Yogurt Marinated Chicken is tender, juicy, and SO flavorful from a blend of Mediterranean spices! There’s not a bite of dry chicken in sight when you use this easy recipe. This might just be your new favorite way to make bone-in chicken!
What’s in this Yogurt Marinated Chicken Recipe
Chicken legs are made delicious with plain yogurt, lemon juice, seasonings, herbs and more! It’s an all-natural recipe you’ll love making.
- Chicken Legs Quarters: You can use the yogurt marinade on any cut of chicken, just adjust the cooking time accordingly.
- Plain Yogurt: Make sure that the yogurt has NO additional favors!
- Oil: You can use canola, olive, or avocado oil.
- Lemons: You’ll need the fresh zest and juice.
- Seasonings: Salt, pepper, paprika, cumin, cinnamon and cayenne pepper create the most mouthwatering flavor!
- Garlic: It’s very important to use fresh garlic only, not pre-minced or paste.
- Red Onion: I don’t recommend swapping this bold onion with any other color.
- Fresh Herbs: Parsley and cilantro lend the best fresh flavor to this marinated chicken recipe.
PRO TIP: I like to put my yogurt marinated chicken on a rack to get it up out of the juices which always results in crispier chicken!
Can I grill this chicken recipe?
Absolutely! Check out my easy recipe for grilled BBQ chicken for more info on how to expertly (and easily) grill chicken.
Yogurt slowly marinates the chicken and it results in an amazing pull apart texture. Acidic marinades, like lemon or vinegar based, act very quickly and if you are not careful can actually leave the chicken chewy and dry.
The chicken can be marinated between 2 to 8 hours. Don’t marinate for longer as the acid can start to cook the meat, so rather than having tender chicken it can end up being quite tough.
At a minimum it should be marinated for 2 hours. This is enough time to allow it to take on the flavors and start to tenderize.
Nope! I like to leave the marinade on the chicken prior to popping it in the oven. If you rinse it off, you’re getting rid of so much flavor. With that being said, you don’t need the remainder of the marinade that’s not on the chicken, so feel free to toss it.
How to Store and Reheat
Once your chicken has cooled to room temperature, you can store any leftovers you may have in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat the chicken back in the oven or serve it sliced and chilled over a salad!
How to Freeze
Yogurt chicken will stay fresh in the freezer for up to 3 months. Don’t forget to date and label! Also, I recommend letting the frozen chicken slowly thaw in the fridge prior to reheating.
Serving Suggestions
Because of the Mediterranean flavors that are infused into this chicken, I recommend plating it alongside some side dishes like Mediterranean orzo salad or traditional Greek salad.
More Bone-In Chicken Recipes We Love
- Homemade Shake and Bake Chicken
- Baked Teriyaki Chicken Drumsticks
- Lemongrass Chicken
- Beer Can Chicken
- Baked Korean Chicken Wings
- Hot Honey Fried Chicken
Yogurt Marinated Chicken
Ingredients
- 5 chicken leg quarters thigh attached
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 2 tablespoons oil
- ½ cup of lemon juice juice of two lemons
- Zest of two lemons
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 ½ teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- ¼ cup red onion minced
- ½ cup fresh parsley chopped
- ½ cup fresh cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Combine yogurt, oil, spices, red onion, parsley, and cilantro in a large ziplock bag. Knead bag to mix.
- Add chicken quarters to bag and let marinate for at least two hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 375℉.
- Remove chicken from bag and discard marinade. Place chicken on a cooking rack over a pan that has been lined with parchment paper. Bake chicken, uncovered, for 50-60 minutes, or until meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh reads 165℉ and juices run clear.
- Turn oven to broil. Broil for 2-3 minutes to crisp up the skin, watching carefully to avoid burning.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
- I used canola oil in this recipe, but olive oil would also be good.
- I like to put the chicken on a rack to get it up out of the juices which results in a crispier chicken.
- If someone doesn’t have a rack, they could just cook it in the pan.
- You could use this marinade on any chicken pieces and adjust cooking time accordingly.
- This could also be cooked on the grill.
- This chicken recipe is inspired by Turkish and Mediterranean flavors and could be named as such.
Iain says
Delish!
Becky Hardin says
Thank you!
Karen says
An excellent recipe! I will definitely make again.
Becky Hardin says
Thanks for sharing, Karen!
Jennifer says
Love this, I did marinate for a day, but I wish I had basted the chicken with the marinade. the parts that were sticky with it were the best!
Becky Hardin says
Love it!
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