Sweet Heat 7up Chicken

Sweet Heat 7up Chicken – easy chicken marinade that is packed full of flavor! A little sweet, a little spicy, and a whole lotta good! We made this twice in one week! Fresh orange juice, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, rosemary, garlic, dijon mustard, and 7up soda. Can cook on the grill, stove, or in the oven. Leftovers are great on a salad or in a sandwich wrap!

Chicken with 7up Marinade

Grilled chicken is a staple at our house. We grill chicken at least twice a week so I am always up for new marinade ideas. This Sweet Heat 7up Chicken marinade is ridiculously delicious! A little sweet, a little spicy, and a whole lotta good. Fresh orange juice, brown sugar, red pepper, flakes, and 7up soda. SO much amazing flavor! I like to double the recipe for leftovers. This chicken is great chopped up for a chicken salad sandwich.

How to Make Spicy 7up Chicken

This chicken is super easy to make. Start with making the marinade. Juice and zest some oranges. Whisk in brown sugar, red pepper flakes, rosemary, garlic, dijon mustard, salt, pepper, and 7up soda. Pour the marinade over the chicken and refrigerate for a couple of hours to overnight. Remove the chicken from the marinade and cook.

Even though this marinade has 2 tablespoons of red pepper flakes, the cooked chicken isn’t really spicy. It just has a hit of heat to it. The 7up, orange juice, and brown sugar really mellow out the red pepper. That being said, adjust the red pepper flakes up or down to your personal preference.

• Can use any cut of chicken – breasts, tenders, thighs, wings, or legs
• Can use boneless or bone-in chicken. Adjust cooking time to ensure an internal temperature of 165ºF.
• I used 7up soda in this recipe. You can substitute Sprite or Ginger Ale.
• This recipe uses fresh rosemary. If you don’t have fresh rosemary, you can substitute 2 tsp dried rosemary.
• One orange will yield approximately ¼ cup of juice.
• I like to make the marinade at night and let the chicken sit in the refrigerator overnight for maximum flavor.
• We grilled the chicken, but you can cook it in the skillet and/or oven.
• To cook chicken breasts without a grill inside, pan sear the breast for 3 to 4 minutes on both sides. Place on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake at 400ºF for 10 minutes, until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165ºF.

What to Serve with Sweet Heat 7up Chicken

This 7up Chicken is packed full of amazing flavor! We enjoyed this chicken so much that we ended up making it twice in one week. Leftovers are great on top of a salad or in a sandwich wrap! YUM. We like to serve this chicken with some green beans and rice. Here are a few of our favorite recipes from the blog that go great with this easy chicken:

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