Greek yogurt lemon-garlic chicken marinade
5 min · 5 g protein · 46 cals / serving
The yogurt marinade Greek and Levantine cooks have always used: thick yogurt, lemon, lots of garlic, oregano and paprika. The yogurt tenderises the chicken and browns into a tangy, golden crust on the grill or under the broiler. Use it for souvlaki skewers, sheet-pan chicken thighs or sliced chicken for gyro bowls.
Ingredients
- 1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
- 3 tbsp lemon juice, about 1 1/2 lemons
- 2 tsp lemon zest
- 5 cloves garlic, finely grated
- 1 1/2 tsp olive oil
- 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Steps
- Whisk everything together in a large bowl or zip-top bag. This makes enough for about 2 1/4 lb of chicken.
- Add the chicken (thighs, breasts or cubes for skewers) and turn to coat every piece. Marinate in the fridge at least 2 hours and up to 24.
- Lift the chicken out and let the excess drip off; a thin coat is what browns. Grill, broil or roast at 425°F until charred at the edges and 165°F inside: about 20 minutes for thighs, 10–12 for skewers.
- Throw away any marinade that has touched raw chicken.
Good to know
Does the score mean I eat all of this?
No. It is scored as the bowl of marinade. Only a thin coat stays on the chicken; the rest is left behind.
Why yogurt instead of oil?
Yogurt's gentle acid tenderises without turning the meat mushy, and its milk sugars and protein brown quickly, so you get a deeply golden crust with very little oil.
Does it work on other things?
Lamb, pork tenderloin, firm white fish (30 minutes only) and halloumi or cauliflower steaks all take it well. Cook pork and lamb to 145°F and rest them 3 minutes, and fish to 145°F, when it flakes.
Alternative
Per
- Calories
- 82
- Protein
- (41%)
- 8 g
- Fat
- (30%)
- 3 g
- Carbohydrates
- (30%)
- 7 g
- of which sugar
- 3 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sodium
- 724 mg
More sauces & dressings
Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. How
As written, 275 kcal goes into the pot and 336 g of ingredients comes out as about 335 g of food: 82 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.