These juicy 20-minute 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!
For bone-in chicken thighs, try this slow-roasted chicken thighs and potatoes recipe.
What You Will Love
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
- Boneless skinless chicken thighs: Use boneless skinless chicken thighs. You can also use boneless skinless chicken breasts too.
- Garlic: Use fresh garlic cloves that are pulverized into a paste using a mortar and pestle or crushed using a garlic press.
- Fresh rosemary: I prefer fresh rosemary rather than dried, but dried can be substituted.
- Lemon juice from freshly squeezed lemons
- Olive oil: I recommend using extra virgin olive oil.
See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for quantities.
Quick Overview
Steps 1,2,3,4: Prepare the marinade by mixing everything together in a bowl.
Steps 5 & 6: Marinate the chicken.
Step 7: Grill the chicken.
How To Make Step by Step
Peel the garlic. Cut the ends off.
Mash the garlic with a pinch of salt using a mortar and pestle. Alternatively, use a garlic press.
Chop the fresh rosemary sprigs.
Slice and squeeze the lemon to remove the seeds.
Add the chopped rosemary, crushed garlic, olive oil, salt, and lemon juice to a small bowl.
Mix the chicken marinade ingredients well.
Pour the chicken marinade over the chicken thighs in a large bowl.
Mix the marinade. Cover with plastic wrap. Let marinade for a minimum of 5 minutes.
Add the chicken thighs to a preheated grill. Avoid the grill hot spots. You don't want to cook these too quickly.
Flip the chicken thighs after about 4 to 6 minutes. The cooking time depends on the temperature of the grill.
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.
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. Just add some zucchini halves or corn on the cob while cooking the chicken thighs.
Storage
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.
FAQs
It depends on the grill heat, typically about 4 to 6 minutes on each side.
The key to grilling moist chicken thighs is to not overheat the grill. Chicken dries out quickly, so keep an eye on the internal temperature as you grill.
Chicken Recipes
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Grilled Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 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
- 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.
Dennis
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
Lily
Thanks for the comment Dennis! How long did they take on a propane grill?