This Mexican chicken marinade recipe is a quick and easy way to step up your grilled chicken. Made with lime juice, garlic, and other simple ingredients, it infuses your chicken with bright, tangy flavor. Whether you’re grilling up some chicken for a summer barbecue or roasting it in the oven for a cozy winter meal, this marinade is sure to be a crowd-pleaser.
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If you love Mexican flavors and like cooking with minimal, wholesome ingredients, then this is the recipe for you.
Your family is going to love this easy Mexican marinade for chicken – it makes chicken flavorful and zippy, but without being spicy. My kids and husband gobble up any chicken I made with this marinade.
Plus it’s gluten free, paleo, and Whole30 compatible, which is important for us as we often have people over for dinner with food allergies (and I’m gluten free myself).
Chicken in general is one of my favorite proteins to grill. I’ve done pineapple grilled chicken thighs, marinated grilled chicken breast, and even a whole brined smoked chicken! You can even use grilled chicken to make a whole other dish, like this cranberry pecan chicken salad.
But for delicious chicken without any fuss, this Mexican lime chicken marinade is where it’s at.
Mexican marinade ingredients
- Lime juice – I like to use fresh lime juice from 1 or 2 limes, but you can also use bottled lime juice.
- Coconut aminos – this isn’t a traditional ingredient, but it adds a bit of sweetness and savoriness to the marinade. Don’t replace this with soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce as neither has quite the same flavor profile – you need coconut aminos.
- Spices – grab some ground cumin and ground coriander. Make sure they haven’t gone stale as they will be less flavorful if they have.
- Oil – you want a high-heat oil. I like to use avocado oil in this recipe.
- Kosher salt – this recipe uses Diamond Crystal kosher salt. If you’re using a different brand or type, check out the salt conversion chart in this post to get the correct amount to use.
- Garlic cloves – I use medium-sized cloves in this recipe. If you’ve got really small or really large ones, you should adjust the amount you use up or down, respectively.
How to make a lime chicken marinade
Marinades are really easy to make – just measure out the ingredients, add them together, then stir to combine!
If the marinade isn’t coming together by whisking in a cup, you can pour it into a lidded container (like a mason jar) and shake it up to help it along.
What are the keys to a good marinade?
A marinade should contain 4 main elements, which are:
- salt to season the meat,
- fat to coat the meat,
- acid to help break down protein fibers, and
- spices, herbs, or other flavors.
For this Mexican grilled chicken marinade, there’s kosher salt to season, avocado oil as the fat, lime juice as the acid, and the spices and coconut aminos to help flavor the meat.
Cooking chicken with a Mexican marinade
You can either grill or bake chicken with this marinade. I have specific instructions for grilling chicken thighs, which are linked below, but am providing brief instructions for baking chicken with a Mexican marinade in the oven.
For either grilling or baking, you want to marinate the chicken in a plastic bag or other sealed container for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.
This recipe makes enough marinade for 2 pounds of chicken, which is roughly 4 chicken breasts or 8 chicken thighs.
ON THE GRILL
Click the following link to get the recipe for grilled Mexican chicken thighs (coming soon!)
We LOVE our Thermoworks Thermapen ONE meat thermometer to quickly and easily check the internal temperatures of meats. We’ve used a Thermapen for years and they are AMAZING. Get one for yourself here.
IN THE OVEN
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Line a sheet pan with parchment paper or foil, then place the chicken on the pan.
- Place the pan in the oven and cook the chicken for 15 minutes.
- While the chicken is cooking, make a glaze. Place a small saucepan over high heat and empty the used chicken marinade into it. Bring to a boil then let boil for at least 5 minutes, stirring with a whisk to avoid burning. (Yes, this is safe to do according to the USDA).
- When the 15 minutes are up, bring the chicken out and lightly brush the glaze onto it. Place back in the oven and cook for another 5 to 15 minutes, until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees F.
- Remove the pan from the oven and let the chicken rest for 5 to 10 minutes. If desired, brush additional glaze on top of the chicken and serve.
Storing the marinade
Prep it ahead of time!
After you make the marinade, it can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for at least one week.
Freeze it!
You can also freeze the marinade. Place it in a freezer-safe container and it will keep for several months. When you’re ready to cook with it, completely thaw the marinade before putting it in with any chicken.
*Marinade Freezing Tip*
If you’re going to freeze the marinade (or any liquid) in a mason jar, be sure and leave room at the top of the jar for the liquid to expand as it freezes. If you don’t, when the liquid tries to expand it will break the glass.
Can you use this marinade with other types of meat?
Yes, you can use this chicken marinade with other types of meat! I use a nearly identical version of this marinade for my paleo grilled flank steak.
Need more marinades?
If you love cooking with marinades, try one of these out!
Save this Mexican lime marinade for chicken to Pinterest!
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If you make and like this cumin chicken marinade, then don’t forget to leave a 5-star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below!
Mexican Chicken Marinade
Equipment
- A mason jar (optional)
Ingredients
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice from 1 large or 2 small limes
- 2 tbsp high heat oil
- 2 tbsp coconut aminos
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 3 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- ½ tsp ground coriander
- 5-6 mediums-sized garlic cloves peeled, then pressed or minced
Instructions
- Measure out the oil into a measuring cup. Measure out the other ingredients and place them in the cup with the oil.
- Stir everything together with a whisk until it's well combined.
- Alternatively you can place all the ingredients in a mason jar, cover it with a lid, and shake vigorously until the marinade is combined.
Notes
- This recipe makes enough marinade for about 2 pounds of chicken.
- The marinade can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week, or be frozen in a freezer-safe container for several months. Be sure to thaw completely before marinating chicken with it.
- Follow this link to make Mexcian grilled chicken thighs.
- To make baked chicken with this marinade, follow these steps:
-
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Line a sheet pan with parchment paper or foil, then place the chicken on the pan.
- Place the pan in the oven and cook the chicken for 15 minutes.
- While the chicken is cooking, make a glaze. Place a small saucepan over high heat and empty the used chicken marinade into it. Bring to a boil then let boil for at least 5 minutes, stirring with a whisk to avoid burning. (Yes, this is safe to do according to the USDA).
- When the 15 minutes are up, bring the chicken out and lightly brush the glaze onto it. Place back in the oven and cook for another 5 to 15 minutes, until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees F.
- Remove the pan from the oven and let the chicken rest for 5 to 10 minutes. If desired, brush additional glaze on top of the chicken and serve.
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