This lime marinated grilled chicken is so incredibly simple to make – and it’s a family favorite. Some links in this article are affiliate links that may earn me a commission if you purchase through them.
It’s officially summer. It’s also gotten really hot in Chicago – today being the exception, of course – which means that I’m sort of done using the stove or oven for the summer.
I do a lot of chicken grilling, and I use a lot of citrus marinades (ok, a lot of marinades in general). This is definitely my daughter’s favorite chicken marinade!
This is a super easy and fast throw together recipe (as in I did it in eight minutes between conference calls last Thursday), and there are no leftovers once it’s cooked!
If you happen to have leftovers, try them chopped in tacos or made into fajitas. I love change of pace leftovers.
What oil should I use in a chicken marinade?
The oil generally isn’t intended to impart flavor, so don’t use an expensive oil. I generally use the canola oil I have always in my pantry.
That said, olive oil or grapeseed oil or avocado oil work well, too. Just avoid things like walnut oil.
Regardless of what type of protein dinner happens to be, make sure to keep your marinating period under 24 hours. And when we say under 24 hours, we’re also talking way under 24 hours. Marinating chicken, lamb, pork, or steak for just 15 or 20 minutes actually makes a huge difference. And now you know what to do. Marinate responsibly. And live with perfectly textured, flavorful meat for the rest of your days.
Marinating meat is like stretching. Stretching is important. You know, before going for a run or playing in your coed rec soccer league that you definitely don’t take too seriously. (Sarah needs to pick up the slack though. Everyone’s been talking about it. We shouldn’t have lost to the Lightning Bolts. Just saying.) But you can actually stretch too much, and when you do, your muscles get all messed up. The same goes for meat. You can marinate chicken, steak, pork, and lamb for too long. And the meat doesn’t like that at all.
At the heart of this this whole overexposure is a common misconception about marinating. The point of marinating isn’t to get flavor into the center of the meat. In fact, a marinade will never really penetrate much past the surface of the meat—and thats OK! The purpose of a marinade is to be the first thing that cooks when the meat hits the pan or grill. The heat develops the flavors of the salt, sugar, and acid in the marinade and helps to create a nicely caramelized crust. You can definitely develop big flavor on the outer layer of the meat this way, but it will never truly reach the center of the protein.
Generally speaking, you shouldn’t marinate meat for more than a day. Yeah, probably shorter than you thought. For some reason, people (more specifically, dads) find some kind of perverse satisfaction in making declarations like, “These steaks have been marinating for five days.” Maybe it’s impressive? Maybe it shows a misplaced commitment to the meat? We’re not sure, but we can certainly say that it’s not doing those steaks any favors.
Marinades usually consist of some type of sugar, salt, and acid, along with a variety of other flavor enhancers. Salt and sugar both break down muscle fibers to some degree (in the same way a brine does), but acid is the real culprit in this scenario. We like a little bit of tenderizing with meat, but when your chicken thighs are exposed to lemon juice, lime juice, yogurt, or vinegars for too long, the texture of the meat turns from tender to mushy and stringy, two words that have never been used in tandem to describe something pleasant.
How to Use Lemon Juice as a Marinade⎢Martha Stewart
FAQ
What happens if you marinate chicken in lime juice?
How long can meat marinate in lime juice?
Is lime juice good for marinade?
Can I use lime instead of lemon for chicken?
How to make lime chicken marinade?
Place chicken in a Ziploc bag with garlic, chili powder, oil, lime juice, salt and pepper. Seal bag and coat well. Keep in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Cook chicken using your preferred method. This Lime Chicken Marinade is super easy to make and will give your chicken a delicious citrus flavor thanks to the Lime Juice.
How long do you marinate chicken in lime juice?
For this Lime Marinade, chicken is best marinated for 12 to 24 hours. It will make the outside a touch white because the amount of lime juice in this marinade “cooks” the chicken a bit (think ceviche). But it doesn’t take it so far that the chicken starts to break down so don’t be alarmed.
What is a good marinade for chicken?
Lime Chicken (marinade – great for grilling!) Lime Chicken infused with garlicky, savoury lime flavours! The trick to getting depth of flavour in a simple lime marinade is to use soy sauce for saltiness, plus a touch of sugar for great caramelisation. Fabulous for a quick midweek meal and ESPECIALLY great for the BBQ!
Can you use citrus based marinades on chicken?
The trick with fresh citrus based marinades is getting depth of flavour into it. If you just use lime juice, salt and garlic, the flavour is quite flat and the chicken – especially if using chicken breast – will lack something (because breast has virtually no fat, and fat = flavour).