, they are anything but boring. The marinade doubles as a glaze and is infused with so much flavor from pineapple juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, and ginger. It’s savory and sweet and there isn’t anything better than a good salty-sweet combo, if you ask me!
The best part? There is no need to book a flight to Hawaii, when you can whip up this delicious meal in your own backyard.
Why we love this recipe
- It’s delicious! This dish is sweet, savory, and oh-so-yummy!
- The dish is very easy to put together.
- This recipe is a crowd-pleaser. Kids and adults love it and it’s great to serve up at backyard BBQs.
- While this chicken recipe is traditionally grilled, if you don’t have a grill or want to make it during colder months, you can cook it indoors (read on for tips on how to do this).
Ingredients in Grilled Huli Huli Chicken
- Chicken: Chicken thighs or breasts, boneless and skinless.
- Pineapple juice: I use canned pineapple slices to serve with the chicken, so I use the juice from that can to make this recipe.
- Brown sugar: Adds sweetness to the marinade.
- Soy sauce: the salty element of the sweet and salty marinade.
- Chicken broth: Adds flavor to the marinade. You can use regular or low-sodium broth.
- Ketchup: Adds flavor.
- Ginger: freshly grated is best for this recipe as it will give the best flavor.
- Green onions: sliced. For garnish.
- Pineapple slices: As mentioned above, I use canned pineapple slices to serve with the chicken and reserve the juice to make the marinade. You can serve the pineapple slices as they are or toss them on the grill for a bit before serving.
**Note: Ingredient quantities and full instructions are in the recipe card at the end of this post.**
How to make Grilled Huli Huli Chicken
- Make the marinade/glaze. In a bowl, mix pineapple juice, brown sugar, soy sauce, chicken broth, ketchup and ginger. Reserve half of the sauce.
- Marinate the chicken. Place chicken in a large ziplock bag and add half of the marinade. Place it in the fridge to marinate for at least 2 hours, but if possible, leave it overnight to allow for the best flavor.
- Grill. Grill chicken for approximately 6-8 minutes on each side or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove from the grill and baste the chicken generously with the reserved sauce.
- Garnish and serve. Garnish with green onions and serve with sliced pineapple (you can also grill the pineapple slices for a couple minutes if you like).
Can you make this chicken without a grill?
If you want to make this grilled chicken recipe but don’t have a grill or it’s the middle of winter and you have no desire to brave the cold outdoors to make dinner, you can easily adapt the recipe to make this recipe indoors.
I like to pan sear the chicken for a few minutes on each side in a hot skillet with a bit of oil first. This will give it some good color on both sides. Then I transfer it to a pre-heated oven and bake it at 350F until the chicken is cooked through. Cooking time will depend on the cut of chicken (breasts vs thighs) and the size of those cuts so be sure to use a meat thermometer to check that it is cooked through.
Once cooked, baste it with the reserved sauce as you would in the grilled cooking instructions.
Storing leftovers
Once cooled, leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
What to serve with Grilled Huli Huli Chicken
I love to serve this chicken with my Baked Coconut Rice and some grilled vegetables. Other great sides include creamy macaroni salad, Corn on the Cob, or a light salad.
I hope you enjoy this fun grilled chicken recipe as much as we do!
You may also like these grill recipes:
Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Peach Glaze
Hawaiian Turkey Burgers
Traditional Pork Souvlaki Recipe
Grilled Chili Lime Chicken
Homemade Hamburgers
Grilled Vegetable Ramen
Asian Sesame Beef Skewers
Grilled Corn Salsa
Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce
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Grilled Huli Huli Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken thighs or breasts, boneless and skinless
- 1/2 cup pineapple juice canned juice. I use the canned juice from the pineapple rings I serve with the dish.
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 teaspoon ginger grated
- green onions sliced for garnish
- pineapple sliced for serving
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix pineapple juice, brown sugar, soy sauce, chicken broth, ketchup and ginger. Reserve half of the sauce.
- Place chicken in a large ziplock bag and add half of the marinade. Place it in the fridge to marinate for at least 2 hours, but if possible, leave it overnight to allow for the best flavor.
- Grill chicken for approximately 6-8 minutes on each side or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove from the grill and baste the chicken generously with the reserved sauce.
- Garnish with green onions and serve with sliced pineapple (you can also grill the pineapple slices for a couple minutes if you like).
Note: Metric ingredient measurements are provided as a courtesy using a third-party calculator and are rounded to the nearest unit. The recipes provided on this site have not been tested with metric measurements and their accuracy cannot be verified.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is based on third-party calculations and is an estimate only. Accurate nutritional facts will vary based on the particular brands used, portion sizes, measurement accuracy and more.
