I finally got around to cooking some of the chicken drumsticks that I bought last week and they are soooo good! I love southwest inspired flavors, so marinating the chicken in cilantro lime was a natural choice for me. This savory, garlicky marinade infuses the chicken and creates the most wonderful pan juices, which I then spooned over rice. It’s safe to say that I’ll be making these Cilantro Lime Chicken Drumsticks again in the future.
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Do I have to use drumsticks?
Don’t have drumsticks? No prob. This would work equally as well with bone-in or boneless chicken thighs. While you could use chicken breasts, I prefer the tender juicy dark meat for baking. If using breasts, I suggest pounding them out thin to increase the meat to marinade ratio and be sure not to over cook them because breasts dry out quickly.
Can I grill this Cilantro Lime Chicken?
This is also a great recipe for the grill. I don’t have one, so I popped mine in the oven, but the smoky flavor of the grill would be an amazing addition. Not to mention, cilantro lime is such a great summery flavor! I’m over here day dreaming about grilling poolside in the summer sun… Is winter over yet?!
Cilantro Lime Chicken Drumsticks
Servings 3 to 4 servingsIngredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.24)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced ($0.24)
- 1/2 tsp cumin ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked pepper ($0.05)
- 2 limes ($0.66)
- 1/2 bunch cilantro ($0.40)
- 6 chicken drumsticks (about 1.75 lbs.) ($3.54)
Instructions
- Combine the olive oil, minced garlic, cumin, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper (about 10-15 cranks of a mill) in a bowl.
- Use a zester, microplane, or small-holed cheese grater to remove the zest from one of the limes. Add about 1 tsp zest and 3 Tbsp juice to the marinade.Pull the leaves from 1/4 bunch of cilantro and chop finely. Add the chopped cilantro to the marinade and stir to combine. The other 1/4 bunch of cilantro will be added after baking.
- Pour the marinade into a gallon sized zip top bag and add the chicken drumsticks. Close the bag tightly and massage to mix and coat the chicken pieces in the marinade. Refrigerate for 30 minutes, or longer if desired, turning the bag occasionally to redistribute the marinade.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Add the chicken pieces to a casserole dish so they are all in one layer, trying not to overcrowd. Pour the rest of the marinade in the bag over the chicken.
- Bake the chicken for 40-45 minutes, basting once or twice throughout. For more browning, turn the broiler on at the end of the cooking time and broil for 2-4 minutes, or until the desired amount of browning is achieved. The total cooking time will ultimately depend on the size of your drumsticks and how closely they are packed together in the baking dish. Use a meat thermometer to make sure the meat has reached 160ºF to be sure.
- Garnish the chicken with fresh slices of lime and more chopped cilantro leaves.
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Nutrition
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How to Make Cilantro Lime Chicken – Step by Step Photos
Start the marinade by combining 2 Tbsp olive oil, 4 cloves of minced garlic, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper (about 10-15 cranks of a pepper mill).
Zest the lime using a zester, microplane, or a small-holed cheese grater. Add about 1 tsp of the zest to the marinade and about 3 Tbsp of the juice (you may need to cut open the second lime to get 3 Tbsp of juice).
Finely chop about 1/4 bunch of cilantro (leaves only). The other 1/4 bunch will be added to the chicken after baking.
Add the lime zest, juice, and chopped cilantro to the marinade and stir to combine.
Add the marinade and 6 chicken drumsticks to a large zip top bag. Massage the bag to mix the marinade and coat the chicken pieces. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
When you’re ready to bake them, preheat the oven to 400ºF. Place the chicken pieces in a baking dish, making sure they’re in a single layer and not over crowded (the more space between the pieces, the faster they’ll cook).
Pour the rest of the marinade from the bag over the chicken. I made sure to scoop up the rest of the minced garlic and chopped cilantro from the bag and pile it on top of the chicken.
Bake the chicken for 40-45 minutes, or until the internal temp is 160ºF (you can use a meat thermometer to be sure). For extra browning, turn on the broiler and let the chicken brown under the broiler for 2-4 minutes, or until browned to your liking. I maybe left mine under the broiler just a tad too long, but it was still delicious.
Fresh cilantro has a much different flavor than cooked cilantro, so you’ll want to garnish the cooked chicken with the second half of the cilantro. Chop it fresh just before adding to the chicken. I also added thin slices from the second lime. Gorgeous!
The sauce in the bottom of the dish is TO-DIE-FOR, so don’t let it go to waste. Try not to let the lime slices sit in the hot liquid too long, though, the rind can add a bitter flavor.
I spooned some of that liquid from the bottom of the dish over the rice that I served with the chicken. I also served the chicken with roasted sweet potatoes. Don’t worry, that recipe is coming tomorrow! :)
I packed these bowls up for the refrigerator so we could just grab one and reheat when we’re hungry. I put two drumsticks in each container for the boyfriend, and one each for me, so we got four meals out of this dish.
can i substitute the chicken legs with bone in chicken thighs or skinless boneless chicken breast?
Yes, although cooking time will change with the size of the pieces and whether the bone is included or removed.
Do you think it would be okay to leave the chicken marinating for a whole day? Or would that be too much? I only ask because I get home at like 730 every night, and it would be much easier for me to make the marinade the night before, and then stick the chicken in the oven when I get home the next day.
The only issue you might have is that sometimes if meat is left in an acidic marinade for too long it can begin to break down the meat fibers and make the meat mushy. I’ve never used this marinade for that long, so I can’t say for certain if that would be an issue.
I made this last night for company and got rave reviews !! My husband is not crazy about cilantro but loved this recipe. It will certainly be made again. Sooo Easy! I cut the cilantro with scissors instead of a knife. I find it to be not as messy.
This chicken is absolutely delicious. It has now become a once-every-week-or-two staple for my spouse and I.
Is that cumin or ground cumin?
ground cumin
We loved these! I should have doubled the recipe, because my husband was very disappointed that there were no leftovers for lunch the next day. And so easy to make, this will make a regular rotation on our dinner menu.
This was so great! I think the only change I would make would be to double the marinade so I had more to serve over the rice. Thanks for the recipe.
I made this last night with the chili roasted sweet potatoes and both were so flavourful! They will definitely be worked into the rotation of other budget bytes recipes I make :)
This was absolutely AH-mazing! I made this right before work and was so happy by how quick, easy AND this is. Will definitely be making this again and again. Thanks, Beth!!
I forgot the word delicious 😄
If I were to have about 5 poounds worth of drumsticks would I double up on the marinade?
Yep, or maybe even triple it just to be sure.
I’ve read your site for years, but never commented. This marinate is worth the comment. It was sooo delicious!
Hi Beth!
Do you think it will be ok to use lemon instead of lime? I have a huge lemon tree pouring lemons everywhere, I don’t know how to use them besides lemonade….
Thanks in advance!
Honestly, I think lime is better for this one, but if you need some ideas for your lemons, type “lemon” into the search field at the top of my site and it will pull up all the recipes that mention lemon… some of those use “lemon pepper seasoning”, but there are quite a few with fresh lemons as well. :)
Maybe not for this one in particular but a lemon basil or a lemon thyme marinade sounds like an interesting alternative as well. :)
I made this just the other day, and I have to tell you, I am absolutely, totally one hundred percent completely in love with this recipe. So simple, I wondered why I didn’t think of it. I love lime, and I love cilantro, so his was a no brainer. Even though this was the first time trying the recipe, I knew I’d love it, so I made double the marinade, because I can’t get enough of what gives food it’s flavor. I’m going to be adding this to my Budget Bytes meals rotation! Without fail, I make at least once a month Chicken Piccata, Garlic or Dragon Noodles, and try to make at least bi-monthly Teriyaki Meatball bowls, and/or Beef taco pasta. I also use your homemade taco seasoning on EVERYTHING. You are a goddess, I love you! :)
No zester/grater but I want to make this tonight, do you think omitting the lime zest will greatly change the recipe? Or any suggestion?
You can also slice the rind off (carefully, so you don’t get the white pith) and then mince it. I wouldn’t skip it because the zest adds a lot of flavor.
I made the whole meal today, and LOVED each and every bit of it. I’m with you Beth, the sauce was amazing, AH-MAZING! Like, you could use it to barter with it like gold good. And, it was my first, but not last, time making coconut rice. So sad I’ve gone so long without eating that deliciousness, but SO HAPPY to be eating it now, and in the future. The flavor of the sweet potatoes was the perfect counterpoint to the tangy cilantro lime sauce. Thanks for again bringing a healthy, delicious, inexpensive meal into my world Beth!