How Long Can Chicken Marinate In The Fridge?

Grilled chicken is a favorite dish of many as it comes with a lot of flavors that get tucked into it. A great way to make a flavorful grilled chicken is to marinate it in the fridge. However, there is a time limit to keeping the marinated chicken in the fridge.

If you are dealing with marinated chicken in the fridge, it can stay there inside for 2 days.

Although the time may be slightly inappropriate, for it changes according to what kind of marination, it could definitely stay in the fridge for at least a day without any issue.

The above timeline is a rough estimate of the duration it can be kept on the fridge. In this article, we will know a little more about marinated chicken and how it can be used.

Keeping it for the right time would ensure that it is fresh and soft. Let us go over all the details about the topic.

Before diving into the topic straightaway, let us first understand what marination is and how it helps poultry.

What Is Marination?

Marination is soaking and immersing the chicken in a flavorful liquid containing all the herbs, spices, and other condiments if needed. The liquids needed for marination are olive oil, vinegar, wine, and citrus juice.

Marination is done to induce flavor into the meat and tenderize the meat for consumption.

There are many types of marinades, and they enhance the flavor differently. 

1. Acidic Marinades

Acidic marinades, as you might’ve guessed, are made with acidic ingredients like vinegar, lime juice, or wine. They soften the meat’s layers as soon as they are soaked in.

2. Enzymatic Marinades

Ingredients like pineapple, papaya, or kiwi are added to the marinade mixture to stuff it with healthy fibers.

3. Saline Marinades

Saline marinades are basically marinades with salts. They emanate moisture from the meat, making it juicier.

4. Oil-Based Marinades

Oil-based marinades are basically oils such as olive oil or sesame oil.

What Are The Benefits Of Marinating A Chicken?

There are many benefits to marinating a chicken prior to cooking it. We will have all the pointers listed for you.

1. Marinating a chicken will add some flavor and make it more soft, juicy, and tender.
2. The muscle fibers in the chicken are broken down with the help of marination.
3. Marination can help prevent the chicken from drying out while cooking.
4. The result will be more flavorful, and cooking will be faster with marination.

How Long Can The Chicken Get Marinated In The Fridge?

The duration at which the marinated chicken is kept in the fridge is very tentative and needs to be more precise. It changes according to the marination’s temperature and the number of ingredients used.

A thumb rule, in general, states that it can be kept inside the fridge for 2 days. If the marinade is strong enough, it can be kept a little longer. If the fridge’s temperature is cold enough to prolong the shelf life of the marination, then it can go on for a longer time as well.

However, keeping a tab on the quality of the marinated chicken in the fridge is very important. The smell is the obvious indication to find out whether the chicken has gone bad.

Can You Keep Chicken Marinated For Three Days?

You can keep the chicken marinated for three days in the refrigerator without any hassles. However, please discard the marinade mix after 3 days, as it could have gone bad by then.

The thumb rule is the longer you marinate the chicken, the more flavorful it will be. You can let it soak for longer to make it more tasty and flavorful. 

You have to be sure of one thing, the longer you marinate, the more proteins in the meat will break down with a texture that is not so appealing. It could also come out as a less flavorful dish.

The chicken will also turn mushy in nature, and eating it would not be so delicious. Moreover, the taste of the chicken would be subjugated by the marinade’s flavor beating the purpose of eating the chicken in the first place.

The texture would not be rigid and strong enough to hold any taste.

How Do You Store The Marinated Chicken In The Fridge?

The marinated chicken stays in the fridge until all the flavors get absorbed fully. You will have to store it in such a way that it does not contaminate the other foods in the vicinity.

It has to be stored in a sealed container in an isolated spot without disturbing the other foods.

1. Make sure the chicken is completely dry before you marinate it. The flavor of the marinade will stay intact in this case.
2. Use a container or freezer bag that is sealed to store the chicken. Find a place in the fridge which is isolated from other foods.
3. Seal the container without any intrusion of the external air.
4. Set the temperature of the fridge to less than 40 degrees F.

How Do You Extend The Shelf Life Of Marinated Chicken?

1. When you are ready to use the chicken, make sure you heat it thoroughly by killing all the bacteria on the surface of the chicken.
2. Do not overcook the chicken. Overcooking it will make it dry and rough.
3. Leftover cooked chicken can be stored in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. It can be frozen for months together.
4. The leftover marinade can be stored in the fridge for some more days. It can be frozen for months together. 

Should You Poke Holes To Marinate The Chicken?

This is a yes and no kind of question, and it depends on many factors.

1. If you have a wet marinade, then poking holes would help.
2. If you are using a dry marinade, poking holes is redundant.
3. The dry rub can sometimes penetrate into the surface of the chicken.

Conclusion

How long you can marinate the chicken in the fridge depends on many factors. All the factors have been discussed in the article. Storage aspects of the chicken are also given for you as additional information to help you deal with the marinated chicken.

If you have ever had a bad chicken, you will know the repercussions of it, and it is definitely better to have a perfect chicken by following all the above guidelines.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)