This quick and easy Cilantro Lime Chicken recipe is perfectly seared on the outside and bursting with juices and flavor from the marinade on the inside.
The chicken can be grilled, cooked in a skillet on the stovetop, or even baked, making it the perfect weeknight meal. It’s also packed with enough flavor to impress your dinner guests.
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Why You’ll Love Cilantro Lime Chicken
This Mexican-inspired chicken is the perfect recipe for summer cookouts. The cilantro lime chicken marinade has simple ingredients and takes under 5 minutes to prepare. You can cook this on the grill, on the stovetop, or even in the oven (instructions below).
When the weather starts warming up, grilling is one of our favorite ways to cook chicken breast or thighs because it seals in all of the juices and flavor, just like Grilled Steak or Grilled Pork Tenderloin.
The combination of zesty lime, cilantro, garlic, and a little honey is a clear winner, so it’s going to win your family over and get rave reviews.
How to Make Cilantro Lime Chicken
- Combine the ingredients for the marinade.
- Pour marinade over the chicken and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to 2 hours. Grill, Saute, or Bake the chicken (instructions below). Then, once cooked, serve the chicken with lime wedges and more cilantro to garnish.
Pro Tip:
The marinade is so delicious, we like to brush some over the chicken as it’s being grilled.
How to Cook Cilantro Lime Chicken
Once the Cilantro Lime Chicken is marinated, you can grill, saute, or bake in the oven. No matter what method you choose, this recipe makes the juiciest chicken!
GRILLED Cilantro Lime Chicken
Heat the grill to medium. Place the marinated chicken onto the grates, cover, and grill for 4-5 minutes on each side or until cooked to 165°F on an instant-read thermometer.
SKILLET Cilantro Lime Chicken
If you prefer to cook on the stovetop, heat a large skillet or grill pan to medium heat. Coat with 1 Tbsp of oil and then place marinated chicken in the pan in a single layer. Cook for 4-5 minutes per side or until 165°F. If the chicken is browning too quickly, cover the pan with a lid after you flip it to the second side.
BAKED Cilantro Lime Chicken
It’s easy to bake the chicken following the instructions from our Baked Chicken Breast recipe. Simply bake on a sheet pan or dish for 20 minutes at 400°F or until an instant-read thermometer reads 165°F.
Can I Use Chicken Thighs?
Yes, chicken thighs will work just as great in this recipe. Grill the chicken like in our Chimichurri Chicken recipe until the thickest part of the meat has an internal reading of at least 165°F. They taste even better when they reach 175˚F. Chicken thighs are more forgiving since they aren’t as lean as chicken breast meat.
What to Serve with Cilantro Lime Chicken?
This classic recipe can easily be served with your favorite Mexican-inspired sides. We love to serve the chicken with white rice or our quick instant pot mashed potatoes. This cilantro lime chicken pairs well with:
Make-Ahead
Due to the amount of lime in the marinade, we don’t recommend marinating for more than 2 hours.
- To Refrigerate: Once cooled, store any leftover cooked chicken in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Freezing: Store cooled chicken in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 months.
- To Reheat: Thaw in the fridge overnight. Then reheat in the microwave, in a skillet, or in the oven. You can also eat it cold within one day of defrosting.
Once you try the cilantro lime chicken recipe, it will become a regular on your grilling menu. I love that it is enjoyed by kids and adults alike.
More Summer Grilling Recipes
We love cooking outdoors in summer because everything seems to taste and smell better on the grill; chicken, beef, seafood, veggies – you name it! If you love firing up the grill in summer, you will love these grilling recipes.
- Grilled Salmon
- Juicy BBQ Chicken Breast
- Honey Garlic Shrimp
- Grilled Corn in Foil
- Grilled Pork Chops
- Perfect Hamburger
- Carne Asada
Cilantro Lime Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
Instructions
How to Make Cilantro Lime Chicken
- In a bowl, combine oil, lime juice, garlic, cilantro, salt, pepper, paprika, and honey for the marinade.
- Add the chicken to the mixture and allow to marinate for 30 minutes or up to 2 hours then cook the chicken either on the grill, in a skillet, or bake it in the oven (see instructions below). Once it's cooked, serve with lime wedges and garnish with more cilantro if desired.
How to Grill Chicken
- Preheat the grill to medium heat. Cover and grill the chicken for 4-5 minutes per side, depending on thickness, or until cooked through*.
To Cook Chicken in a Skillet
- Set a large non-stick, non-reactive skillet or grill pan over medium heat. Add 1 Tbsp oil and sautee chicken in a single layer for 4-5 minutes per side until browned and cooked through*, depending on the thickness of your chicken. If your chicken is very thick, cover the chicken with a lid after you flip it.
How to Bake Chicken
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Place the chicken breast on a lined baking sheet or large casserole dish. Bake uncovered for about 20 minutes or until cooked through.
Notes
*Chicken breast should be cooked until it reaches 165˚F at the thickest part on an instant-read thermometer.
Nutrition Per Serving
Valentina Ablaev
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
Quick question regarding your nutritional label: Are the calories showing for the entire recipe and counting for all 4 servings in this recipe as posted? Or are the calories showing on the label representing each individual serving. I couldn’t tell, as it seemed a little high if it were for each serving when using chicken breast. Thanks in advance for clarifying. Also, do the rest of your recipe nutritional labels and their calorie counts represent the servings in total or individual?
Hi Kristie! Yes, the nutrition label is per serving, unless otherwise specified in a note next to it. Unfortunately, these are computer generated by putting the ingredients into a calculator. 1 tablespoon of olive oil has about 14g of fat (we use 3 here) so this measurement is fairly accurate depending on if you’re using chicken breast or chicken thighs and how lean the meat is. Sorry, I can’t be more precise, I’m limited to the tools available within the program that we are using.
Great, as always, Natasha. So quick, easy and versatile! This summer I am going to put them in the marinade, freeze them, and take them camping. I hope that this will work, and that the chicken breasts will not be spending too long in the marinade with this approach.
Oh and I always cook my chicken breasts to 150-155 degrees. I know that this is not the FDA safe temp, but i do find that the temperature keeps rising even after they are taken off the heat, and they retain more moisture when pulled from the heat just before reaching 160. So far, no ill effects. What do you think??
Hi Jane! I’m so glad you love it.
We’ve always followed USDA guidelines to ensure food safety.
I was a bit short on lime juice, my two limes were small. I substituted lemon juice, added a bit more honey; it worked well and the marinade tasted perfect. We are not big on minced garlic so I used garlic powder instead. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Recipe so easy! A big favorite summertime favorite! We had it with rice and grilled asparagus!
Don’t you just love easy recipes? I’m so glad this is a summer favorit!
Wondering if I can omit the lime until two hours before grilling and add the marinade ingredients four hours ahead of time to the chicken. It’s a time crunch thing!
Hi Ali, I have notes on that in my Make ahead section of the recipe post – To Refrigerate: Once cooled, store any leftover cooked chicken in an airtight container for up to 3 days
Had a lot of cilantro and this recipe was perfect to use it! It came out moist and the flavour profile is delicious, especially for the warmer months!
That’s so wonderful! Thank you for sharing that feedback with me, Ash!
My husband and I absolutely loved this recipe! Cooked it on the stove. Next time I will try it on the grill.
Yum! I can’t wait to make this again soon! I’m so glad you loved it Mary!