Chili Lime Grilled Chicken

4.57 from 166 votes
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Chili Lime Grilled Chicken - moist and delicious chicken marinated in chili and lime and grilled to golden perfection in this easy recipe that takes 30 mins

Chili lime chicken - moist and delicious chicken marinated with chili and lime and grill to perfection.
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The Best Grilled Chicken

This chili lime grilled chicken is absolutely delicious, juicy, and flavorful. It hits all the right notes: citrusy, aromatic, with a pleasant nuance of the cilantro and garlic.


Ingredients For Grilled Chicken Marinade

Delicious chili lime grilled chicken on a wooden chopping board.
  • Lime juice and zest
  • Olive oil
  • Cilantro
  • Jalapeno
  • Garlic
  • Honey
  • Chili powder

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients.


How To Make Chili Lime Grilled Chicken Recipe

Easy and quick skillet grilled chicken marinated with chili and lime.

For the chicken, the original recipe calls for chicken breast but I opted for chicken thighs with the skin and bone.

I remove the bones prior to marinating the chicken and still keep the skin. The end result is crispy skin, and tender, juicy chicken meat.

I love the combination of chili, cilantro, garlic, and lime juice in the marinade. They pair so well with the chicken, with a tint of spiciness from the chili.


Frequently Asked Questions

How do I grill the perfect chicken breast?

Keep at medium heat covered for about 5-7 minutes, then flip it over. Grill for another 5-7 minutes, or until the thermometer reads 165°.

Is it healthy to eat grilled chicken?

Yes, chicken is high in protein and also low in calories. It is very useful in diets working to shed body fat.

Does this recipe have to grilled?

No. You can make it anytime with a cast-iron grill pan or regular skillet, or bake in the oven for about 20-25 minutes at 400F. The end result is always amazing.

How many calories per serving?

This recipe is only 515 calories per serving.

Asian style Chili lime chicken featuring grilled chciken sliced and ready to serve on a wooden chopping board.

What To Serve With Chili Lime Grilled Chicken

For a wholesome meal and easy BBQ party, I recommend the following recipes.

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4.57 from 166 votes

Chili Lime Grilled Chicken

Chili lime chicken – moist and delicious chicken marinated with chili and lime and grill to perfection. Easy recipe that takes 30 mins! 
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 6 people
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Ingredients  

  • 2 – 2 1/2 lbs. (900g-1.1kg) skin on chicken thighs

Marinade:

  • 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
  • 3 teaspoons fresh lime zest
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 4 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped finely
  • 2 jalapeño, chopped finely
  • 4 cloves garlic, chopped finely
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder or to taste

Instructions 

  • Rinse the chicken thighs, remove the bones, leave the skin on, and pat dry with paper towels. Set aside.
  • Get a big bowl, mixing all the ingredients of the Marinade together using a whisk. Make sure the Marinade is well combined together.
  • Add chicken to the Marinade, make sure to stir and coat the chicken evenly. Marinate for 2 hours.
  • Fire up the grill, brush a little bit of oil on the surface. Add a little bit of the garlic, cilantro, and jalapeno from the Marinade on top of the chicken and grill them until they turn golden brown and charred on both sides. Serve immediately.

Video

Notes

Watch the cooking video on this page for step-by-step guide.
You can make this chili lime chicken with a cast-iron grill pan or regular skillet, or bake in the oven. Preheat the oven to 400F and bake it for about 20-25 minutes or until the skin becomes brown and charred. You can also use skinless and boneless chicken thighs or breasts.

Nutrition

Serving: 6people, Calories: 515kcal, Carbohydrates: 6g, Protein: 31g, Fat: 40g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g, Monounsaturated Fat: 20g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 185mg, Sodium: 928mg, Potassium: 442mg, Fiber: 0.4g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 325IU, Vitamin C: 13mg, Calcium: 25mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Please rate and comment below!

About Bee Yinn Low

Bee is a recipe developer and best-selling cookbook author, sharing easy, quick, and delicious Asian and American recipes since 2006. With a strong following of almost 2 million fans online, her expertise has been featured in major publications, TV and radio programs, and live cooking demos throughout the United States and Asia.

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Recipe Rating





208 Comments

  1. Tracey Baker says:

    5 stars
    A Mouth watering and satisfying dish, enjoyed by my whole family… absolutely happy with this well balanced recipe especially when served with cucumber chilli relish, rice and Bok Choy, thank you!

  2. Ashley Weber says:

    This recipe looks good, but I’m curious if the addition of honey makes the final product kind of sweet? I’m looking for a zesty/citrusy chicken recipe, but we don’t really like our chicken/main dishes to be sweet.

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      It’s not very sweet, just very mild. You can cut it down or skip.

  3. Becky E says:

    5 stars
    I’ve always used your recipe to marinate my chicken before grilling, however this recipe has additional ingredients that I never used before, jalapeños & cilantro. Did you change the recipe? I haven’t made this in about 8 months or so but even so, I didn’t think I’d forget something like that?

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Hi Becky, no I didn’t change the recipe, it has always been like this with jalepeno and cilantro. Maybe you tried a different recipe? I have a chipotle lime chicken.

  4. تور مشهد says:

    5 stars
    I made this , its very good. thank you for sharing.

  5. Germaine Dubois says:

    I’m not either a cilantro or jalapeño fan – is omitting both these ingredients ok or are the essential ingredients to the recipe. Thank you

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      That’s fine. It should work.

  6. بهترین برند کمپرسور باد says:

    5 stars
    I keep track of information every day on the website. It brings a lot of useful information to me
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  7. Mel says:

    5 stars
    I made this the other day for a bbq and unfortunate my brother burnt them so could not really comment. I am trying them again tonight to cook in the oven but I wondered if I could freeze half the marinade as I’m cooking this for 2. Many thanks

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Yes, you can. :)

  8. Mary says:

    5 stars
    This was incredible. I made it in my grill pan and my husband, three year old and 13 month old couldn’t get enough of it. The flavors were bold and scrumptious. Thanks you for posting

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Thanks for trying this Chili Lime Chicken.

  9. Amber Frank says:

    5 stars
    I followed the amazing chilli lime chicken recipe and it’s make my day amazing.

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      That’s amazing that you like my chili lime chicken recipe.

  10. Miss Food Fairy says:

    5 stars
    These have to be some of my favourite flavours in the world! This is on for the next BBQ Bee. Pinned for later :)

    1. Rasa Malaysia says:

      Awesome, this recipe is absolutely awesome!