Cilantro Lime Chicken

 

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs. (700g) skin-on deboned chicken thighs
• lime wedges, for garnishing
• chopped cilantro, for garnishing

Marinade:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro stems and leaves
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 teaspoon red chili flakes, or more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, or more to taste

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Whisk all the Marinade ingredients together in a large bowl, ensuring thorough mixing. Add the chicken to the Marinade, stirring to coat evenly. Allow the chicken to marinate for 15 minutes, but for optimal flavor, marinate for 2 hours.
• Heat up a skillet and pan-fry the chicken with the skin-side down until it's slightly browned. Then, turn it over and pan-fry the other side until it's also slightly browned.
• Spoon the remaining marinade on top of the chicken before baking. Bake the chicken for 20 minutes.
• Transfer the chicken to a serving platter (discarding the oily drippings from the chicken). Squeeze fresh lime juice over the chicken, garnish with cilantro, and serve immediately.

Notes

• Use an oven-safe skillet or pan to bake the chicken in the oven. Grilling is also an option for cooking the chicken.
• Use chicken thighs, which are more tender, moist and juicy. Buy bone-in and skin-on chicken thighs and debone it. Click on this post to learn how to debone chicken thighs, with video guide.
• Use freshly squeezed lime juice if you can. You will love the fresh and citrusy aroma from the lime juice.
• Use lots of cilantro stems and some cilantro leaves as there is a lot of flavors in the stems.
• Pan-fry the chicken on a skillet first, to make sure that the skin is browned and crispy before baking the chicken in the oven. This extra step turns your cilantro lime chicken from good to exquisite.
• After baking, spoon the marinade over the chicken to make it extra flavorful and moist.