This marinated, baked, Cuban Mojo chicken is so juicy and so tender. It’s the ultimate summer recipe that everyone in your family will love! Every single bite will be a flavor bomb explosion in your mouth. Top it off with a delicious pineapple-avocado salsa, made from super fresh ingredients, that makes it the perfect side for this heavenly dish. Oh and the best part? It’s really easy to make it!
This colorful and tasty Cuban Mojo chicken tastes just as good as it looks. It has the best combination of ingredients, making it one of the most flavorful ways to enjoy baked chicken. Trust me when I say this, you’ll become obsessed with the combination of these flavors. They each balance each other out, creating a harmonious result of a tangy, sweet but also a little sour chicken.
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How to make Cuban Mojo Chicken
Cuban Mojo chicken is really easy to make. You make your marinade by adding all the Mojo Sauce ingredients in the blender. You then divide it into two halves. One half of this Mojo sauce will become your chicken marinade and the other half will be the base for the pineapple-avocado salsa.
Once your chicken has marinated, you simply pop it in the oven with some onions, and let it cook for 35 minutes, until golden brown. Meanwhile add to the remaining Mojo sauce some chopped avocado, pineapple and cherry tomatoes to make the fresh pineapple-avocado salsa. That’s it! Easy peasy!
Cuban Mojo Marinade Recipe
Traditionally, the base of the Cuban Mojo Chicken sauce is a mix of citrus juice, garlic and olive oil. For this recipe, delicious fresh oranges were used, together with a combination of herbs. The outcome is SO GOOD.
If you haven’t tried marinating chicken in Mojo sauce you are missing out. But we’ve got you covered! By marinating the chicken, you ensure that all these delicious flavors and aromas from the orange juice, herbs and spices are infused into the chicken.
Ideally, you want to aim to marinate your chicken for three hours in the refrigerator. The more time you allow the chicken to marinate the more intense and flavorful your chicken will be. You will need a bit of patience and to plan a little ahead, but trust me, it’s SO worth it! If you are running short on time, try to at least get a good 20 minutes.
Fresh Pineapple Avocado Salsa and serving suggestion
This is the ultimate summer salsa, that’s really, really easy to make. You simply use some of the Mojo sauce as the base of the sauce and then add chopped pineapple, avocado and cherry tomatoes. It’s SO refreshing, and SO delicious!
The best way to complete this dish is to add some steamed rice and black beans to the side. They are the perfect addition to this delicious Cuban Mojo Chicken recipe!
Cuban Baked Chicken
Baking the marinaded chicken is the best way of keeping the chicken succulent and keeping those flavors strong. It also means that you are not having to keep an eye on the chicken, just pop it in the oven and come back to it 35 minutes later. It’s the perfect dish to make if you don’t have time to stand at the cooker!
Cuban Mojo Chicken is the perfect easy weeknight meal
You really should try making this full of flavor Cuban Mojo Chicken as soon as possible!! You will love it! It’s the perfect weeknight dinner that will be requested again and again by your family! It’s also great for weekend dinners with friends! It’s easy, it’s refreshing and so full of flavor!
Top tips for making Cuban Mojo Chicken
- Marinate the chicken as long as you can – for at least 3 hours – to get the maximum flavor.
- When ready to cook, place the chicken in a pre-heated oven.
- Use free range / organic chicken.
- Cooked chicken should reach an internal temperature of 165ºf.
Be sure to try these other baked chicken recipes for easy weeknight dinners!
- Marinated Baked Lemon Pepper Chicken Recipe
- Garlic and Herb Baked Chicken Wings
- Baked Chicken Fajitas (Healthy Sheet Pan Fajitas Recipe)
- Mexican Chicken Sheet Pan Nachos
If you have tried this Cuban mojo chicken recipe, or any other recipe on my blog, then please rate it and let me know how it turned out in the comments below
Cuban Mojo Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in chicken leg quarters
- ½ cup orange juice
- ⅓ lime juice
- 3 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup cilantro
- 1 lime zest
- ½ tbsp cumin
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black ground pepper
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 onion quartered
- ½ avocado
- 4 ounces pineapple diced
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
- ½ cup black beans rinsed & drained (optional)
- 1 cup steamed rice optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350F
- Add in the food processor the orange juice, lime juice, garlic, cilantro, lime zest, cumin, oregano, salt, and back ground pepper
- Process for 10 seconds. You don’t want the sauce to become too creamy
- Add the olive oil and process for 5 seconds, just to combine ever so slightly
- Add the chicken and chopped onion in a large bowl.
- Pour half of the mojo sauce over the chicken and onions. Cover with cling film, and marinate in the fridge for 3 hours
- Set aside the remaining half of the mojo sauce for later use
- After chicken has marinated add chicken and onions on baking tray, together with the sauce it marinated in.
- Bake at 350F for 35-40 minutes
- Meanwhile, chop up the pineapple, avocado and cherry tomatoes into small pieces and add them in a small bowl. Mix in the remaining half of Mojo sauce you saved earlier. Your salsa is ready!
- Drizzle pineapple-avocado salsa over baked chicken, add steamed rice and beans to the side and enjoy!
This recipe was contributed by Michaella at Well + Yum.
TJ says
It typically takes 45 – 60 mins to fully cook leg quarters at 350 degrees. It depends on how big the leg quarters are and if you choose to leave the skin on or off. Since I use leg quarters typically, I know 30-35 mins wasn’t enough time. Also, the mojo marinade is very good, but I would suggest seasoning the meat as well, so it has some flavor and then add the marinade for about 6 hours. 3 hours isn’t enough time to penetrate the meat unless you inject it. The way her chicken looks in the picture, you’d have to brown it with some butter or oil to get a similar look, otherwise it will look like typical baked chicken, which is what this recipe says. I put mine in a cast iron skillet with some unsalted butter and let it brown and get crispy and then I baked it. The pineapple avocado salsa was really good. Overall, this recipes needs some tweaks but it’s actually a good mojo marinade.
Gloria says
Like to add I used skinless boneless chicken thighs. Delicious marinade.
Becky Hardin says
Yum!!
Dee says
I followed this recipe to the T and even marinated the chicken 6 hours. I didn’t find it to have much flavor. Not sure why.
Becky Hardin says
I am sorry this didn’t work out for you, Dee!
Jim McLean says
Meh. At least it made everything else on my plate taste amazing.
AT says
I followed the recipe to a T and it did not turn out very flavorful or have the color that the picture showed. Also to get the chicken to a safe temp I had to bake 50 mins and that was just barely 165.
Becky Hardin says
I am sorry to hear it didn’t work out for you, Alex.
Michelle says
I used sour orange instead of orange juice, used a little more salt and cooked chicken longer and it came out good
Becky Hardin says
Thanks for sharing, Michelle!
Dave says
Cuban mojo is a great way to prepare chicken and pork (haven’t tried beef yet). Like a previous poster, I would emphasize the use of more salt and seasonings as well as a longer marination time (for chicken at least 3, and better yet 6 hrs), as despite all the garlic the meat can end up surprisingly bland. Agree that 35 minutes is not long enough to cook the chicken all the way through and that baked it will look nothing like the pictures. I hit mine with the broiler once the internal temp reached 165° until the skin crisped up! Next time I will use my pellet smoker which should add another dimension to the flavor and brown the chicken more like what is represented in this recipe.
Becky Hardin says
Definitely modify the recipe to your tasting! Thanks for stopping by!
Carol Wilhelm says
This is a great recipe. Flavor is amazing. Loved the salsa. I made 2 changes: used chicken thighs, separated marinade b4 adding oil, then just added 1/4 c oil to marinade – no oil in salsa. Raving reviews from family. This is a keeper. Extra salsa (there’s a lot) used eaten with chips. Sharing this recipe with extended family.
Becky Hardin says
Thanks for sharing, Carol!