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.
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“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
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Get into pc Softs
thank for sharing awesome post love to read this post
Minoj Kumar
Thanks for this great article.
Michael - Kitchen Enthusiast
Holy Cow, does this recipe look delicious! I’ll be making this with my wife soon, gotta find organic chicken first. Big thanks
Denise
This was so flavorful even with a 1/2 hour marinade. I poured the extra marinade on my grilled corn, too-delicious!
Grady Galvez
Very Good Article. I loving it
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I tried this recipe for dinner the other day and it was a big hit! I am a vegetarian but my husband and daughter are not, so I used chicken for theirs and organic extra-firm tofu for mine and it worked out perfectly! I will definitely be making this again.
Thanks Sabrina, I’m glad you and the family enjoyed it and you made it work for your vegetarian needs.
Marjorie
I made this yesterday morning, we ate it tonight. I used chicken breast, because that was all I had at the time. Everyone in the family loved it! It tasted delicious and fresh.
I will definitely make this again when we have guests over for dinner.
Thanks for this great recipe! :-)
Adam Rodriguez
good one article i read ever keep it up guys keep posting like this
Gaming Mouse
The Chicken is look like very delicious i am loving it
Hilton
Really U have awesome skills to present this recipe. After marriage, i try first time this recipe to my in-laws. yummy & looks delicious.pls share more stuff with us.
THANKS
Heather
We love this marinade! It is one of our favorites. We have used on shrimp and than grilled very delicious as well.
Hi Heather, I love that idea and will totally try it.
Chris Diaz
great recipe thanks for sharing
Top 10 aarti
Yummy looks delicious
tim crena
Really I have no words to express, u have the awesome writing skill, I made this dish for my wife first time…..thanks for sharing
Mullins
I am very critical of my foods. I was not happy with the final product with this recipe. They looked awsome, absolutely beautiful.
Read more at http://www.lifeloveandsugar.com/2014/12/29/champagne-cupcakes/#Oh8p0eso6D8qQAlR.99
Brady
Hello, Heidi
Your recipe was delicious and easy to make. My husband liked it. Thank you for sharing such a fantastic recipe.
Cole
Thank you Heidi for this great recipe, now for it being very simple to make this recipe (y) .
Charles G. Warren
nice information
Marrie (Thinkcook)
Hey Heidi, this is the first time I tried cilantro lime grilled chicken with your recipe and my family loves it so much. Thank you! I’m going to make some variation with this recipe and shall let you know if I come up with something great :)
kimz
awesome foodie blog really i learnt lots of things
Joy Giudicessi
I love Cilantro Lime Chicken. I think I will try the addition of honey to my recipe. I am prepping the chicken and putting it in a freezer bag to be frozen for a quick-fix dinner. I especially love hearing about Cloyd. I will bet that the annoyed response was over in a matter of minutes cause I can hear the love in your words.
Liz
That was absolutely delish. Such a light summery dish. Can’t wait to make it again. Thank you.
Liz
I just marinated Halibut. Making Grilled Fish Taco. Yum
Kelvin Tran
I like it. I was made this recipe for my wife. She very like it. Thanks for sharing.
Joy Abbott
My Family absolutely LOVES this recipe! Thank you so much for sharing.
I am having company over and would love to share this with them but I’m not sure what to serve it with .What do you like to serve as sides to this dish?
Thanks
Amani A
I made this dish for a potluck using chicken breast and after cooking them I placed the chicken over a bed of rice! It was amazing- can’t wait to make it again (today)! I told everyone about the dish and I can’t wait to make it for them. If I could upload a picture of how mine turned out I would.
Adam
Made this the other day, huge hit! Great recipe, adding it to our regular rotation!