These grilled chicken thighs have been a staple recipe of mine for years. The marinade requires only four simple ingredients, and yet it is one of the tastiest chicken marinades I’ve had! This is a recipe my family absolutely loves.
Grilling is my preferred cooking method for chicken, and THIS is my favorite way to make grilled chicken. First, I use thighs instead of breasts because they are far more forgiving if overcooked, and they retain a lot more flavor with this marinade.
Secondly, the marinade consists of only four ingredients, and I almost always have them on hand. It produces incredible flavor with only just a few ingredients. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve made this for my family and relatives, and everyone always comments on how much they love the flavor.
I’ve yet to make another grilled chicken marinade (yet) that is worthy of posting! This one is constantly on repeat for me. Maybe one day I’ll branch out and create a new marinade, but for now, I’m quite content with making this one over and over. 🙂
Key Ingredients
Check out the recipe card below for the full ingredient list & measurements.
Chicken thighs: I used boneless & skinless chicken thighs. You can also use chicken breasts, cutlets, or chicken tenders.
Dijon mustard: Most of the sauce is made of Dijon. It has a delicious, tangy flavor!
Tamari: For a delicious, salty, umami flavor. You can also substitute this for soy sauce!
Maple syrup: Any sweetener works, but I use maple syrup or honey!
Garlic powder: A must for flavoring the sauce! I use garlic powder to make prep easier, but you can also use two fresh garlic cloves.
How to Make Grilled Chicken Thighs
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1
Mix the marinade. Add all of the sauce ingredients into a large bowl, and mix together. Add the chicken thighs to the marinade, coat them evenly in it, and chill to marinate for 2-3 hours or overnight.
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2
Preheat the grill. Then, preheat your grill to medium to high heat, preferably 400-450F.
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3
Grill the chicken. Place the chicken thighs skin side down on the grill, brush with some of the left over marinade, and let cook for 4-6 minutes per side. Flip and brush the chicken thighs again with the rest of the marinade. Cook the chicken thighs until they are 170-175F internally.
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4
Let the chicken rest. Once the chicken is fully removed, transfer it to a warm plate, cover with foil and let it rest for 5-10 minutes. Then serve!
Tips for Success
For tender chicken thighs, cook longer. When cooking chicken, the general rule of thumb for the internal temperature is 165°F. However, with chicken thighs, it’s recommended to go a little beyond that and cook them until they reach an internal temperature of 170-175°F in the thickest part of the meat. Because thighs are darker meat, the higher temperature helps break down the tendons of the meat, resulting in a more tender and juicier chicken.
Use the leftover marinade. I never like to let the remaining marinade go to waste. While the chicken is in its main cooking process, you can brush the leftover marinade from the bowl onto the chicken. I brush it 2-3 times, or until it’s used up. This is not meant to be a final glaze for the chicken, you can make a little extra marinade on the side that didn’t touch the raw chicken for that!
What to Serve with Grilled Chicken Thighs
Vegetable sides. We always serve grilled chicken thighs with a few vegetable sides, such as corn on the cob, grilled or roasted asparagus, zucchini, or assorted grilled vegetables!
Salad. We also love to pair grilled chicken thighs with a summery salad, such as our grilled corn and tomato salad (one of my favorites), summer farro salad with cherries and chickpeas, or this Tuscan artichoke salad.
Pasta Salad. If you’re looking for a more filling side dish, pasta salad is a great pairing with grilled chicken! We love to make our Italian pasta salad or this bowtie pasta salad – you can’t go wrong with either.
More Chicken Recipes
Looking for more delicious chicken recipes to try? Then you might be a fan of our roasted Lemon & Rosemary Chicken with Potatoes, 15-minute Lemon Chicken Piccata, or our Crispy Roasted Chicken Thighs.
Grilled Chicken Thighs
Video Tutorial
Ingredients
- 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Marinade
- 3 Tablespoons Maple syrup, honey or brown sugar also works
- 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
- 2 Tablespoons tamari or soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder, or 2 fresh garlic cloves minced
Instructions
- The sauce: Mix the sauce ingredients in a large bowl.
- Marinate: Add the chicken thighs to the bowl, and coat them in the marinade. Refrigerate while letting the chicken marinade for 2-3 hours or overnight.
- Preheat grill: Preheat the grill to 400-450F.
- Cook the chicken: Place the thighs skin-side down, brush them with some of the marinade from the bowl, and cook for about 4-6 minutes per side. Flip and brush the remaining sauce over the top. Continue to cook the chicken until it reaches an internal temperature of 170-175F. Important note: The leftover marinade is safe to use when added at the beginning of the grilling/cooking process. I recommend using all the leftover marinade on the first two flips of the chicken. This will give it time to cook off. Please do not use the leftover marinade as a finishing glaze, as it is unsafe to use this way.
- Rest the chicken, then serve: Transfer the grilled chicken to a warm plate, cover with foil, and let it rest for 5-10 minutes. Then serve!
This is my new go to chicken marinade! It’s delicious and easy to make. I have made this several times since I first saw it a few weeks ago! First time I didn’t have thighs so I used tenders, I used a grill pan on the stove since I don’t have a grill, next few times I used boneless, skinless thighs in the grill pan and loved them.
This recipe looks great! Thank you so much for sharing!
Thank you, Bill!
Yum love this for dinner tonight!
It’s my favorite 🙂