This is a 5-ingredient Lemon Lime Chicken Marinade recipe that makes a tenderized and delicious chicken. You can use this marinade when air frying or grilling your chicken. It can be a used as a quick 20-minute marinade for last minute planning, so your dinner will take less than 30 minutes.
If you have the time, this is also a great marinade to let the chicken bathe in for a few hours. It will create more flavor and tender chicken that way, but for a quick and convenient night, all you really need is about 20 minutes.
This air fryer Cilantro Lime Chicken is juicy, flavorful and is incredibly easy to make with lime juice, lemon juice and cilantro. It cooks in less than 15 minutes in the air fryer, making it a perfect addition to your busy weeknight meal planning. It is especially delicious as a spring and summer go-to marinade for grilling and air frying meats.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- It's a 15-minute easy dinner.
- Air fryer and grilling instructions are included.
- Great for meal prep.
- Simple pantry ingredients.
- Family-friendly and kid-approved.
What To Serve With Air Fryer Cilantro Lime Chicken
It pairs great with salads, vegetables like air fried asparagus and baby potatoes, and brown rice or white rice. It can also be used in grain bowls, wraps, quesadillas, and any recipe that calls for diced or sliced chicken.
Ingredients
You only need a handful of simple pantry staples.
- Olive oil
- Lemon juice
- Lime juice
- Salt
- Garlic
- Cilantro: fresh, lightly dried or dried all work.
Ingredient Notes
- Fresh lime juice gives the meat it's bold citrus flavor while olive oil and lemon juice help tenderize the chicken- don't skip any of these for the best tasting marinade.
- For even juicier chicken, use chicken thighs.
Grilling Instructions
- Make the marinade by combining the oil, lemon juice, lime juice, salt, and minced garlic.
- Put the chicken in a plastic ziplock bag or bowl and pour in the marinade. Marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes (or up to 2 hours). Grill for 4-6 minutes on each side or until the internal temperature reaches at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Air Fryer Instructions
Follow steps 1 and 2 above. Then:
- When chicken is done marinating, preheat the air fryer to 375°F/190°C. Line the basket or tray with parchment paper and add the marinated chicken. Set the time to 12 minutes.
- Flip the chicken halfway through and baste with reserved marinade. At the 12 minute mark, check internal temperature to ensure it has reached 165°F. If not, continue air frying in 2 minute increments.
How To Store And Reheat
Fridge: store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Freezer: store in freezer safe containers for up to 3 months.
Reheating: reheat in the air fryer at 260 degrees Fahrenheit for about 5 minutes or in the microwave for 60-90 seconds. Cut it into slices fore more even reheating. If frozen, thaw in the fridge overnight or reheat from frozen using the defrost setting on the microwave. It can be reheated from frozen in the air fryer without using a special setting, but it may take longer than 5 minutes.
How Long Should The Chicken Marinate For?
It should marinate for at least 20 minutes or up to 2 hours. Because of the citrus (lemon and lime), you don't want to marinate it for more than this because the meat can break down causing it to become tough.
Recipe
Lemon Lime Chicken Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts about 1.5 pounds
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- ¼ cup lime juice
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoon fresh cilantro or 1 tablespoon dried
Instructions
Grilling
- Make the marinade by combining the oil, lemon juice, lime juice, salt, and minced garlic.Put the chicken in a plastic ziplock bag or bowl and pour in the marinade. Marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes (or up to 2 hours).
- Grill for 4-6 minutes on each side or until the internal temperature reaches at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Air Fryer
- Follow step 1 above. When chicken is done marinating, preheat the air fryer to 375°F/190°C. Line the basket or tray with parchment paper and add the marinated chicken. Set the time to 10 minutes.
- Flip the chicken halfway through and baste with reserved marinade. At the 10 minute mark, check internal temperature to ensure it has reached 165°F. If not, continue air frying in 2 minute increments.
Notes
Nutrition
Darlene says
How much of each ingredient is required
Thank you
Kristina Tipps says
Hi Darlene,
You can see the amounts in the recipe card. Here they are:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts about 1.5 pounds
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup lime juice
3 cloves garlic minced
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoon fresh cilantro or 1 tablespoon dried