Make super flavorful chicken thighs on your stovetop or grill with a delicious lemon basil marinade. These Lemon Basil Chicken Thighs are perfect for a healthy dinner or meal prep!
Hands-off
Minimal prep
You’ll Learn: The pan-searing technique for juicy chicken with golden edges
Worth It: It’s a satisfying, protein-forward option that actually keeps you full
Bonus: One-pan approach for easy cleanup
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Healthy high protein entree – I aim to eat at least 30g of protein for each meal so this is a great recipe for those goals. Each serving contains 33g of protein to keep me full and satisfied.
- Perfect for meal prep – this lemon basil chicken is super versatile making it ideal for a Sunday meal prep. Make a batch and then slice it down to serve on salads or wraps or with your favorite side dish!
- Cook on stovetop or on the grill – make these juicy and flavorful chicken thighs inside in a skillet on your stovetop or outside on the grill. The marinade remains the same for both, but the cooking instructions change slightly!
Serving suggestions
Cook up a batch of this juicy lemon basil chicken and serve it with your favorite side dish! I like to cook it outside on my grill and serve it with things like sourdough panzanella salad, broccoli cauliflower bacon salad or quinoa chickpea salad.
I also love to make it as a healthy protein option for meal prep. Usually, I will cut the chicken into slices to serve with a big chopped salad and a batch of my favorite apple cider vinaigrette.
Ingredients and Ingredient Substitutions
- Boneless skinless chicken thighs – I prefer chicken thighs for this recipe because I find them to be juicier and more flavorful. You can use boneless skinless chicken breasts instead, but I recommend cutting each breast into 2 thiner fillets for better flavor.
- Fresh lemon – first zest a fresh lemon and then squeeze out the juice to really add lots of bright lemon flavor to the marinade
- Garlic – mince garlic cloves to add lots of flavor. You can use garlic powder, but I really prefer the taste of fresh garlic for this recipe.
- Basil – finely chopped fresh basil adds a lovely herbaceous depth to the marinade.
- Olive oil – helps the thicken the marinade and bring it together. It also allows the chicken to cook without greasing the pan first.
- Dijon mustard – adds a zip and tang to the marinade, helps emulsify the liquid and balances all of the flavors.
- Salt and pepper – adds simple seasoning to the marinade
How to make
Step 1: marinate Chicken thighs
To begin, prepare marinade by whisking together olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, dijon mustard, minced garlic, chopped basil, kosher salt and black pepper. Whisk until evenly mixed and emulsified.
Toss chicken thighs in the marinade in a mixing bowl. Cover the bowl and place in the fridge to marinate for at least one hour or up to 4 hours.
Step 2: Cook chicken thighs on stovetop or grill
To cook on the stovetop: heat a skillet over medium heat. Place a few chicken thighs in the pan at a time – cooking in batches to make sure not to overcrowd the pan. Cook for 4 minutes, flip and cook another 4 minutes, flip cook 2 minutes and check internal temp. If not yet 165F, flip again and cook until internal temperature reaches 165F.
To cook on the grill: Clean grill grates and heat grill over high heat. When the grill reaches 500F, reduce heat to medium. Place chicken thighs on the grill grates time. Cook for 4 minutes, flip and cook another 4 minutes and check internal temp. If not yet 165F, flip again and cook until internal temperature reaches 165F.
Finally, allow chicken to rest for at least 5 minutes before eating. If making for meal prep, allow chicken to cool completely before transferring to an airtight container.
Storage and Reheating
Allow lemon basil chicken to cool completely and then transfer to an air tight container. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in a skillet until warmed through or slice down and serve cold.
Check out these Other delicious chicken thigh recipes
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
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Recipe
Lemon Basil Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 – 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 lemon zested and juice squeezed out
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tsp dijon mustard
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp fresh basil finely chopped
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Prepare marinade by whisking together olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, dijon mustard, minced garlic, chopped basil, kosher salt and black pepper. Whisk until evenly mixed and emulsified.
- Toss chicken thighs in the marinade in a mixing bowl. Cover the bowl and place in the fridge to marinate for at least one hour or up to 4 hours.
- To cook on the stovetop: heat a skillet over medium heat. Place a few chicken thighs in the pan at a time – cooking in batches to make sure not to overcrowd the pan. Cook for 4 minutes, flip and cook another 4 minutes, flip cook 2 minutes and check internal temp. If not yet 165F, flip again and cook until internal temperature reaches 165F.
- To cook on the grill: Clean grill grates and heat grill over high heat. When the grill reaches 500F, reduce heat to medium. Place chicken thighs on the grill grates time. Cook for 4 minutes, flip and cook another 4 minutes and check internal temp. If not yet 165F, flip again and cook until internal temperature reaches 165F.
- Allow chicken to rest for at least 5 minutes before eating.
- If making for meal prep, allow chicken to cool completely before transferring to an airtight container.
Recipe Notes
- you can use chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs – I recommend cutting each chicken breast into 2 thinner fillets
- Do not marinate for longer than 4 hours because the lemon juice can start to change the texture of the chicken. If you want to marinate longer than 4 hours, omit the lemon juice and just use the lemon zest.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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