Simple Cilantro Lime Chicken Marinade

With just six simple ingredients, this cilantro lime chicken marinade infuses chicken breasts with delicious, aromatic cilantro, lime and garlic flavors. Serve over salad, with rice, in tacos, or just as is.

Chicken marinades are a total hero at my house. I have seven chicken marinade recipes you can freeze on the blog, and this cilantro lime chicken is one of our faves! It gets such a delicious, delicate citrussy flavor that goes well with our shortcut Mexican rice recipe, in tacos, or on a taco salad.

Simple ingredients for great flavor

This marinade has the perfect blend of marinade ingredients: oil to disperse flavors, lime to tenderize the chicken and brighten flavors, honey to sweeten and balance the acidity, cilantro and garlic for a punch of flavor, and salt to bring all the flavors together.

Marinate at least 2 hours

In the past, I’ve been disappointed with a lack of flavor from my chicken marinades, and it really comes down to a lack of time. This cilantro lime chicken marinade requires at least 2 hours to infuse flavor into the chicken breast.

On the other hand, you do not want to marinate the chicken for more than 24 hours, as the lime juice can start to break down the muscle fibres of the chicken breast, leading to mealy chicken.

If you are not able to cook your chicken breast within 24 hours, I recommend popping it into the freezer! You can freeze for up to 3 months.

How to marinate

The best way to ensure complete coverage of the chicken breast is to marinate in a bag; a bowl or container just will not cover the chicken breast with the marinade evenly.

Over the years I have moved away from disposable freezer bags, and now prefer silicone Stasher bags.

• use the sandwich Stasher bags for 1 lb (2 chicken breasts)
• use the ½ gallon Stasher bags for 2 lbs (4 chicken breasts)

Use other proteins

This marinade works great for other proteins as well. The recipe as written works for a pound of chicken breasts, but you could swap for the following:

• boneless chicken thighs- 2-24 hours marinating time
• shrimp or fish- 30 minutes marinating time
• pork tenderloin- at least 24 hours to marinate
• tofu- press first, then marinate for 2-24 hours

Cook the chicken using your favorite method

After marinating the chicken, pick your favorite method to cook it up. Our go-to is in the oven, but you can cook it on the grill, in a frying pan, or even in the air fryer!

• oven– our go to method. Cook at 425°F for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through
• grill– I recommend pounding the chicken flat before marinating to ensure it cooks through evenly. See my perfect grilled chicken breast recipe for full details
• frying pan– here’s a good tutorial
• air fryer– again I do recommend pounding the chicken before marinating. We cook 4 minutes + 2 minutes (flipping half way). Full details here.

Whichever method you use, make sure your chicken breast reaches an internal temperature of 165°F using a digital thermometer, and allow it to rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing into it.

More chicken marinade recipes:

• 7 Chicken Breast Marinades
• Chipotle Chicken Marinade
• Honey Garlic Chicken Marinade
• Shortcut Jamaican Jerk Chicken Marinade
• Sweet Chili Chicken Marinade

Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!

Cilantro lime chicken marinade

5 from 2 votes

Prep Time: 10 minutes mins

Cook Time: 25 minutes mins

Total Time: 35 minutes mins

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With just six simple ingredients, this cilantro lime chicken marinade infuses chicken breasts with delicious, aromatic cilantro, lime and garlic flavors. Serve over salad, with rice, in tacos, or just as is.

4

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts (roughly 4 chicken breasts)
• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 2 tablespoons lime juice
• ▢ 1 ½ tablespoons honey
• ▢ ½ cup cilantro leaves (chopped + loosely packed)
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic (minced)
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions 

• Combine all ingredients in a heavy duty freezer bag or reusable silicone bag. Smoosh it around to combine, then add chicken breasts. Turn to coat in marinade.

Fridge

• Marinate the chicken in the fridge for 2-24 hours.

Freezer

• If freezing, place in the freezer immediately. Thaw in the fridge overnight, or by immersing the bag in a bowl of cold water for a couple of hours.

To bake

• Heat oven to 425°F. Bake chicken in a shallow baking dish for 10 minutes, flip over, then bake for another 12-17 minutes, or until internal temperature has reached 165°F.
• Allow chicken to rest at room temperature for 5-10 minutes before slicing.

Tips:

Storage

Marinade may be mixed together up to 1 week before adding chicken.

After cooking, chicken may be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days or the freezer for up to 3 months.

Alternative cooking methods:

• grill- I recommend pounding the chicken flat before marinating to ensure it cooks through evenly. Cook over high heat 2 minutes per side until it reaches an internal temp of 155°F
• frying pan- cook in olive oil over medium heat in a nonstick skillet for 5-7 minutes per side
• air fryer- I recommend pounding the chicken before marinating. Cook at 390°F/ 200°C for 4 minutes + 2 minutes (flipping half way).

Marinating time for other proteins:

• boneless chicken thighs- 2-24 hours marinating time
• shrimp or fish- 30 minutes marinating time
• pork tenderloin- at least 24 hours to marinate
• tofu- press first, then marinate for 2-24 hours

Nutrition Information

Serving: 4oz chicken breast, Calories: 190kcal, Carbohydrates: 7g, Protein: 22g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 64mg, Sodium: 48mg, Sugar: 7g

Author: Denise Bustard

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

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