This grilled cilantro lime chicken recipe delivers lots of flavor thanks to a quick marinade. With just 7 ingredients and 3 simple steps, it’s easy enough to cook any night of the week.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“Absolutely delicious!!! I am NOT a cook but this was so easy….and my teenagers LOVED it. I will definitely be preparing this again.” ~Gwen C. Evans, FoodieCrush reader
Never-Dry Grilled Chicken (Yes, Really!)
There’s not much to say about this recipe except that it’s really easy. And fast. The potency of flavors in the cilantro lime marinade make for a speedy fast marinade that gets the chicken on the grill after just a 30-minute soak. Or, it can easily sit in the fridge in a gallon size freezer bag overnight.
While I love making it on lazy weekend nights, this grilled cilantro lime chicken recipe is also a goodie for when I’m short on time or am meal prepping for the week.
To make ahead, grill a few chicken thighs then slice and store in the fridge for a flavorful salad topper or taco stuffer. Most of the ingredients can be thrown together with stuff in your pantry, or at least in my pantry, given I always have fresh cilantro and limes in the crisper.
Enjoy! Heidi
All of My Juicy Secrets for Grilling Chicken
- Any cut of chicken will work. I used skinless chicken thighs because I just love their flavor and they don’t tend to dry out as quickly as chicken breasts, but by all means, use any other part (or all) of the chicken that you desire. I’ve made this with chicken thighs with the skin on, and they were good, but I ended up burning most of the skin thanks to that dang fatty layer dripping into the grill and flaring up.
- Double up on the lime flavor by utilizing the lime zest. Zesting citrus always adds more flavor, oftentimes even more than the juice.
- The marinade doubles as a basting sauce! To use for basting and drizzling over the grilled chicken before serving, reserve ⅓ cup or more of this marinade. Remember, to avoid cross-contamination, never re-use the marinade that has been in contact with the raw chicken.
The Cilantro Lime Marinade We *LOVE*
The full recipe, with amounts, can be found in the recipe card below.
This cilantro lime chicken marinade is the star of this recipe, but you don’t need much to achieve big flavor. Simply blitz the following in a food processor or blender:
- Lime juice + zest
- Fresh cilantro
- Olive oil
- Honey
- Cumin
- Kosher salt and pepper
Pour the marinade over the chicken and let it hang out in the fridge for 30 minutes before grilling over medium-high heat.
Freeze the Chicken in the Marinade to Grill Later!
To save time later, to make for a crowd, or take camping, freeze the uncooked chicken in the cilantro lime marinade in a freezer-safe bag for up to 2 months. When ready to cook, thaw and discard the marinade before cooking.
If cooking for a crowd, fit as many chicken thighs into the bag before freezing. Or, to serve individually, freeze each of the chicken thighs separately for quickest thawing.
Heidi’s Tip: You can always tell when grilled chicken is done when the internal temp reaches 160°F (use a meat thermometer!) and the juices run clear. Let the chicken rest a few minutes for the temp to raise to 165°F and the juices to settle before serving.
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below, leave a comment to tell us what you think, and tag me on Instagram @foodiecrush.
Grilled Cilantro Lime Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 pounds skinless chicken thighs
- 4 limes , zested and juiced
- 1 cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves and stems
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- extra cilantro , for garnish
Instructions
- Trim any fat from the chicken thighs and place in a large freezer bag. To the bowl of a food processor, add the lime juice, lime zest, cilantro, olive oil, honey, cumin, salt and pepper and whiz to combine, about 30 seconds. Reserve ⅓ cup of the marinade and pour the rest into the bag with the chicken. Refrigerate for 30 minutes up to overnight.
- Prepare a grill on medium high at 450°F, leaving one side of the grill on low or off. Grill the chicken for 5-6 minutes per side, basting each side the last time it's turned. Once each side has seared, if the chicken pieces seem to be getting too charred, move the chicken pieces to the cooler side of the grill to cook.
- To redistribute the juices, let the chicken sit for 5 minutes before serving. Serve with lime wedges and additional cilantro and drizzle the rest of the reserved marinade before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Sides to Serve with Cilantro Lime Chicken
- Mango Margarita with Chile Salt and Lime or Coconut Margarita
- Chopped Mexican Kale Salad
- Southwest Quinoa and Grilled Corn Salad
- Easy Mexican Coleslaw
- Mexican Street Corn
- Homemade Pinto Beans
More Grilled Chicken Recipes You’ll Love
- Juicy Grilled Chicken Breasts
- Grilled Lemon Chicken Skewers
- Mediterranean Grilled Balsamic Chicken
- The Best BBQ Chicken
- Teriyaki Chicken Kabobs
- Hawaiian Chicken Skewers
We send good emails. Subscribe to FoodieCrush and have each post plus exclusive content only for our subscribers delivered straight to your e-mail box.
Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest for more FoodieCrush inspiration.
As always, thank you for reading and supporting companies I partner with, which allows me to create more unique content and recipes for you. There are affiliate links in this post of which I receive a small commission. All opinions are always my own.
Tia
This is my new go-to recipe for chicken – the flavor is amazing & I can’t believe how easy this is for such great flavor! I use boneless/skinless chicken thighs (and sometimes add a sprinkle of red pepper flakes but it doesn’t need them I just like a little extra spice). I shared some with my neighbor, and now he’s making this recipe too! Fantastic – thank you for sharing!
Ruth Flounders
Made this for my daughter for Mother’s Day & it was absolutely delicious. We put it on whole wheat tortillas with lettuce, tomato,& avocado. It’s sweet and tangy and the cilantro is just right. Served with asparagus from the garden. Thanks so much for a beautiful story & a great recipe.
Kala Moore
I like this chicken. I will try this chicken on my weekend. Thanks for sharing.
Niky Jackson
Grilled chicken is my husband weakness. whenever i need something from him i always cook something new for home. this weekend going to try this.
Ellen
I made lime-cilantro chicken for 30+ people today using your marinade (though instead of grilling, I dredged the marinated thighs in flour, pan-seared them, and then finished them in the oven). It was wildly popular and people were begging for the recipe. Even my 13-year-old, who normally avoids anything flecked with green like the plague, loved it. Thank you!
Cassandra
This recipe was delicious and so easy to make. I broiled and baked my chicken thighs. The weather was too nasty to grill, but next time I will definitely BBQ. I had extra marinade left over that I used as a dressing for a black bean, corn, tomato, red pepper salad that I threw together. Instead of traditional rice, I made cauliflower rice. Overall it was a healthy and satisfying meal. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Karen
Yum! I have loads of cilantro growing in the garden right now, so I’m absolutely making this!
Lori Elliott
I made this 2 nights ago. It was absolutely DELICIOUS! My husband doesn’t particularly like chicken, but he loved this. My kids wrinkled their noses and then wanted seconds. Needless to say, we will have this dish again. Thanks so much for sharing your story and this recipe!
barbara
This looks great and thinking about trying it tonight. One question – is that boneless, skinless thighs? thanks
Hi Barbara, yes, they are boneless thighs. Thanks!
Tracy
This is the second night I’m making this chicken in 2 weeks. It is PHENOMENAL! My husband even tried to get me to make it large scale for a party this past weekend. It’s even one of the rare chicken dishes that still tastes amazing reheated. Thank you for sharing such an amazing recipe. If I had instagram or twitter I would show you the pic!
Tracy, I’m so glad you’re enjoying it, over and over again! Thank you for coming back and letting me know.
Mary Elder
Do you think it would turn out okay if I put it in the crock pot and cooked it on low while I am at work?
Hi Mary, I haven’t tried cooking them in the slow cooker so I can’t say. But if you do, let me know how they work out.
Natalie | Paper & Birch
Cilantro Lime has to be one of my favourite combos! Definitely going to try this for our next bbq. :)
Gisella Quintana
Any side dish reccommended for this fabulous chicken?
Zac Richins
Made it for dinner tonight. It was delicious. Thank you!
Ami@NaiveCookCooks
Heidi this is one delicious looking chicken recipe! Oh those unannounced visits. You are so right, we need to cherish those and enjoy in the moment!!
JoAnna
Thank you for your many great recipes. Yes I save more than I make, but this one has been made twice! Love the tenderizing of time and lime, followed by Sous Vide cook (143degrees for 75 min) to cook, then a brief grill to warm and brown–oh my goodness–this is a keeper. *****
Merci
Myrtice Stevens
My dear Heidi your cilantro lime grilled chicken just broke my heart. I’m totally in love with it. But you know what, the painful truth is i’m not a fan of cilantro. Can you recommend any alternative veggie for me please? That will the best cure for my broken heart!
Senika @ Foodie Blog Stalker
Yum, this chicken looks amazing! I’m looking forward to utilizing my grill much more this summer. Once I get going, especially on my days off, it’s hard to focus on anything but my chores. I’d be exactly like you if someone were to stop by. Such a good reminder to appreciate those special times in our life even when it’s not necessarily convenient for us!
Thanks Senika, I totally agree with fitting in real life and our want-to-be lives. It ain’t easy but I’m trying to remember what’s important!
Contestchef
Your blog is impressive, thanks to the quality of your recipes & other content. We would be glad if you would participate on Contestchef so that your quality recipes can contest with other such bloggers/ recipe creators and win accolades from various players in the global food industry.
Contestchef is a global forum for food/ recipe bloggers to showcase their skills to the world. This is a one of a kind concept and backed by food conglomerates around the world. Several recipe creators/bloggers are already contesting on Contestchef.
Click to join Contestchef
Sincerely,
Nandy
Contestchef
Jocelyn (Grandbaby cakes)
This chicken is fantastic!!!
Oh Hey! Blog
This looks absolutely delicious. I could eat chicken every day so am always looking for news ways to cook it.
Megan || http://www.ohheyblog.com
Laura (Tutti Dolci)
What a nice tribute to Cloyd! I could take a lesson or two about the unexpected drop in.
As for this chicken, I’m all about anything cilantro lime and I love your tip about reserving some of the marinade to drizzle when serving – genius!
KalynsKitchen
Such a nice tribute to him, and you’re so right that we need to spend more time focused on those we love and less time worrying about getting things done! The chicken looks great.
Thank you Kalyn. With a family as large as yours, I bet you’re pretty good at making time for all.
Camille
Thank you for adding the photo to the print version!
Hi Camille, thanks for letting me know you wanted it!! And for printing the recipe :)
NearPhilly
This is a winner! Served 6 family members for 4th of July barbecue and everyone really enjoyed the flavors of this recipe.
Maureen
We should all take a page out of Cloyd’s book and sit around the table an extra 15 minutes and enjoy all the deliciousness of this chicken! :)
I always miss my dad and there are things that remind me of him every day.
Kristi
I love lime, I love cilantro and I love your story. I too am guilty of not enjoying surprise guests, but have gotten a little better as the years go by. I am trying your recipe tomorrow for a group of 18-20.(we will see how many actually show up) I made it tonight and will let it marinade overnight. Will be serving with baked sweet potatoes, baked beans and spinach salad. I will try and log back in and let you know or tag you in an Instagram. Thank you very much!