This is the best lemon chicken marinade we’ve tried. Use our easy marinade for super tender, juicy, and flavorful chicken. You can use it on a variety of chicken cuts and cooking methods, including baking, grilling, or cooking in a skillet.
This super versatile lemon garlic chicken marinade is perfect for all cuts of chicken. We’ve been using this marinade for a long time (originally inspired by these delicious lemon chicken thighs). While it’s perfect for chicken, it’s also delicious with pork, fish, and vegetables.
We’ve used it in many of our chicken recipes, including these lemon garlic chicken breasts, juicy grilled chicken, and garlic parmesan wings. For more inspiration, try our Greek chicken marinade, which adds plain Greek yogurt to make the chicken extra tender and juicy.
Key Ingredients
- Lemon: I use fresh lemon juice and zest. Lemon juice makes the base of the marinade, while the zest gives it an extra lemony punch. I like using a vegetable peeler to make strips of the zest.
- Olive oil: I love the flavor of olive oil in this marinade. It makes the chicken more delicious. If you plan to cook your chicken over high heat, consider substituting it with avocado oil.
- Dijon mustard: Mustard and lemon work beautifully together, so I always add a little Dijon to this marinade.
- Garlic: Smashed whole garlic cloves add the right amount of fresh garlic flavor and balance the acidity of the lemon. Keeping them whole also prevents any garlic from burning later on.
- Fresh herbs: These are optional, but I love adding fresh herbs to this chicken marinade. I use fresh parsley in the video, but dill, cilantro, and basil are excellent choices.
How Long to Marinate Chicken
Making your marinade is easy! Simply stir all the ingredients in a bowl, season with salt and pepper, and use it within 2 hours.
Since this marinade contains lemon juice, don’t marinate your chicken for longer than 6 hours. The acidity of the lemon juice can break down the chicken’s proteins, resulting in a mushy texture if left in the marinade for too long. Always marinate your chicken in the refrigerator and discard any leftover marinade to ensure food safety.
- Boneless chicken breasts: I usually marinate chicken breasts between 30 minutes and 2 hours.
- Bone-in chicken: Chicken thighs, bone-in chicken breasts, and drumsticks can handle a bit more time. Marinate for up to 6 hours.
For more marinade recipes, see our Greek chicken marinade, easy shrimp marinade, or this incredible steak marinade!
Easy Lemon Chicken Marinade
We love this lemon garlic chicken marinade! This recipe makes enough marinade for 2 to 3 pounds of chicken. It works great for chicken, but you can also use it for turkey, pork, fish, shrimp, tofu, and vegetables.
Feel free to use the marinade for basting while cooking or grilling. Just remember to set aside a portion of the marinade before adding your ingredients if you plan to baste.
Makes 1/2 cup
Watch Us Make the Recipe
You Will Need
2 lemons
2 tablespoons (30ml) olive oil
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or more to taste
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
3 cloves garlic, smashed
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, optional
Directions
1Use a vegetable peeler to peel the zest of 1 lemon, then juice the lemons so you have 1/4 cup (60ml) of juice.
2Whisk the lemon juice, olive oil, mustard, red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper together in a small bowl until the salt has dissolved.
3Stir in the garlic, lemon zest, and parsley (if using).
4Place the chicken in the marinade, and then move it around a few times to ensure it’s well coated. Refrigerate for up to 6 hours or 2 hours for boneless chicken breasts.
Adam and Joanne’s Tips
- Fresh herbs: I love parsley, but dill, cilantro, and basil are also lovely.
- Marinating time: Due to the acidic nature of the lemon juice, we recommend marinating chicken for no longer than 6 hours. If you’re marinating fish, 30 minutes or less is adequate.
- To turn into a salad dressing: Increase the olive oil to 1/4 cup and whisk until blended. Refrigerate for 1 hour, then discard the garlic and lemon zest. Taste for seasoning and adjust with salt. Add a sprinkle of sugar or a little honey to balance the acidity and the mustard.
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates.
Nutrition Per Serving
Serving Size
1/4 cup
/
Calories
138
/
Protein
1 g
/
Carbohydrate
4 g
/
Dietary Fiber
0 g
/
Total Sugars
1 g
/
Total Fat
14 g
/
Saturated Fat
2 g
/
Cholesterol
0 mg
