Description
A flavorful Greek chicken marinade recipe featuring olive oil, lemon, garlic, and herbs, perfect for tenderizing and adding zest to boneless chicken breasts or thighs. This versatile marinade can be used for grilling, baking, stovetop cooking, or air frying, resulting in juicy, aromatic chicken ready in under 3 hours including marinating time.
Ingredients
Scale
Marinade Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil
- zest of one small lemon
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Chicken
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs
Instructions
- Prepare the marinade: Combine olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, dried oregano, dried basil, salt, and black pepper in a bowl or large zip-top plastic bag. Whisk or squeeze the bag to thoroughly mix all ingredients.
- Pound the chicken (optional for breasts): If using boneless, skinless chicken breasts, place them between parchment paper or plastic wrap and gently pound with a rolling pin or meat mallet until an even thickness is achieved; this ensures even cooking and tenderizes the meat.
- Marinate the chicken: Add the chicken to the marinade mixture, ensuring each piece is well coated. Seal the bag or cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 12 hours. The optimal marinating time is 1 to 4 hours for best flavor.
- Cook the chicken: Discard the marinade and cook the chicken using your chosen method until the internal temperature reaches 165° F. Options include grilling, stovetop, baking, or air frying:
- Grilling: Preheat grill to medium-high (375-450° F) and oil grates. Grill chicken breasts 5-8 minutes per side; boneless thighs 7-10 minutes per side (reduce heat to medium for thighs). Use hotter zones initially for grill marks, then move to lower heat to finish. Rest chicken 5 minutes before serving.
- Stovetop: Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chicken breasts about 5-8 minutes per side, boneless thighs 8-10 minutes per side, until cooked through. Rest 5 minutes before serving.
- Baking: Preheat oven to 425° F. Place chicken in a baking dish. Bake breasts based on size: 5-6 oz for 13-16 minutes, 8 oz for 16-19 minutes, 11-12 oz for 22-26 minutes. Bake boneless thighs 20-30 minutes. Rest 5 minutes before serving.
- Air Frying: Arrange chicken in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Cook at 400° F; breasts for 8 minutes, then flip and cook 5-12 more minutes until 165° F. Boneless thighs cook 11-15 minutes total with no flipping. Rest 5 minutes before slicing.
Notes
- Bone-In Thighs: When using bone-in chicken thighs, increase cooking time by a few minutes compared to boneless thighs.
- Freezing: Marinate chicken in a sealed zip-top bag, ensuring full coating, then freeze up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before cooking.
- Nutrition Estimates assume consumption of all marinade, though typically some marinade is discarded.
- For even cooking, always let chicken rest after cooking to redistribute juices.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 chicken breast (approx. 4 oz)
- Calories: 220 kcal
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 300 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 2 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 26 g
- Cholesterol: 70 mg
