Greek Yogurt Marinated Chicken
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This easy Greek Yogurt Marinated Chicken is the best way to add flavor to chicken. Easy to make on the grill and great for meal prep!
This post is made in partnership with our friends at RTA Outdoor Living.
This easy greek yogurt marinade is delicious and quick to prepare. Serve the chicken alongside some pita or rice, our easy greek salad, or with some feta and hummus for a delicious meal.
Tyler’s Tips for the Best Greek Yogurt Chicken
- Marinate the chicken overnight for the most tender and flavorful chicken!
- Preheat your grill for at least 10 minutes before cooking so the grill grates come to temperature. Spraying the grill with olive oil cooking spray to prevent sticking is key! We love this olive oil sprayer.
- Don’t skip the yogurt or onion! Greek yogurt and pureed red onion are the ultimate meat tenderizers. The enzymes in both ingredients add flavor and help tenderize the meat after marinating.
Ingredients:
Substitutions
Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs: You can substitute with boneless skinless chicken breasts and follow the same cooking time. Bone in chicken breasts and thighs will work as well but the cooking time will be extended by nearly double the time. You can also use pork chops and lamb chops with this recipe as well.
Greek Yogurt: Greek yogurt is an important base of the marinade and I would not substitute it with any other yogurt or alternative. Full fat or nonfat greek yogurt both work!
Red Onion: The red onion adds so much sweet flavor to this marinade but if you don’t have any other options then white onion or yellow onion could work. If necessary you can remove the onion altogether and use a teaspoon of onion powder, but it won’t be the same!
Garlic: Swap the fresh garlic cloves for a teaspoon of dried garlic powder.
Olive Oil: Extra virgin olive oil is the best flavor in my opinion but you can easily swap for avocado oil.
Lemon Juice: Fresh squeezed lemon juice has the most flavor but bottled lemon juice works well. If you don’t have any lemon juice, swap for lime juice or 1/2 the amount of red wine vinegar.
Herbs and Spices: Oregano, paprika, cumin, and coriander bring some great depth of flavor to this dish. If you are looking for other options you can try rosemary, thyme, marjoram, basil or parsley as well.
Coriander: If you don’t have coriander you can substitute with dried cumin.
This past summer we teamed up with our friends at RTA to build the most incredible outdoor kitchen. It was incredibly easy to design our dream kitchen with them, and we have been absolutely loving it since it was installed!
Living in cold New England, we didn’t have the best set up for grilling outside year round – and now we do! We have been enjoying cooking outside so much more, even in the cold!
The kitchen is fully loaded with a Coyote pellet smoker, Coyote Gas Grill, Alfa Moderna Pizza Oven, a refrigerator and tons of storage.
We grilled this chicken on our Coyote gas grill but you can easily prepare this on a wood fired grill, pellet grill, electric grill, or in a cast iron pan on the stove!
How to Make Greek Yogurt Marinated Chicken
- Blend Greek yogurt, onion, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, and dried spices until a smooth marinade forms, about 1 minute.
- Toss chicken thighs in the marinade until evenly coated. Marinate for at least 3 hours in the refrigerator. Remove from the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before cooking.
- Preheat your grill for 10 minutes at medium high heat. Coat your grill grates with cooking spray. Cook chicken thighs on one side for 7 minutes. Flip and cook for an additional 7 minutes (internal temp 165°).
- Remove from the grill, set aside, and let rest for 5 minutes before cutting. Serve whole or chop and serve alongside a Mediterranean salad with pita or rice and grilled vegetables and enjoy!
What to Serve with this Recipe:
Our favorite way to eat this Greek yogurt grilled chicken is with a side of white rice or in a pita.
We always make a double batch of our Greek salad to go with this grilled chicken. Hummus and feta cheese pair really nicely with this too.
If you want to use the grill, we love this chicken with our Grilled Vegetable Kebabs, BBQ Grilled Veggies, or Garlic Parmesan Corn.
Storage
Storing: Cooked chicken will last in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Freezing: We don’t recommend freezing this recipe. Grilled chicken can get an odd texture when frozen and thawed.
Reheating: You can reheat this recipe in the microwave, toaster oven, oven or on the stove. We recommend reheating in a toaster oven.
Other healthy grilling recipes:
Looking for other grilling recipes? Check out these 40+ Healthy Grilling Recipes. Click here to grab our free healthy grilling cookbook.
Greek Yogurt Marinated Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless chicken thighs
- 1 cup of greek yogurt
- ½ medium red onion quartered
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon coriander
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Place chicken thighs in a large bowl.
- Prepare the marinade. In a blender or large food processor add greek yogurt, onion, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and dried spices.
- Blend together until a smooth marinade forms, about 1 minute.
- Pour the marinade over the chicken in a bowl. Toss the chicken and the marinade together with tongs until all of the meat is evenly coated. Marinate for at least 3 hours in the refrigerator. If you can marinate overnight, that is ideal!
- Remove the chicken from the refrigerator at least 30 minutes prior to cooking to allow it to come to room temperature slightly.
- Preheat your grill for 10 minutes at medium high heat, about 400 to 450 degrees. We are using a Coyote Gas Grill but any gas, pellet, charcoal, or electric grill will work great.
- Coat your grill grates with olive oil cooking spray generously.
- Using a pair of metal tongs, take the chicken and lay it onto our seasoned grill grates. Cook on one side for 7 minutes or until some nice grill marks form and your chicken begins to separate from the grates. Flip the chicken thighs and cook for an additional 7 minutes or until an instant read thermometer reads at least 165 degrees fahrenheit.
- Remove from the grill and set aside on a cutting board, let rest for 5 minutes before cutting.
- Chop your chicken into bite sized pieces and serve alongside a delicious mediterranean salad with pita or rice and grilled vegetables and enjoy!!
Should the Greek yogurt be full-fat? Or will non-fat work just as well?
Full fat or nonfat greek yogurt both work!
Sounds great I grill on natural charcoal. Can’t wait to try it on pork chops