Our Greek chicken marinade recipe guarantees juicy, tender, and flavorful chicken every time.
It comes together quickly with simple ingredients you probably already have on hand and works beautifully with any cut of chicken.
Made with Greek yogurt, olive oil, lemon, garlic, and herbs, this marinade adds incredible flavor while keeping your chicken tender and juicy. Use for grilling, baking, or pan-searing. I especially love it over a fresh salad (like this Greek salad) or tucked into wraps and bowls.
Key Ingredients
- Yogurt: Plain Greek yogurt is my go-to for this marinade. It helps the flavors cling to the chicken, tenderizes the meat, and keeps it juicy. Low-fat or whole-milk yogurt works best. If you have some leftover, make my easy tzatziki sauce!
- Lemon Juice and Balsamic Vinegar: Fresh lemon juice and a splash of balsamic vinegar bring bright Mediterranean flavor. We only use a little (too much can toughen the chicken).
- Garlic: Fresh garlic is a must! I use two minced cloves, though finely grating works just as well.
- Dill and Oregano: Fresh dill (or dried, if that’s what you have) paired with dried oregano adds classic Mediterranean flavor. If you prefer, swap in a Greek seasoning blend.
- Honey: A drizzle of honey balances the acidity of the marinade and helps the chicken brown beautifully as it cooks.
Find the full recipe with measurements below.
How to Make the Best Greek Chicken Marinade
Tip 1: Watch our video. This Greek chicken marinade couldn’t be easier. Add all the ingredients to a bowl and whisk until blended. Then, add your chicken (breasts or thighs) and turn to coat. Watch me make it and cook the chicken in our video.
Tip 2: One hour is good, longer is better. You can marinate the chicken for up to 8 hours, but even just one hour will make a noticeable difference in juiciness and tenderness.
Tip 3: Don’t discard the marinade. When you’re ready to cook, don’t discard that marinade! If you’re grilling, baste the chicken with more marinade as you flip it. If baking, spoon the marinade over the chicken before popping it in the oven. (You can watch me do this in the video!)
Tip 4: Expect the honey to brown. The honey in the marinade helps the chicken brown fast. Watch your heat: I like to sear in a grill pan over medium-high for color, then finish in the oven at 375°F (190°C) for perfectly cooked, juicy chicken.
Serving Suggestions
This marinated chicken is perfect for salads, wraps, or sandwiches. I love it with homemade pita or this easy flatbread alongside hummus, baba ganoush, labneh, creamy tzatziki sauce, and pickled veggies like pickled carrots or pickled peppers.
It’s also fantastic with roasted veggies, too. Consider roasted broccolini, roasted zucchini with feta, or these honey roasted carrots with tahini sauce.
More Marinade Recipes
- Lemon Garlic Chicken Marinade
- Yogurt Marinated Chicken
- Sesame Ginger Shrimp Marinade
- Pork Chop Marinade
- The Best Steak Marinade
Easy Greek Chicken Marinade
- PREP
- TOTAL
Plain Greek yogurt is the secret to this Greek chicken marinade! Yogurt helps the marinade coat the chicken and makes it tender and juicy. I’ve used this marinade after just one hour and been really happy, but if you can wait a few more hours, the flavors deepen even further. (I’ve even left chicken marinating overnight before, and it was still delicious!) If you go past 8 hours, the lemon juice and vinegar might start to firm up the outside of the chicken a bit (it’s still delicious, though).
Watch Us Make the Recipe
You Will Need
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 teaspoons honey
1 ½ teaspoons balsamic vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill or 1 teaspoon dried dill
½ teaspoon dried oregano
3 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 ½ pounds (680g) chicken breast or thighs
Directions
- Marinate the Chicken
1Combine the olive oil, honey, balsamic vinegar, garlic, lemon juice, dill, oregano, yogurt, salt, and pepper in a mixing bowl that is large enough to hold the chicken.
2Add the chicken, turning them around in the marinade so they are well coated. Marinate covered in the fridge for 1 to 8 hours.
- Cook the Chicken
1Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) and set aside a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
2Heat a grill pan over medium heat. Lightly oil, and then place the chicken into the pan. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side until grill marks, but do not cook until cooked in the middle. Watch your heat is not too high during this step as the honey can burn.
3Transfer the chicken to the prepared baking sheet and spoon over any remaining marinade from the bowl.
4Bake until an internal thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken reads 165°F, about 15 to 25 minutes, depending on how thick your chicken is. Rest for 5 minutes, slice, and serve.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Alternatives for cooking the chicken: You can grill, bake, or cook the chicken in a skillet or grill pan. My favorite option is to sear the outside for color and finish in the oven. Since honey is in the marinade, it will darken quite a bit so watch for burning when you sear your chicken. You can skip the grill pan and go directly to the oven. You will still get a little color. If you use an outdoor grill, use our grilled chicken recipe for tips.
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We assumed chicken breasts.
I made this recipe exactly as written using skinless boneless chicken thighs and it turned out delicious. It was easy and quick to make–The marinade uses ingredients that I always have at home.
Have you made this marinade ahead of time and kept it in the refrigerator? Thanks
With the chicken, we recommend no longer than 8 hours. I’d assume a similar length of time if you do not add the chicken.
Will it still taste good without the honey? Can I substitute lower carb sugar?
Hi Karen, You should be able to. You can add the sugar to taste (before adding to the chicken), and see if it seems sweet enough for you.
I want to grill up a chicken breast to go with some leftover taboulleh and I immediately thought of this recipe that I’ve used before and loved. The chicken comes out so moist and flavorful, and the marinade is so easy to make with ingredients I already have on hand.
I made this delicious recipe and my husband and I loved it. The flavor was fantastic and it was so easy to make. I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs and followed the recipe exactly as written. Marinated the chicken for 3 hours. I will definitely make this again.
Can dried dill be substituted for fresh? Have all the ingredients but that one and Ive been wanting to try it.
Yes, I use about 1/3 less dried dill when substituting for fresh.
Hi, thanks for this fantastic recipe. Had it with roasted potatoes and asparagus as a wonderful lunchbox.
Excellent recipe , affordable , uncomplicated, clear directions , bullet presentation makes it easy to follow. Successful results of cooking this!! Thank you. Videos friendly and camaderie between you two v pleasant 👍
I made this delicious recipe the other night and my husband and I both LOVED it! I have a question: I’d like to take the leftover chicken and make bowls with either rice or quinoa, feta cheese, sliced peppers, etc. I searched your site for a nice Greek Viinaigrette and couldn’t find anything and I wondered if I could just make more of the marinade and use it for the dressing??
Hi Anita, Yes, the marinade would make a nice dressing or you can see this Greek Salad, which has a very simple dressing I love using for Greek-inspired salads.
I made this delicious marinade this afternoon and baked the chicken breasts in the oven. My husband and I both loved the results! The only thing I’ll do differently next time is that I’ll leave the meat in the marinade longer. I only had 3 hours to work with and I’m certain the flavor will be even better with a longer time marinating. Thanks for sharing this easy, delicious recipe!
This Greek chicken marinade was so easy to make and VERY tasty😃. We served it with a salad, roasted sweet potatoes and broccoli! Loved it, will definitely be making this again!!! Thank you for sharing!
Love this marinade! Making it for the second time. Chicken tenders and thighs cooked perfectly. I used stove top grill pan. Thank you!
This Greek chicken marinade sounds amazing! The combination of fresh lemon, oregano, and olive oil must bring such a bright, vibrant flavor to the chicken. It’s simple yet packed with all the classic Mediterranean flavors. I love that it’s easy to make and perfect for grilling or roasting. Thanks for sharing this tasty and versatile marinade—I’m excited to try it out on my next chicken dish!
I am marinading the chicken right now, and can hardly wait to have it over the Greek Salad. I plan to pan cook the chicken on the stovetop. They are chicken breasts so shouldn’t take too long to cook. I love the idea of a Greek Salad without green leaves. Thank you for your recipes.
Wonderful! We hope that you enjoy it as much as we do!
Absolutely delicious!! Will use this recipe many times.
Haven’t made this yet, but certainly will. Looks fantastic. I only have Diamond Crystal Salt. What would be the measurement for fine salt?
Hi Sunny, Diamond Crystal salt is more coarse than our fine sea salt, so use 1 ½ to 2 teaspoons.
Great marinaide, I air fried marinated chicken breasts and thighs and they were delicious.
So happy you enjoyed it, Norm!
Question. Did you rinse off the marinade before cooking? seriously love your recipes.
Hi Jim, we don’t. Instead, we like to either bake the chicken with the marinade spooned over it or baste the marinade in the beginning of cooking. It’s so flavorful and thick thanks to the yogurt, it would be a shame to get rid of it.
Love your recipes guys – easy and practical. Way to go.
Thanks so much, Meg! So happy you enjoy them.
I have tried many of your recipes and all were excellent! Your videos are so well done. Thank You! Easy Greek Chicken Marinade is a 5-Star recipe!
So happy you enjoy it! Thank you for coming back and letting us know.
This is a really good, simple and delicious recipe, and so versatile. It lifts plain chicken up and makes it something special, and is really good with a fresh salad. I have also used it with pork, which is also very good.
That’s amazing, Eleanor. Thanks for letting us know!