Pesto Marinade for Chicken or Shrimp

DeeCooks's Note:

I had a grilled pesto-marinated chicken breast at the Hayes Mansion in San Jose and wanted to make it at home, but couldn't find anything like what I had--it wasn't just chicken with pesto on it, but had been marinated. I searched for something similar, but could find nothing, so I finally came up with this. I've used my own pesto recipe (Roasted Garlic Basil Pesto) and store bought pesto, and both work well. One cup of marinade is enough for four boneless, skinless chicken breasts

• Total Time: 5 mins
• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 0 mins

Ingredients:

Yield: 1 cup

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup pesto sauce
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• fresh ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Marinate chicken for at least an hour, more is better! For shrimp, don't marinate too long--the lemon will "cook" the shrimp. It doesn't ruin it, but it changes the texture a bit.
3. Brush marinade on meat while it's cooking. (Discard garlic chunks).
4. Works well with chicken, shrimp, and firm white fish. I think it would be good with pork tenderloin, but I haven't made that yet!

Reviews

[Jenn.Noble]

My husband surprised me with this tonight for dinner. It was flavorful and delicious. He marinated chicken, peppers and zucchini and grilled them all. It made a wonderful, light meal! I'm sure we will be eating this again.

[SaffronMeSilly]

This was good and very easy. I keep homemade pesto in my fridge and this was a scrumptious way to use it. Thanks for the post.