In the past, lemon chicken has never really turned my crank. Perhaps it is because each time I tried it, the chicken was dry and the tart lemon juice just seemed to add insult to injury, causing me to pucker my lips like an old man who lost his dentures. However, with six cups of fresh Meyer lemon juice to play with, it seemed prudent to set to work on shattering my preconceptions of lemon chicken. After all, there are only so many Lemon Sugar Puff Pastry Twists and margaritas that one gal can consume – without gaining fifty pounds and engaging in inappropriate table dances, that is.
When considering ways to get around the dryness issue, chicken thighs came to mind as a likely solution. Of course, you can still use boneless, skinless breasts in this recipe if you are someone that is adept at judging when chicken breasts are cooked through, but not leeched of moisture. If this is not your forte, then I suggest boneless, skinless chicken thighs which are a considerably more forgiving part of the bird.
The lemon vinaigrette in this recipe is infused with fresh rosemary and garlic, and mixed with a touch of honey. While this chicken is best served hot, it can also be enjoyed at room temperature, which makes it the ideal meal for a busy weeknight. When the chicken comes off the grill, toss it in the vinaigrette and allow the meat to absorb some of the fresh flavors. If you plan to eat it later, cover and refrigerate the chicken. Bring the chicken and vinaigrette to room temperature and stir before serving over rice, quinoa or orzo.
The recipe:
In a large bowl, whisk together fresh lemon juice, rosemary, honey, garlic, salt and pepper.
While whisking, slowly pour in olive oil until combined.
Preheat grill to medium-high heat.
Toss chicken thighs in canola oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes per side.
Transfer chicken to bowl with lemon vinaigrette and toss until chicken is coated.
Serve, drizzling extra vinaigrette over chicken, to taste.
Other grilled chicken recipes:
Cookin’ Canuck’s Chicken Kebabs with Pomegranate-Spice Marinade
Cookin’ Canuck’s Grilled Chicken Thighs with Tamarind & Orange Glaze
Simply Recipes’ Red Chile Marinated Grilled Chicken
Kalyn’s Kitchen’s Grilled Chicken with Sage, Rosemary & Garlic Dried Herb Rub
Prudence Pennywise’s Cilantro Honey-Lime Grilled Chicken
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 tbsp minced fresh rosemary
- 2 tsp honey
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ¼ tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
- 3 tbsp canola oil
- Pinch kosher salt
- Pinch freshly ground black pepper
- The vinaigrette:
- In a large bowl, whisk together fresh lemon juice, rosemary, honey, garlic, salt and pepper. While whisking, slowly pour in olive oil until combined.
- Preheat grill to medium-high heat.
- Toss chicken thighs in canola oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes per side.
- Transfer chicken to bowl with lemon vinaigrette and toss until chicken is coated. Serve, drizzling extra vinaigrette over chicken, to taste.
Very yummy recipe. Lemon makes everything wonderful.
Yum. Lemon chicken was one of my first recipes. Yours looks much better though!
This looks so delicious! I love lemon and rosemary together! Thanks for sharing 🙂
what a flavorful way to grill chicken! lemon and rosemary are so fantastic together, this chicken is just rolling in flavor.
This looks so delicious. That is a great flavor combo. I can’t wait to try this the next time we grill out. Yummy!
This recipe looks delish!! You have a lovely collection of recipes. Please visit http://cosmopolitancurrymania.blogspot.com for a shower of AWARDS for you!
Love lemon and rosemary together. I’m sure it’s fabulous.
I’m still searching for (and asking for) Meyer lemons! If I ever find them we will be eating lemon everything for a while. Lovely chicken – have a great weekend.
You can substitute regular lemons for the Meyer lemons in this recipe. Just add a touch more honey, to taste.
Delicious sounding recipe – I love lemon chicken, and meyer lemon sounds even better!
Lemon, chicken and rosemary. A classic… welcome aboard! GREG
I love thighs much more than breasts. Definitely the way to go when dryness is an issue. I find a lot of lemon chicken kind of bitter, but I bet using Meyer lemons makes a real difference!
Thanks, Carolyn. We use chicken thighs a lot. They’re so much moister and cook so quickly.
Looks so yummy! Love your pics and all the great instruction!
One of my favorite flavor combinations
Oh yum! I absolutely love rosemary… and chicken.. and lemons! Thanks for sharing!
Dara this looks so tasty and it’s going to the meal plan for next week.Thank you.Have to track down the meyer lemons..
Michelle, you can substitute regular lemon for Meyer lemons. Just add a touch more honey to balance the extra tartness. Taste as you add.
This is perfect! I have a big bag of lemons and a fat bunch of rosemary to use up!
I’m definitely a chicken thigh fan…beautiful recipe!
Lemon, chicken and rosemary are so classic…so that twist with honey…perfect. I will use chicken breasts but have found for me, the secret to not overdoing them is to flatten them. Besides, that pounding is so therapeutic!
Great idea, Barb. And you’re right – there’s nothing like a little hammering to relieve daily frustrations.
Lemon and rosemary are the perfect pair!
Simply gorgeous chicken, my dear! Love a simple marinade that turns out a wonderfully moist end product!
We do something similar to this & is our favorite! I look forward to trying this recipe – I already know my husband will love it! Have a wonderful weekend ~L
I absolutely love lemon and rosemary! Thanks for sharing another great recipe. Enjoy your weekend. Ana
light refreshing bursting with flavors!
Lemon, rosemary and garlic is one of my all-time favorite flavor combinations. Love the bit of honey in there, too. I can just imagine how summery this recipe tastes! Add a salad and bread and I’m ready for dinner.
Sounds good to me!
What a perfect springtime grilling recipe! Love that lemon rosemary vinaigrette!
What a mouth watering photo~ I love this kind of chicken~
What a perfect Spring combination. Both fresh and inviting. A perfectly delish dish. 🙂
This marinade looks so delicious, I love the lemon and rosemary combination.
I am definitely a chicken thigh fan, and this sounds wonderful!
Mmm so tasty looking!
Looks great, I love lemon anything, and this looks especially good.
Dara, this chicken certainly does look like it has the perfect texture! All that lemon juice is the best tenderizer that’s for sure 🙂
do so like the idea of a vinaigrette served on the chicken, and it does look moist … white meat is the hardest to keep from drying out and grilling boneless dark sounds I know is more flavorful and juicy… glad you are grilling outside, we are closing down our American summer down here as we call it getting ready for the Gulf summer where humid nights take over and grilling becomes less pleasurable ….
Lemon and rosemary make a natural combination. And I’m with you with using thighs: not just moister but a lot tastier than breast, too!
Love this vinaigrette, Dara 🙂 Honey, lemon juice and rosemary… Heaven!
Wow this chicken looks amazing. The vinaigrette sounds so flavorful and I love how there’s honey in it. I can’t wait to try this recipe. I’m always looking for new chicken recipes. 🙂
I’m loving this recipe. Another bookmarked. I’ve somewhat given up on boneless skinless chicken breast with a 90% dry result and have just relied on bone in/skin on cooking. Just tuck the seasonings under the skin. I’m a much happier cook this way. 🙂 But these chicken thighs are a different story. Thanks for the recipe.
This recipe looks great! I’m going to make it for dinner tonight, and I was looking at the recipe to make sure I have everything. How much olive oil did you whisk into the lemon juice mixture? I didn’t see an amount listed. Thanks!
Ack! I’m sorry that I left that out. It should be 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil. I hope you enjoy it!
fantastic! Bookmarked as well
Love this! I’ve got lemons and rosemary up to my ears so there’s no reason not to make this. 🙂
What a wonderful recipe for the summer – light, flavorful and easy!
It was absolutely delicious! A wonderfully refreshing taste. 🙂
I’m so glad, Michelle. Thanks for letting me know.
I love the flavors in here! Time to fire up the grill. 🙂
Ah, so the trick for this one is to add the marinade after! I always assume the sauce goes on before cooking.
Dan, this is more of a vinaigrette rather than a marinade. The chicken absorbs the vinaigrette nicely when it is hot off the grill.
Such pretty photos. How do you get them so crisp? Do you shoot them in daylight? I found your blog when I was searching for a grilled chicken recipe to serve with my new Nicoise salad ( http://cuceesprouts.com/2011/05/nicoise-salad/) I think the two would go really well together, don’t you think?
Yes, I do shoot in natural light. As for the crispness – well, I suppose manual focus helps me in that department. Nicoise salad does indeed sound like a good pairing with the chicken.
We made this last week for dinner and it was excellent. Light, fresh and bright…perfect with sauteed gnocchi (we only had boneless, skinless breasts one hand, but after a nice brine, they were perfect). Thank you for the easy, tasty recipe! 🙂
The lemon and honey combo works really well on chicken!
Another fabulous creation, Dara. I like making roasted chicken with lemon slices slid under the skin. I’m going to they adding rosemary under the skin now too!
By the squeeze of lemon, the whole recipe taste even better. I want to try this too. I’m looking forward to read more chicken recipes as tasteful as this.
This is one of my favorite recipes 😉
The first dish I ever made for my (now) husband was a lemon chicken with pepper and rosemary.
This sounds like a nice change from my usual recipe. I’ll be firing up the grill soon for this recipe!
oh I LOVE these flavors, looks so delicious. Wonderful photos, I’m starving now!!!
I’ve found a new love for chicken. It tastes great with everything. And this just looks great!
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