11 killer chicken thigh marinades

plus links to some additional chicken recipes on my website

Summer is undoubtedly the time for light and bright summer bowls that feature fresh produce and simple ingredients.

Today, I want to talk about one component that is critical to a summer bowl - PROTEINS, and particularly chicken.

Once you have a protein, you can add a carb (rice, pasta, or bread), some beautiful summer produce (summer salad, smashed cucumbers, charred veggies, etc), and you’ve got an easy peasy weeknight dinner.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be giving you ideas to build your own weeknight dinners with this “formula”, and today we’ll start with some marinated chicken ideas.

Before we dive into the marinades (if you just want the marinade recipes, feel free to scroll down), I want to talk through a couple important basic points and common questions that come up:

What type of chicken works?

I use boneless skinless chicken thighs. It’s quick to cook (~20 minutes), easy to eat (no bones to pick around) and flavorful. These also tend not to dry out as much as chicken breast.

If you’ve always leaned toward making chicken breast over chicken thighs, I urge you to try chicken thighs - they have a different texture and juiciness. Most restaurants (such as Chipotle) use chicken thighs to maintain flavor and texture.

That being said, any of these marinades will also work with chicken breasts or tenders :)

A quick note on the recipes

In the 11 marinade recipes below, I don’t include instructions on how to cook the chicken. I just include the list of ingredients.

What? Why would I do that?

I want to teach you how to make ANY chicken marinade taste good, and once you master the method, it applies to all the marinades.

There are a few key components to ensure a delicious chicken marinade:

• Salt. EVERY chicken marinade needs salt. Even if there’s soy sauce in the marinade there must still be salt. Account for 1 teaspoon of kosher salt (or 3/4 teaspoon of table salt) for every 1 lb of chicken you are using.

• Neutral oil. Whether you add this to the marinade (you just need 1/2 tbsp per lb) or to the pan before you cook the chicken, the oil is important for ensuring the chicken doesn’t stick. If you include it in the marinade (and not just add it to the pan), I find that it also helps tenderize the chicken and allow the other marinade components distribute more evenly. It’s not as critical as salt, but it’s important.

I will stop there and say these are the most important things about marinating chicken. Honestly, if you sear up a well seasoned chicken thigh with JUST salt, it will taste great.

• If there are any other toppings (herbs, spices, seasonings), combine all the marinade ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix well. 

• Add them to the chicken and let this marinate for as long as you have (5 minutes is fine, so is 4 days).

Note - I find that marinated chicken will stay fresh longer in the fridge than unmarinated chicken. I would not keep raw chicken in my fridge for 4 days. That gets questionable. HOWEVER, 4 days for a marinated chicken has never failed me. The reason for that is because the salt helps preserve the chicken.

Now onto cooking the chicken

Most people have their own preference on how they cook chicken. I will share my favorite way using cast iron → oven method. It’s my tried and proven method that comes out perfectly every single time. Now, if you prefer the air fryer, grill, or oven, you can do whichever method you like.

Cast Iron → Oven Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 425F.

2. Heat a cast iron pan or oven safe pan on high heat. Once hot, add a teaspoon of neutral oil and add an even layer of the chicken. Sear the chicken for 3 minutes on high heat until brown, then flip and cook for another minute.

3. Transfer the chicken into the preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until the chicken has reached 165 degrees at its thickest part.

• Notes: If you have a small amount of chicken, directly transfer the chicken in the cast iron to the oven. Otherwise, you can transfer the browned chicken to a baking tray and continue using the cast iron to brown more chicken. Once all the chicken are browned, put the tray of chicken into the oven and cook for 15 minutes.

With that, let’s get into our 11 killer chicken thigh ideas!

Cilantro lime chicken marinade 

• 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs

• 1.5 teaspoons kosher salt 

• Zest of 1 lime 

• 2 cloves garlic, minced 

• ¼ bunch of cilantro, finely chopped 

• 1 tablespoon neutral oil

• Black pepper 

Citrus chicken marinade 

• 1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs

• 1.5 teaspoons kosher salt

• 1 orange, sliced 

• ½ bunch cilantro, torn 

• 3 cloves garlic, smashed 

• 1 tablespoon neutral oil

• 1 lemon, zested with a peeler 

• Fresh ground black pepper 
  

Buffalo chicken marinade

• 1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs

• 2 teaspoons kosher salt 

• ⅓ cup greek yogurt

• Zest and juice of 1 lime 

• 1-2 tablespoons sriracha 

• Fresh ground black pepper