This lemon chicken recipe is all about juicy, tender, and golden-baked chicken thighs coated with the best lemon-herb Greek marinade. It’s quick to prep, easy to cook, and the results are fantastic!
If there is one chicken recipe I could live off of, it’s this Greek lemon chicken. I’m a sucker for skin-on chicken thighs given how naturally juicy and flavorful they are. Plus, I love how it’s virtually impossible to overcook chicken thighs in the oven. But this bright and herby lemon chicken marinade is what makes this dish so satisfying.
If you’ve been making my recipes for a while, you may have come across different variations of this marinade on my website previously. And that’s because Mediterranean recipes are the heart and soul of how I cook! From my video on simple chicken marinades to this Greek sheet pan chicken and Greek chicken kabobs, lemon chicken recipes have become a Downshiftology staple.
If you watch the video below, you’ll see that I serve up these Greek lemon chicken thighs with a side of lemon herb rice (from my cookbook) and air fryer green beans to complete the best dinner ever. But keep scrolling for even more side dish ideas!
Lemon Chicken Ingredients
You’ll be glad to hear that this recipe is extremely pantry-friendly, including the chicken marinade! Here’s what you need.
- Chicken: Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs lend the juiciest meat and crispiest outer skin. If you’re using frozen chicken thighs, let them thaw in the fridge overnight before making this recipe.
- Liquids: A combination of extra-virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, and Dijon mustard make up the base of the marinade. And if you want to amp up the lemon flavor, add a bit of lemon zest to the mix or save some lemon slices to add on top before cooking.
- Seasonings: Dried oregano, dried thyme, fresh garlic, salt, and black pepper are the ultimate Mediterranean flavor combo. And for this recipe, do stick with dried herbs instead of fresh ones.
Find the printable recipe with measurements below
How To Make Greek Lemon Chicken
Make the marinade. The prep time for this is super minimal, just stir the marinade ingredients together in a small bowl. If you’d like to save extra time, make the marinade a day in advance and store it in the fridge. Then give it a whisk before using it the next day.
Marinate the chicken. Add the chicken thighs to a large bowl, pour the marinade on top, and give the chicken a quick toss. Then, let the chicken marinate for 1 to 2 hours in the fridge. See notes below on marinating time.
Bake the chicken. Assemble the chicken in a baking dish skin side up (I’ve linked my favorite one below). Pour the remaining marinade on top and bake for 40 to 45 minutes at 350°F (180°C). You can check to see if the chicken is done at 175°F (80°C) by using an instant-read thermometer. For extra crispy skin, turn on the top oven broiler in the last 2 to 3 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Acidic marinades shouldn’t be used for more than 3 hours. After this point, the chicken thighs will become far too tenderized and have a gamey-like texture. For me, the ideal time is about 1 to 2 hours.
Complete this Greek-inspired meal with a fresh Greek salad that is made with my famous Greek salad dressing. For a heartier meal, plate it with other side dishes like rice or cooked vegetables. My favorites to pair with this are garlic herb roasted potatoes, green beans with shallots, or garlic-sauteed spinach.
Yes, you can use this same marinade to cook with both types of chicken. For chicken breasts, follow my best-baked chicken breast recipe. For chicken thighs, you can reduce the time by half.
How To Store Leftover Chicken Thighs
- To store for the week: Enjoy portions throughout the week by storing them in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.
- To freeze for later: Store leftovers in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Then thaw them in the fridge the day before you plan to reheat them. Trust me, finding a batch of this chicken in your freezer is a gold mine!
- Reheating chicken: Good news, chicken thighs are less likely to dry out when reheating. But you can always add a little moisture back in by adding a splash of water on top or layering a damp paper towel over the chicken piece before microwaving it.
More Easy Chicken Recipes
I’ve got plenty more chicken thigh recipes or chicken breast recipes for you to enjoy. But here are some of my favorites that I make most often:
- Creamy Tuscan Chicken: This creamy chicken dish with spinach and tomatoes hits every time.
- Chicken Piccata: Think of this as a tasty, briny Italian version of lemon chicken.
- Honey Mustard Chicken: A chicken dinner staple if you love honey mustard sauce.
- Lemon Garlic Spatchcock Chicken: If you’re cooking a whole chicken, this recipe uses a similar marinade giving amazing results!
I hope you love this Greek lemon chicken as much as I do! Once you make it, let me know your thoughts in the comment box below.
Description
Video
Equipment
- Casserole Dish This nesting set of casserole dishes is the best!
Ingredients
- 8 bone-in chicken thighs
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 4 garlic gloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Make the marinade: In a small bowl, stir together the oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, thyme, mustard, salt, and pepper.
- Marinate the chicken: Add the chicken thighs to a large bowl and pour the marinade on top. Marinate for 1 to 2 hours (and up to 8 hours) in the fridge.
- Transfer to baking dish: Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Place the chicken in a baking dish and pour the remaining marinade on top.
- Bake the chicken: Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the chicken is fully cooked and registers 175°F (80°C) on an instant-read thermometer. Optionally, you can baste the chicken a few times while it cooks. And for extra crispy skin, turn on the top oven broiler in the last 2 to 3 minutes. If you're serving this dish up for a dinner party, you can garnish it with lemon slices if you'd like.
Nutrition
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My wife and I really enjoy healthy Mediterranean dishes. I decided to try the Greek Lemon Chicken and Mediterranean chickpea salad recipes from Lisa’s latest email. My wife loves chickpeas and salads so I prepared both dishes for dinner last week. Both recipes were so easy to prepare and the results were outstanding. The Greek chicken and Chickpea salad were absolutely wonderful they were so light, flavorful and perfectly seasoned dishes for an evening dinner plus we were able to continue to enjoy both during the week for lunches. They are definitely on our fav list.
Glad both you and your wife loved this Greek lemon chicken, Don!
Made this for my family and we all LOVED it :)
Glad the whole family loved this Greek lemon chicken, Sheree!
This is on the menu for tomorrow night. I am sure it will not disappoint!
Enjoy, Rachel!
Simple, delicious, and budget friendly!
Glad you’re loving this Greek lemon chicken, Yas!
This is on the menu for tomorrow night. I am sure it will not disappoint!
Made this with chicken breasts, pounded down to be thinner and soak up the marinade for an hour. Served over wild rice. Absolutely delicious. This is definitely going into heavy rotation in our house.
Glad this worked out with chicken breasts, Roberta!
Can this be cooked in the airfryer, please?
Hi Caroline – Yes, it can! I don’t have instructions yet for chicken thighs, but hopefully soon!
My whole family loves this and it’s easy to prepare with pantry staples. I shared it with my best friend and her teenage boy loves it so much she makes a double batch. The first time I made this was for my son’s high school XC team dinner. A total hit. Def recommend broiling at the end to crisp up the skin! Thank you for this reliable and delicious game changer!
Thrilled to hear the whole family (and your friend’s family) loved this lemon chicken, Kate!
Hi Lisa,
Great recipe! The marinade is delicious.
Unfortunately my marinade was watery, so I thickened it on the cooktop. Any ideas on how to avoid watery marinade, and why it happened? (I followed the recipe exactly).
Does it make sense to fry the thighs first (only short time) to cut down baking time, ensure crispiness of skin and/or ensure doneness?
Hi Anne – I don’t think it’s needed for this recipe.
Can I make this recipe with boneless breasts
Hi Carol – yes, you can. Of course, you won’t have the crispy skin, but you’ll still get to enjoy the flavor!
We absolutely love this recipe. It is very easy to prepare. This is the second time I have made it. The flavor is perfect and well balanced. The chicken comes out super tender. I marinated the chicken for 3 hours. Served it with mashed potatoes and peas. Perfect!
So happy you loved the recipe enough to make it again! Thanks, Isabella!
Even though I missed the Marinate for 1-2 hours step and only marinated the chicken about 30 minutes, they turned out great! Definitely will make again.
Happy to hear they were still delicious, Michelle!
Can I make this with chicken tenders?
Yes, you sure can. Just be aware that chicken tenders cook faster. Enjoy!
I can’t wait to make this dish. It has every ingredient I love in a chicken dish, and it looks delicious 😋
Enjoy, Jerri!
This is my go to recipe! Absolutely delicious And quick to make. Guests always ask for the recipe. Pairs well with your tzatziki recipe.
Hi Heidi – yes, those recipes go great together! Enjoy!
Made this tonight. What a hit! This will be a favorite. It actually reminds me of my Dad’s recipe which we called “Chicken and lemon juice.” He ate in a restaurant and came home and recreated it for us. This was prior to the internet so he had to try different ingredients until he struck the same taste. Took him six months, but it was a family fav. Thank you for this, it has brought back memories.
Aw, I love that! Glad you found a recipe to replicate this memory, Cindy.
Made this the other day, so easy and yummy. Made it with Garlic mash potatoes and a green salad. The sauce from the chicken was great over the mash potatoes.
definitely a keeper – thank u!
Hi Ella – I’m happy to hear you loved this lemon chicken recipe! And I agree, the sauce over mashed potatoes is super yum. Enjoy!
I forgot to add that i made basmati rice to go with the chicken and I put the excess marinade and chicken juice on the rice and it was delicious. Loved both the chicken and the rice!
I just made this and it was fabulous! Will definitely make it again!
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Paula!
I’m not a fan of chicken thighs. Can I use boneless chicken breast? If so, is the baking time different?
Hi Jean – You can follow my baked chicken breast recipe for the proper cooking time and temperature!
Would be much better I it were grilled. Flavors were okay, but the texture was unappealing. Don’t’ recommend this.
Did you marinate it too long? Placing it under a broiler helps make the skin crispy before serving. I also use convection bake. And add a few Yukon Gold Potatoes when cooking. I usually only cook 6 thighs instead of 8 or double the marinade of cooking. My husband & son would eat this weekly.
I cannot say enough good things about this recipe! It was a huge hit with my family. I used 8 chicken thighs and doubled the marinade recipe. I used 1/2 to marinade the chicken in for ann hour and 1/2 to pour on top prior to baking. So juicy and flavorful. My husband even said this reminded him of true Greek style chicken. Will definitely use this again!
What a compliment from your husband! Happy to hear this lemon chicken was such a hit with your family, Yancey!
Delicious! I added scallions, yum,
So happy you love this recipe, Pam!
Delicious! I have the cookbook and now that I have a Skylight wall calendar, I love that I can link your recipes straight into our meal planner and it generates a grocery list from your ingredients! I live at high altitude so 350°F wasn’t cooking the thighs the way I had hoped but 400°F was perfection! Love the simplicity and how practical your recipes are! As a dietitian I appreciate how effortlessly your recipes can be customized to any dietary preferences and restrictions. Thank you!!
You’re more than welcome, Denice! I’m so glad you loved this lemon chicken recipe.
Easy to make with ingredients we always have on hand. It was a big hit with the entire family. We will be sure to make this again!
I’m happy to hear it was a hit!
Can yellow Mustard be used instead of djon?
Hi Heather – yes, you can swap that in if you’d like.
It was excellent with chicken leg quarters replacing the thighs. I could have used a more pronounced lemon finish.
So happy you loved it, Jack!
Family favorite!
Easy and flavorful! Perfect weeknight dinner.
So happy you and your family love this lemon chicken recipe, Lisa!
This chicken dish is full of flavour and is loved by our family and friends. I love all your recipes and the wholesome ingredients you use. Also, I enjoy owning your cookbook and trying out different recipes. Thank you for providing such incredible and delicious recipes!
Aww, thanks so much for your kind words, Nancy! I’m so thrilled you’re enjoying my recipes and cookbook. :)
delicious
Happy to hear you’re loving this Greek chicken, Mariana!
This is my all-time favourite way to cook chicken whether it’s for a weekday dinner or for company coming over. It is such an impressive dish to serve as everyone thinks you’ve worked so hard all day in the kitchen yet it’s very simple and easy to put together. Adding the lemon slices on the top make it look that extra bit special. Very delicious. It will be a staple in my household for a very long time. Thank you so much For the inspiration.
I’m so glad this recipe has become a staple in your dinner routine! It really is the best thing to whip up for dinner guests when you don’t know what to make. Enjoy, Janice!
I make this dish often. It’s fresh and perfect! Easy to make. No adjustments needed to this recipe. The whole family loves it! Thanks for another great recipe Lisa.
Thrilled to hear you and your family are loving this Greek lemon chicken, Mary!
Delicious juicy chicken. Lemon & garlic forward and not overpowering. I’m glad I saw your remark that you cannot overcook bone-in thighs. I left some larger pieces in the oven 10.minutes longer. Perfect.
Bone-in thighs will always stay extra juicy! Enjoy, Lisa.
This is one of our weekly staples, thank you! I bake it at a higher temperature (we’re at a higher altitude) and throw it together with basmati rice and cooked asparagus. I’ll even but the marinade over the asparagus when baking it. So yummy!
Happy to hear this lemon chicken has become a weeknight staple, Brie! Sounds great with rice and asparagus.
My husband who is an avid chicken griller said “this may rival mine.” I pre-seasoned the chicken with a touch of a greek seasoning blend, added an extra garlic clove (can never have enough am I right?) and marinade it overnight. Cooked it over a bed of seasoned golden potatoes and *chef’s kiss.* Perfection!
Wonderful! Good to know this lemon chicken is up to his standards, lol! Enjoy, Rebecca.
Make Greek lemon chicken with Lamon rice and green beans my family loves it thank you
What a delicious meal, Urmila! Glad everyone enjoyed this lemon chicken.
Really easy to cook and delicious.
Glad you loved this Greek lemon chicken, Costerg!
This was excellent! I’m an experienced cook, and this may be my fave chicken recipe. Husband couldn’t stop raving about this. I baked the chicken at 400 for 45 minutes and then used the broiler for the last 5 minutes. I also layered some potatoes under the chicken. So easy, so tasty!
Great idea on adding the potatoes underneath, Valerie! Glad everything turned out great.
This is the bomb!!! I baked potatoes in with it and they were delicious too. Down here in Florida at the Sponge Docks they make lemony Greek oven potatoes. These were just as good.
Great idea on adding potatoes to this dish! Enjoy, Autumn.
So easy and so flavorful. I didn’t have oregano and don’t like oregano that much anyways, and this dish tasted amazing. Lemony, herby, and just delicious.
Thrilled this worked out great without the oregano, Shirley!
I generally find the comment section annoying on food blogs, with lots of “5/5 I can’t wait to try this!” Well I did actually try this, followed the recipe almost exactly, just added more garlic and it exceeded my expectations. It was delicious. My wife asked for it again 2 days after having it the first time. It will be a regular in the rotation. The broiler at the end was a must to get the skin delicious. If you do skin on save all the drippings and use that to start a greek chicken soup. It made a delicious base, added some chicken, veggies and stock, and finished with fresh herbs, lemon, a little olive oil, and feta. You can get two amazing dishes out of one. Thanks for the great recipe!
Hi Isaac – Thanks so much for leaving an honest review! Happy to hear both you and your wife loved this Greek lemon chicken, especially with the broiled crispy skin at the end. Also, great idea on using the leftover drippings!
Looks delicious, however on a low sodium diet I will cut the salt to 1/4 tsp. as mustard has a lot of salt as well.
Hi Leslie – You can always tweak the recipe to your liking!
Can this be made in the oven with chicken breast instead? What would need to change?
All of your recipes have been amazing. But, this may be at the top of the list. The chicken was so moist and flavorful. And, it was so easy. A question. Is the nutrition per chicken thigh or for two thighs. It says servings 8 pieces which made me unsure. Thank you!
Hi Judy – Happy to hear this has become a favorite of yours! The nutritional information is per chicken thigh.
Can this dish made with the full piece meaning the thigh & drumsticks ?
Yes, no problem.
OK!!!!! This was AMAZING!!!! family RAVED about this marinade. Used it to marinade boneless thighs for chicken shawarma !! It was a Hit! Easy to follow marinaded for 3 hrs.
Woohoo! Glad the whole family loved this Greek lemon chicken, Hannah.
I used boneless skinless chicken thighs with this marinade and cook them on the grill. Excellent!!! One of our favorite recipes!!!!! Thank you!!
Hi Lisa – Glad this recipe works out great on the grill. Sounds like the perfect summer meal!
Super easy and delicious recipe! I’ve made it both in the oven and on the barbecue. Both ways are great, but I prefer the barbecue. Also, I use boneless skinless thighs. You can’t go wrong with this recipe and it is company-worthy!
I’m sure grilling these give it that delicious layer of charred goodness. Enjoy, Sheryl!
I made this recipe last night but with chicken breast. I sliced the breast thin, marinated it, and pan fried it. It was a bit too salty. That’s my only complaint. However the breast was super juicy and yummy! I served it with a tziziki sauce.
Glad this worked out great with chicken breasts, Ying! You can always reduce the amount of salt as well.
Love this recipe. A good one for healthy eating!
Absolutely! Happy to hear you’re enjoying this chicken recipe, Patrice.
New favorite chicken recipe!! I made it the first time a couple weeks ago. My kids have been asking for it again and again. Every time I make it there are no leftovers. My son was home from college for the weekend and asked for the recipe. I found the recipe easy to follow and quick and easy to make. I love that I can marinate the chicken ahead of time and then just throw it in the oven when I want.
Great to hear this has become a family favorite now! Enjoy, Rosie!
I have never tried baking chicken in the oven but this Greek lemon chicken recipe looks simple and tempting. So, I tried it. It was super delicious, flavorful and very easy to make! My family loves it and I will try more recipes like Honey mustard chicken and Crispy baked chicken thighs.
Also look forward to trying some baked fish recipes. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Wei – thanks so much for giving my lemon chicken recipe a try. I’m happy you loved it, and I hope you enjoy many more recipes on my website.
This marinade is amazing!! So easy & fast yet SO TASTY!!! I have made 3-4 times already. As I am testing this I have so in fridge marinating.
So happy to hear this recipe is a winner in your house, Kathy!