Greek Chicken Marinade Recipe

This Greek Chicken Marinade is a simple, fast recipe that results in juicy, succulent chicken every single time!

You will love this Greek Chicken Marinade

Hey there, happy September! It still feels like summer in my neck of the woods, even as everybody’s thoughts are turning to fall.

Our menu still has grilled recipes in heavy rotation, with a sprinkling of comfort fair like instant pot lentil soup and Greek yogurt pasta on cooler days.

Sometimes there’s nothing so simple and satisfying for dinner as a piece of chicken and some veggies. When we grill chicken, we almost always marinate it, and buttermilk chicken marinade and this Greek Chicken Marinade are our favorites.

 Greek Lemon Chicken Marinade ingredients

You should be able to find all of the ingredients for this marinade at any grocery store, if they’re not already in your kitchen:

• olive oil – the base of the marinade, and what will help the chicken not stick to the grill or pan when it is cooked.
• lemon – we’ll be using both lemon zest and lemon juice to add a bright and zesty flavor to the marinade.
• parsley – this adds some herbal freshness to the marinade.
• garlic – an indispensable ingredient in Greek cuisine, so of course have to add it here!
• oregano – I use dried oregano because I don’t normally have fresh oregano on hand, but either one would work here.
• paprika – this adds a a vibrant red color and depth of flavor to the marinade.
• salt and pepper – essentials in any great marinade.

How to make Greek Marinated Chicken

Here’s my secret for making THE FASTEST MARINADES EVER – I don’t measure anything. Ever. Life’s too short, and it’s just a marinade (I feel pretty much the same way about my dry rub for ribs).

When I follow other marinade recipes, I look at the recipe to get a general sense of the amount of each ingredient, and then I just eyeball it.

I’ve given you ingredient amounts below, but honestly, don’t get all your measuring cups and spoons dirty. It won’t matter if you have a little “too much” lemon juice or a little less oregano.

Just eyeball everything into a ziploc bag, throw the chicken in, and move on with your day. It’ll taste great, I promise. Same story with my flat iron steak marinade.

How to serve Greek Marinated Chicken

You can serve this Greek lemon chicken with a couple of sides like acini de pepe pasta salad and balsamic green beans.

You can also serve it sliced up and stuffed into a pita, similar to a chicken shawarma.

Or, serve it as part of a Mediterranean bowl, with other ingredients like quinoa or couscous, olives, artichoke hearts, tzatziki and crumbled feta cheese.

How to store this Greek Chicken Marinade

Only store unused marinade that has NOT touched raw chicken. Once it’s been used for chicken once, it should be discarded.

To make a batch of marinade in advance and then store it for later, keep it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Greek Lemon Chicken Marinade FAQs