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    Home » Recipes » Main Dish

    Mediterranean Grilled Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs

    By Lily・Published: Nov 10, 2022・Updated: Mar 18, 2025・Post may have affiliate links.

    Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe

    These juicy 20-minute Mediterranean grilled boneless skinless chicken thighs are infused with rosemary, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. The rosemary and garlic chicken marinade is the same as these grilled lamb chops, and it's so delicious!

    grilled boneless skinless chicken thighs in a baking dish.

    For bone-in chicken thighs, try this slow-roasted chicken thighs and potatoes recipe. These Mediterranean grilled chicken thighs are excellent served with a bright salad like fattoush or shirazi salad.

    Grilled Chicken Thighs

    This boneless chicken thighs recipe is so easy, juicy, and quick. The chicken thigh marinade has Mediterranean flavors made with simple ingredients- herbs, garlic, lemon, and olive oil. Also, the easy grilled chicken thighs make for a quick weeknight dinner.

    Ingredient Notes

    ingredients to make lemon garlic grilled chicken thighs.

    Use boneless skinless chicken thighs or boneless skinless chicken breasts. I recommend fresh garlic cloves pulverized into a paste using a mortar and pestle or crushed using a garlic press. I prefer fresh rosemary rather than dried, but dried can be substituted. Lemon juice is best from freshly squeezed lemons.

    How To Make Grilled Boneless Chicken Thighs

    adding the garlic cloves to a bowl.

    Peel the garlic. Cut the ends off.

    mashing the garlic using a mortar and pestle.

    Mash the garlic with a pinch of salt using a mortar and pestle. Alternatively, use a garlic press.

    chopping the fresh rosemary.

    Chop the fresh rosemary sprigs.

    squeeze the lemon.

    Slice and squeeze the lemon to remove the seeds.

    chicken marinade ingredients.

    Add the chopped rosemary, crushed garlic, olive oil, salt, and lemon juice to a small bowl.

    mixing the chicken rosemary and garlic marinade

    Mix the chicken marinade ingredients well.

    adding the lemon garlic marinade to the boneless skinless chicken thighs

    Pour the chicken marinade over the chicken thighs in a large bowl.

    allowing the chicken thighs to marinate covered.

    Mix the marinade. Cover with plastic wrap. Let marinade for a minimum of 5 minutes.

    grilling the chicken thighs over charcoal.

    Add the chicken thighs to a preheated grill. Avoid the grill hot spots. You don't want to cook these too quickly.

    flipping the grilled chicken thighs.

    Flip the chicken thighs after about 4 to 6 minutes. The cooking time depends on the temperature of the grill.

    rosemary grilled chicken thighs.

    Tips and Tricks

    • For juicy chicken thighs, don't overcook the chicken. Many articles on the web talk about cooking dark meat to an internal temperature of 165℉ (or greater), which will result in dry chicken. I referenced The Food Lab book (by Kenji Lopez-Alt), and it gives a time vs. temperature curve for when chicken is safe: an internal temperature of 155℉ for 45 seconds, 160℉ for 14 seconds, and 165℉ instantaneously. So if the thickest part of the meat reads 155℉ for greater than 45 seconds, it's safe and juicy!
    • Marinate the chicken. I recommend marinating the chicken for 5 minutes to an hour, but you can marinate for longer if desired. Also, you can batch-marinate these chicken thighs and freeze them for a later date.
    grilled boneless skinless chicken thighs.

    Variations and Substitutions

    • Grill the boneless thighs on a preheated charcoal grill, gas grill, or indoor electric grill.
    • Substitute other fresh herbs like oregano or thyme for the rosemary.
    • Serve these grilled boneless skinless thighs with some grilled veggies. Add some zucchini halves or corn on the cob while cooking the chicken thighs.

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    📋 Recipe

    lemon grilled chicken thighs with fresh rosemary.

    Mediterranean Grilled Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs

    Author: Lily
    Course: Main Dish
    Cuisine: American, Mediterranean
    Prep: 10 minutes mins
    Cook: 10 minutes mins
    Total: 20 minutes mins
    5 from 7 votes
    Print Pin Rate Email
    Servings 4
    These Mediterranean grilled boneless skinless chicken thighs are marinated in lemon juice, fresh rosemary, crushed garlic, olive oil, and salt.

    Ingredients
     
    US Customary - Metric

    • 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
    • 3 cloves garlic fresh
    • 2 whole lemons juiced
    • 2 tablespoon olive oil
    • 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
    • salt to taste

    Instructions

    • Peel and mash the garlic using a mortar and pestle. You can also crush the garlic using a garlic press.
    • Remove the sprigs from the fresh rosemary. Chop the rosemary.
    • Slice the lemon and squeeze it to remove the seeds.
    • Add the olive oil, rosemary, crushed garlic, lemon juice, and salt to a bowl. Mix well.
    • Pour the chicken marinade onto the boneless skinless chicken thighs. Mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate for 5 minutes to an hour.
    • Grill the chicken thighs on a preheat grill for about 4 to 6 minutes per side.

    Video

    Notes

    1. Many articles on the web talk about cooking dark meat to an internal temperature of 165℉ (or greater), which can result in dry chicken. This has happened to me, and I delved deeper into understanding why. I referenced The Food Lab book (by Kenji Lopez-Alt), and it gives a time vs. temperature curve for when chicken is safe: an internal temp of 155℉ for 45 seconds, 160℉ for 14 seconds, and 165℉ instantaneously. So if the thickest part of your chicken reads 155℉ for greater than 45 seconds, it's safe and not overcooked. So if your chicken is dry, you might be overcooking it.
    2. Store the grilled boneless chicken thighs in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Uncooked marinated chicken thighs can be stored in the freezer for up to 4 months.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 304 kcal | Carbohydrates: 1 g | Protein: 44 g | Fat: 13 g | Saturated Fat: 3 g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2 g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6 g | Trans Fat: 0.04 g | Cholesterol: 215 mg | Sodium: 202 mg | Potassium: 566 mg | Fiber: 0.1 g | Sugar: 0.04 g | Vitamin A: 57 IU | Vitamin C: 1 mg | Calcium: 25 mg | Iron: 2 mg

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    About Lily

    Howdy! My name is Lilian, but my friends call me Lily. I'm the founder and one of the recipe authors here at The Matbakh. I enjoy sunsets, long walks to the fridge, meaningful relationships, and anything related to food. I'm so happy you are here!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      5 from 7 votes (6 ratings without comment)

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Dennis

      January 02, 2023 at 5:16 pm

      5 stars
      Great marinade for the chicken thighs. Made these on a propane grill and didn’t have the heat so hot so they took a tad longer to grill. Might use a meat thermometer to check them or cut into them and make sure cooked through

      Reply
      • Lily

        January 02, 2023 at 5:22 pm

        Thanks for the comment Dennis! How long did they take on a propane grill?

        Reply

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    lily at the matbakh

    I'm Lily

    I'm an American Lebanese living in Texas. My kitchen, or matbakh, is a hodgepodge of recipes from the U.S. and Mediterranean region.

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