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My mom made these BBQ chicken thighs for Easter dinner and they were so tender and flavorful. Everyone was raving about the chicken. I literally overheard my mom get props for the chicken at least 5 times.
I jotted down the recipe before heading home and was craving this grilled chicken for the next few days. I re-created it just as soon as I could. I was really craving that chicken! I love that you can prep them ahead of time and just toss ’em on the grill when you’re ready; making them perfect for parties.
You’ll want to marinate the chicken at least 6 hours and it’s best to let them marinate overnight. I’m sharing the detailed grilling and baking methods for this chicken so read on. This is an easy, excellent recipe!
Ingredients for the Tastiest BBQ Chicken:
3 lbs (about 10 count) boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Sea Salt (about 1 tsp)
Pepper (about 1/4 tsp or to taste)
Mrs. Dash Seasoning (about 1 tsp), plain or garlic variety, or your favorite seasoning
Garlic Powder (about 1/2 tsp)
1 Tbsp Real Mayo
1 medium onion, thickly sliced
BBQ Sauce (Homemade or we love Stubb’s Original)
Marinating the Meat:
1. Season both sides of chicken thighs to taste. I used a total of 1 tsp sea salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1 tsp Mrs. Dash Seasoning, 1/2 tsp garlic powder. Turn the chicken to coat evenly with seasoning.
2. Stir in 1 Tbsp Mayo and mix the chicken until evenly coated.
3. Add thick-sliced onion and toss everything together. Cover tightly with plastic wrap or a lid and marinate 6 hours or overnight.
Grilling Method:
1. Preheat the grill and generously brush grill plates with oil. Reduce heat to low and place chicken thighs with a smooth side up.
2. Cover the grill and cook for 12-15 minutes. I rotated them once to make criss-cross grill marks. Before flipping the thighs, baste them with BBQ Sauce.
3. Flip thighs over, baste the flip side with BBQ sauce then cover and cook for another 12-15 minutes, rotating once to make grill marks. Check for doneness by cutting the thicker part of the chicken. If juices run clear then its done.
Flip the chicken again, coat it with BBQ sauce and remove from the grill. Let the chicken rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Baking Method:
Preheat Oven to 400˚F.
1. Place Chicken thighs flat with the smooth side up, spaced out in a single layer on a large rimmed baking dish. Bake at 400˚F for 30 mins.
2. Increase heat to 450˚ and Remove chicken from oven to brush the tops and sides generously with BBQ sauce. Return chicken to the oven another 5 minutes or until glaze has dried slightly onto the chicken.
Juicy Barbecued Chicken Thighs Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 lbs about 10 count boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- Sea Salt, about 1 tsp
- Pepper, about 1/4 tsp or to taste
- Mrs. Dash Seasoning, about 1 tsp, plain or garlic variety, or your favorite seasoning
- Garlic Powder, about 1/2 tsp
- 1 Tbsp real mayonnaise
- 1 medium onion, thickly sliced
- BBQ Sauce
Instructions
Marinating the Meat:
- Season both sides of chicken thighs to taste. I used a total of 1 tsp sea salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1 tsp Mrs. Dash Seasoning, 1/2 tsp garlic powder. Turn the chicken to coat evenly with seasoning.
- Stir in 1 Tbsp Mayo and mix the chicken until evenly coated.
- Add thick-sliced onion and toss everything together. Cover tightly with plastic wrap or a lid and marinate 6 hours or overnight.
Grilling Method:
- Preheat the grill and generously brush grill plates with oil. Reduce heat to low and place chicken thighs with a smooth side up.
- Cover the grill and cook for 12-15 minutes. I rotated them once to make criss-cross grill marks. Before flipping the thighs, baste them with BBQ Sauce.
- Flip thighs over, baste the flip side with BBQ sauce then cover and cook for another 12-15 minutes, rotating once to make grill marks. Check for doneness by cutting the thicker part of the chicken. If juices run clear then its done. Flip the chicken again, coat it with BBQ sauce and remove from the grill. Let the chicken rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Baking Method: Preheat Oven to 400˚F.
- Place Chicken thighs flat with the smooth side up on a large rimmed baking dish, spaced out in a single layer. Bake at 400˚F for 30 mins.
- Increase heat to 450 and Remove chicken from oven to brush the tops and sides generously with BBQ sauce. Return chicken to the oven another 5 minutes or until glaze has dried slightly onto the chicken.
I’m so excited for grilling season! Have you fired up your grill this year? What’s your favorite grill recipe?
Made this a few weeks ago but with a variation of spices (whatever I had – seasoning salt, pepper, granulated garlic, and I think a dash of italian seasoning? I THINK thats it haha) then the mayo and onions and let it sit for a couple hours then bbq’d it but without the bbq sauce (hate the stuff).
HOLY MOLY it was good – I loveeeeeeeed it. It was juicy and delicious and amazing. Thank you for the idea of throwing chicken things in the bbq 🙂 I’m going to try it again but with my opi grill tonight!
I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe :). Thank you so much for the awesome review!
I had to come back here and comment after making this recipe last night. It. Was. DELICIOUS. I found it on Pinterest and I’m so glad I did because this is a keeper. Even my barbecue hating husband loved it! Thanks for sharing!
Kristen, welcome to the site and thank you so much for a great review :).
I’m trying this tonight with bone in thighs& drum sticks. I’m sure it will be great.
Hi Mike, I hope you’ll enjoy it :). Check the chicken for doneness and the end, you might need to cook it for little longer with the bone in.
We are grilling for a group tomorrow. We are definitely using this recipe. I did wonder if I can use the same recipe for boneless, skinless, chicken breasts as we have a few people who would definitely prefer white meat to thighs or the pork ribs we are grilling.
Thank you for a delicious and simple recipe!
I think it would work for chicken breast also, but I do prefer to use this recipe for chicken breast. It comes out so tender and juicy: https://natashaskitchen.com/2014/07/12/juicy-grilled-chicken-breast/
Followed directions exactly as written and chicken turned out burnt black.
Oh no! Did you grill or bake them? It sounds like you may have had the heat on too high.
Made these yesterday!! They were delicious!!! Yum yum yum!! Thank u so much for such awesome recipe . That potatoes do u usually make with these?
I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe! 🙂 We usually serve them with mashed potatoes and this is our go-to recipe: https://natashaskitchen.com/2012/11/20/garlic-and-chive-mashed-potatoes/
These BBQ thighs were amazing! I found your blog today after I came home from grocery shopping I was so glad I had just purchased a fresh family pack of thighs. I did marinate the thighs for only 30 mins since I was short on time (since I wanted to have dinner ready before going to work) and they were full of flavor after completion! I did bake them and I’m so doing this again next week!!! Thank you Natasha.
You’re so welcome Giselle! 🙂 Welcome to my blog. I’m so happy you’re here. I hope you find many new favorite recipes 🙂
just prepped this for my son and I for sunday, an overnight marinade but with chilli sauce, let you know :-))))))
I’m sure it will taste amazing after being marinated overnight!
Natasha this chicken recipe looks amazing i want to make it tomorro night in the oven but i dont have a rimmed baking dish . Do you think it will work in a glass dish instead?
Yes, that’s totally fine! It’s best though if they aren’t crowded in the baking dish 🙂 I hope you love it!
Thank you so much for quick reply . Making them tonight already marinated them !
sounds great can’t wait to try
Enjoy 🙂
I made this meat, and added a little bit of soy sauce to the marinade, (after reading comments), what can I say? Turned out perfect. Everyone loved it.
Thank you for the great review Allison and I’m the same way – always read through the comments section on the recipe pages :).
Hi! I just saw your recipe and it looks so delicious I’m trying it today (chicken is currently marinating in the fridge)! I’m using bone-in chicken thighs with skin, is that ok? Because I only noticed later that your pic shows boneless skinless chicken thighs…oops!! Also, I added a bit more than 1 tbsp. of mayo since I didn’t have enough for the 9 thighs (guess they were a bit big) and I didn’t add any onions since I was worried they would burn in the oven or on the grill (or worse yet fall through the grill grates!) Do the onions always turn out well for you? If so I’ll try it with the onions next time. Thanks so much!
-Diana
I didn’t even realize that I didn’t write “boneless, skinless” I added that. Thanks so much for catching it! It should still work with the bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs but it will take slightly longer to grill. Also, about the onion, I don’t usually add the onion to the grill; it’s only used to flavor the chicken while marinating.
Do u know of a good recipe for chicken wings?
I don’t have one posted yet and we don’t make them often, but I’ll keep them in mind. It may be a good future post. 🙂
what if I substitute for bone in thighs? How long will it take to grill?
I haven’t tried these with the bone in, but you probably want to cook it about the same amount of time. You might add an extra 5 minutes, or until the juices run clear and internal temperature reaches 170˚F.
Parece muito bom! Acho que hoje tento fazer algo parecido… Parabéns pelo blog!
I had to translate your comment! 🙂 “It looks very good! I think today I try to do something like … Congratulations on the blog!” Thank you so much for your sweet comment 🙂
Just grilled these! They are awesome!!! I didn’t put BBQ for the half of them. I have ppl in my family that don’t like BBQ Sauce. But both ways are yummy!
That’s so great! I’m so happy your family liked the recipe 🙂
Hi I hope to make this for dinner tonight.so for the oven method you don’t cover with foil?
I baked them uncovered 🙂
Just made this tonight and I’m so happy with how it came out! Marinated overnight and grilled the chicken. Best BBQ chicken recipe I’ve found!! Can’t wait to make it again.
That’s so awesome! Best BBQ chicken? Wow! Thanks for a fantastic review! You’re so nice 🙂
Natasha, I made the recipe today.Everyone loved it.even though I forgot to include the onions.The best recipe ever.God bless you.
I’ve made it without onions too and it was still very good 🙂 I’m so happy you liked it! God bless you too and thank you!
Thank you so much for the amazing recipe. I made this for dinner today for a crowd, and I made alot! It was all gone. Everyone was raving about it, it turned out amazing! Everyone was asking for the recipe. Delicious. We used Sweet baby Rays original BBQ sauce, and loved it.
I think Sweet Baby Rays is a very good BBQ sauce! I’m so happy this recipe was a success for you and that everyone enjoyed it! 🙂 That is music to my ears. Lily, thank you so much for a great review!