Need something easy and flavorful to throw on the grill this weekend? This Greek Marinated Chicken is it.
The marinade for this chicken (similar to what I used for this Chicken Shawarma ) takes just a few minutes to stir together and creates an absolute explosion of flavor. It’s incredible. I only marinated my chicken in this magical mix for 30 minutes, but the flavor was still loud and clear. Once marinated, you can grill the chicken outdoors over a gas or charcoal flame, or (if you don’t have a grill) you can bake it in the oven. Either way, you’ll get a super flavorful and moist end product.
I served this Greek Marinated Chicken with my Lemony Cucumber and Couscous Salad, which was the perfect cold summer side, and incorporated both starches and vegetables into the meal. Two birds with one stone!
Greek Marinated Chicken
Greek Marinated Chicken
Servings 8 piecesIngredients
- 1 cup plain yogurt ($0.63)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced ($0.32)
- 1/2 Tbsp dried oregano ($0.08)
- 1 medium lemon ($0.49)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- freshly cracked pepper ($0.05)
- 1/4 bunch fresh parsley ($0.20)
- 3 1/2 to 4 lbs chicken pieces ($6.86)
Instructions
- To make the marinade, combine the yogurt, olive oil, minced garlic, oregano, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper in a bowl. Use a fine holed cheese grater or a zester to scrape the thin layer of yellow zest from the lemon skin into the bowl. Also add the juice from half of the lemon (about 1-2 Tbsp). Stir until the ingredients are well combined. Roughly chop a big handful, or about 1/4 bunch, of parsley and stir it into the marinade.
- Add the chicken pieces and marinade to a gallon sized zip top bag. Remove as much air as possible, close the bag tightly, and massage the bag to mix the contents and make sure the chicken is well coated. Refrigerate the bag for 30 minutes.
- After marinating for 30 minutes, either cook the chicken on a grill OR preheat the oven to 375 degrees in preparation to bake the chicken.
- To bake the chicken, place the chicken pieces in a large casserole dish (9×13). Bake the chicken in the preheated 375 degree oven for 45-60 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
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Notes
Nutrition
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Step by Step Photos for Greek Marinated Chicken
First prepare the marinade. Combine the yogurt, olive oil, oregano, minced garlic, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper in a bowl. Add the zest from one lemon and the juice from about half of it (1-2 Tbsp). Stir these ingredients until well combined.
Add a handful, or about 1/4 bunch, of roughly chopped parsley. This is your finished marinade (or a REALLY awesome dip!).
I used about 3.75 pounds of chicken pieces (drumsticks and thighs). You could easily half this Greek Marinated Chicken recipe, if needed.
Add the chicken pieces and the marinade to a large, gallon-sized zip top bag and mix it around to make sure the chicken is well coated. Refrigerate the bag for 30 minutes.
After marinating, you can either grill the chicken or bake it. I don’t have an outdoor grill, so I decided to bake it. Place the chicken pieces in a large casserole dish. I ended up pouring the extra marinade over top, but later realized that this just made it take longer to brown, so I don’t suggest doing so. There is plenty of flavor in the marinade that you won’t need to add the extra.
Bake the chicken in a preheated 375 degree oven for 45-60 minutes, or until it is golden brown. It will smell SO good! Now eat!
I served this Greek Marinated Chicken with my Lemony Cucumber and Couscous salad and it was PERFECT! :D
What brand yogurt did you use?
Can you use this as a stuffing for chicken
Can the chicken thighs be left in the fridge overnite? I’m just worried about the acid in the lemon cooking it. What about freezing the chicken in the marinade?
It will break down the meat a bit if left too long, but some people don’t mind or can’t even detect the textural changes. It’s probably just subjective. :)
Great recipe! My home smells amazing. Can’t wait for this to come out of the oven :)
Can I use Greek yogurt instead of plain yogurt?
You can, although it will be more expensive and the marinade a bit thicker.
Do you think this recipe would work in the instant pot?
I think the Instant Pot is too moist for this to cook correctly (it will probably get slimy and soupy). You need the dry heat environment of an oven or grill.
Hi Beth. Thanks for sharing such a lovely recipe. I made this a week before and it turned out to be great. My family loved it. Infact my sister made it at her home and her family also loved it. Besides the above ingredients i added mushrooms also. Its Simply & Easy to make.
This IS my FAVORITE chicken recipe of all time!!! You MUST use full-fat yogurt (I prefer not greek), and do all the ingredients just as stated. I like to cut 2 chicken breasts into 1-inch pieces before marinating, then put them single-layer in a casserole dish. I bake for 35 minutes, then turn the broiler on to brown the top, have to watch it. It is so tender and flavorful. It is quite brothy, almost like soup, but would still be amazing over rice. I don’t know if its possible to keep the yogurt from curdling in the lemon juice, but if it would cream together with the broth, that would be perfect.
It’s safe to leave marinating overnight, right? I find I have more time to prep for meals at night, haha. Also I discovered that chicken takes on much more flavor if seasoned at least 24 hours previously to cooking. It’s not that I don’t trust your judgment, it’s just that I see a lot of reviews stating that the chicken didn’t take on much of the flavor.
I think a couple people have commented that they did marinate overnight (just make sure it’s in the refrigerator the whole time) and they enjoyed it. I’ve never tried it, though.
Wonderful recipe. I have made it twice. It will be a regular in our rotation.
Those chicken looks great! I can’t wait to test this recipe!
I know this sounds stupid but i cooked the chicken and forgot to marinade it can i reheat the chicken in it
You can just use the unused marinade as a sauce on the cooked chicken.
I’ve made this chicken many times and it always comes out great. I’ve made with bone-in skin-on chicken thighs, but most of the time I use boneless skinless chicken thighs. I also normally bake it but one time I grilled it for my sister and she absolutely loved it. She even asked me for the recipe. She’s a bit picky too so that should say something.
When she came over I ended up making too much chicken, so I ended up freezing the rest of it. I just took out of the freezer last week and used it for sandwiches (just homemade hamburger bun, cheese, mayo/mustard), and wow I can’t believe how good they turned out. I really enjoyed eating them for lunch for a few days. So I plan to make another big batch this week and freezing half of it again. Thanks for a GREAT recipe!
Made this tonight for the family. Everyone enjoyed it very much. Came out very tasty and full of flavor. Will definitely be making again in the future and it was very easy to combine the ingredients and marinate.
Hi Beth! I love your recipes. And this particular one is our household favorite! I’m glad that the internet connects us all and that ur website made its way to Malaysia especially for someone like me who’s learning to cook! 😂