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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 Mayo
- 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?
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
I made this tonight. I forgot that I only had 6 thighs and made the recipe as directed for 10. I’m glad I forgot to adjust everything else down because it was really good. We ate it on grilled Hoagie rolls with coleslaw. Sooo good.
Glad to hear that, Claudia!
Hi Natasha
I was wondering can I freeze cooked grilled chicken?
Hi Mary, for optimal flavor and freshness, we love to eat cooked chicken fresh, but chicken does tend to freeze nicely.
Could you use thighs with skin & bone in? If so how long would you bbq then for? Thx
Hi Carole, It should still work with the bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs but it will take slightly longer to grill/ bake.
Hi Natasha,
I love all your recipes. can you please recommend an indoor grill for a family of 6.
Thanks,
Asima
Hi Asima, maybe a George Foreman grill? They seem to work well for indoor use.
I was wondering, if I want to make half the quantity of chicken (1.5 pounds) do I cut all the seasoning in half as well when marinating or can I put the same quantity of seasoning for more taste?
Hi Sana, you can use half all the ingredients. If you feel you would like to add more seasoning and test that, I’d love to know how it works!
Super tasty, made for great sandwiches
This was the best far and away recipe I have found!!!!!! As it happens I had bought garlic mayo a few months ago and did not like it with tuna salad. I will buy it again, and OMIGOSH, such a simple recipe but WOW. I used just plain basic BBQ sauce from Heinz, maybe look for lower carb, lower sodium next time but fabulous
Hi Shiela, so wonderful to know that you loved this recipe! Thank you so much for sharing that with us.
Excellent recipe! I only had time to marinate for an hour and it came out great!
Can I use chicken legs for this?
Hi Hannah, I haven’t tested that with chicken legs to advise. If you experiment please let me know how you like that.
Can I marinate this 24 hours before grilling?
Hi Tatyana, that should work! I hope you love this recipe!
Hi Natasha,
I am eager to try this tonight! Can you please tell me how hot I should preheat my grill to? Should i just throw it on high to preheat for 15 minutes and then lower it to grill the chicken or do I want to reach a desired temperature? Thanks!
That’s exactly right. Just preheat it 10-15 on high and then lower the grill temp to low.
For baking do I need to grease the pan beforehand? And will a 9×13 baking pan work?
Hi Charity, we did not grease for the baking method. I hope that helps.
Thanks for the quick reply! Chicken’s marinating in the fridge right now. I only have a 9×13 baking pan… would that work?
Hi Charity, I imagine that should work.
This was super good! I ended up marinating overnight because we ran out of propane and had to get more the next day. Fresh salad and rice pairing
I bet it was that much better after marinating! That’s so awesome! Thank you for sharing your amazing review with us.
My experience was less than optimal.
I’d appreciate it if there were clear instructions about how close to put the chicken thighs together for the baking recipe.
I followed the instructions, or lack thereof, and when my chicken thighs came out in a sea of fluid, I began to wonder what went wrong.
It wasn’t until I read someone’s comment / your reply about how to place them, etc, that it made sense.
This was a recipe for boiled chicken – in the oven.
I’m likely off of BBQ sauce & chicken for a good long time.
Hi Todd, you are correct I didn’t have the spacing and I apologize for that. I have updated the recipe. I did add a link to the large baking sheet we used. Anytime chicken is baked touching, overlapping or stacked, it will create more liquid pooling. Also, doubling the recipe would require baking in 2 separate pans or 1 very large one if it fits in your oven.
This is just so delicious and juicy!!! Marinaded only for 2 hours since I didn’t have more time. Thank you Natasha!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it Eva!
tried this recipe last week and LOVED it! I was curious since the recipe was so simple but was surprised at how delicious it turned out. Will be making these again! Thank you! I love your recipes!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Dee!
HANDS DIWN THE BEST GRILLED CHICKEN RECIPE EVERE!
I Only had a few hours before I needed to serve so I went ahead with the marinade for just 3 hours. OMG… tender and juices just as promised, using ingredients most of us already have on hand. Absolutely DELISH, a definite keeper. THANKS SO MUCH!
That’s just awesome!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review with us!
Made this tonight and it was delicious!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
Hi natasha! I made this recipe so many times and I love it! I do have a quick question though, do you cut the fat off the chicken thighs? Normally I always do but I noticed that you didn’t mention anything about cutting out the fat.
Hi Julie! I’m so happy you like this recipe! We don’t but you re welcome to if preferred.
Excellent recipe!!!! A great addition to my options for to my grilled chicken recipes (toddler even ate the chicken!)
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing your great review!
Hi Natasha! Amazing recipe I’ve made tens of times. Thanks! Congratulations on a great website!
Question: planning to serve it at a party as more of a finger food option. Would you recommend cutting chicken portions in half before or after baking? What about adjusting the cooking time? Thank you!
Hi Iga! I haven’t tried it in bite size pieces so I can’t really say. If cutting into smaller pieces you may need to cut time in oven and watch closely. Or you can just cook per recipe and chop into bite size pieces after.