Greek Chicken Marinade

This Greek Chicken Marinade is an easy and delicious marinade for pan fried, baked or grilled chicken. You probably have everything on hand already – perfect for no-fuss, healthy meals!

Chicken breast used to be so boring to me – it can be so bland! But at some point I realized I just have to pack on the flavors to make it tasty.

Ever since I made that discovery (I know, I live on the edge), our chicken dinners have become a lot more delicious. This Greek-inspired marinade is one of my favorites.

Perfect for summer grilling, but also for year-round indoor cooking: You can grill the chicken, bake the chicken in the oven or cook it on the stove – either way, it’s delicious!

Ingredients you’ll need

Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for quantities!

Ingredient notes

• Red wine vinegar: This ingredient is what really makes the recipe for me. I highly recommend you do not make any substitutes here. If you’re wondering if you’ll ever use up the entire bottle, take a look at my Watermelon Feta Salad, my Greek Salad Dressing, my Italian Salad Dressing and my Summer Corn Salad! They are all great recipes to use up your red wine vinegar.
• Olive oil: An olive oil intended to use in high temperature settings is highly recommended here. This is especially important to me if I’m grilling the chicken, as the temperature of a grill can get really high.
• Honey: A mild, runny honey works best in this recipe.
• Lemon juice: I highly recommend going for fresh lemon juice in this recipe, but bottled works in a pinch. It’s just not as fresh/tangy.
• Garlic powder: I pretty much always use powdered, dried garlic in my marinades. Fresh garlic tends to burn really badly on the grill, which makes it bitter. Garlic powder adds all of the flavor without burning/bitterness! If you want that fresh garlic flavor, why not whip up some garlic herb butter to serve with the cooked chicken?
• Chicken: This marinade works best for boneless, skinless chicken breast, chicken tenders or chicken thighs (either boneless or bone-in works for thighs). You could also use it for chicken legs/quarters; although depending on the weight, you’ll need to double the marinade. Cooking times will vary greatly depending on the cut you’re using.

How to make a Greek chicken marinade

1. Whisk together the marinade ingredients in a measuring jug.

2. Lightly pound the chicken to even thickness, then place it in a large zip-top bag. Pour the marinade over the chicken.

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3. Zip the bag close, then gently massage the marinade into the chicken for 30-60 seconds. Refrigerate the bag for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 days.

4. Once ready to cook, remove the chicken from the marinade (discard any excess marinade with the bag). Cook using your preferred method, until the juices of the chicken run clear and the internal temperature reaches 165°F in the middle of the thickest part.

Recipe tips

Make chicken tender: Marinating chicken helps to keep it juicy while cooking. If you put acid in the marinade (like vinegar!) it helps tenderize.

The pounding also does a lot of tenderizing (probably the most, actually), so I highly recommend to stick to this step.

Containers for marinating:

• a classic zip-loc bag
• a shallow baking dish
• a large soup bowl
• a small-ish glass or plastic freezer container with a lid

I only use zip-loc bags if I’m freezing the chicken in the marinade, which is exactly what I did with the bag in the photo for this post below!

Otherwise I almost always use a shallow baking dish. I cover it with a plate or a second baking dish, because I try to stay away from single-use plastic as much as I can.

Marinating time: Overnight works really well for easy meal prep, but 30 minutes are OK if you’re short on time. Actually, if you work in a clean way, the USDA food safety rules say you can marinate chicken in the fridge for up to 2 days.

However long you marinate the chicken, it’s not safe to re-use a marinade that’s been in touch with raw meat or poultry. Always discard used marinade and make a fresh batch the next time you want to marinate something.

Freezer tips

This recipe freezes well. Label with the name and use-by date, then freeze immediately.

I prefer using a ziploc bag for this, but I know some people freeze chicken in marinade in glass containers and it works well; you may need to double the marinade to make sure the chicken is fully covered.

You can freeze the chicken in the marinade for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight, then use as directed in the recipe.

Grill, stove and oven instructions

Once ready, remove bag with chicken from refrigerator and let sit on counter for 20 minutes. Remove the chicken from the bag right before cooking, discarding the bag and any leftover marinade.

Grill: Heat your grill to high heat. Lightly oil grates. Grill chicken 2-4 minutes per side, covered, until juices run clear and internal temperature reaches 165°F. Remove from grill.

Stove: Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and cook the chicken around 5-8 minutes per side, until browned and cooked all the way through.

Oven: Place the chicken in a shallow baking dish. Top each chicken breast with a pat of butter, or with a teaspoon of olive oil. Heat the oven to 400°F, then bake about 18-20 minutes.

For best results, always rest the chicken 5 minutes before serving.

However you cook your chicken, make sure your chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F at its thickest part.

Serving ideas

I love this chicken with my Lemon Herb Marinated Grilled Vegetables. Another delicious side dish is my Greek Pasta Salad or a Greek Orzo Salad. Sometimes I turn it into Greek Chicken Kabobs!

For a simple salad, try a Cucumber Tomato Avocado Salad, it goes perfectly with this chicken recipe.

We also like to serve bread whenever we grill, and either a No Knead Bread or a Homemade French Bread are great here!

More easy marinades

PS If you try this recipe, please leave a review in the comment section and add a star rating in the recipe card – I appreciate your feedback! Follow along on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram. Sign up for my email list, too!

Recipe first published on 05/26/2018. Updated with new photos, better text and better instructions on 02/27/2021.

Side Note: What is the difference between marinade and marinate?

So… If it weren’t for the kids, I’d be a high school English teacher.

But marinade and marinate tripped me up the other day 🙈🙈 It’s so easy to mix them up and I often get interrupted by the kids while writing.

So, to myself (and anyone who is struggling, haha): MARINADE is the actual saucy stuff you put on the chicken and MARINATE is the verb you use to tell someone you’re putting your chicken in a marinade.

Good thing I got that off my chest, ha!

And then… Get grilling with all of those delicious Mediterranean flavors!