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sliced grilled chicken with tequila lime marinade on a bed of rice
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5 from 7 votes

Grilled Tequila Lime Chicken

Chicken breasts marinated in a marinade of tequila, citrus juices, lime zest and flavorful spices!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time12 minutes
Marinating Time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour 2 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: grilled chicken recipe
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 497kcal

Ingredients

Chicken

  • 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts trimmed of excess fat

Tequila lime marinade

  • 1/3 cup tequila any kind will work
  • 1/3 cup avocado oil or vegetable oil
  • 3 fresh limes zested and juiced
  • 1 large orange juiced
  • 1/2 Tbsp chili powder
  • 1/2 Tbsp ancho chile powder
  • 1 tsp dried minced onion
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp dried parsley
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper

To serve

  • minced fresh cilantro
  • lime wedges

Instructions

Prep chicken

  • Top cutting board with wax paper, and top with a chicken breast. Top with another piece of wax paper and use the flat side of a meat mallet to pound chicken until about 1 inch thick.
  • Repeat with remaining chicken breasts, then set aside for a moment.

Make marinade

  • Combine marinade ingredients (tequila, oil, lime juice and zest, orange juice, chili powder, ancho chile powder, minced onion, salt, parsley and pepper) in a mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Alternatively, you could add the marinade ingredients to a zip top plastic bag, seal it, and shake well to combine.

Marinate chicken

  • Add chicken breasts to the marinade, and either cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap or seal the plastic bag. Place in refrigerator for at least 30minutes or up to 8 hours.

Prep grill

  • Preheat grill over MED/MED-HIGH heat. Make sure grates are clean.

Grill chicken

  • Brush your grill with a little avocado or vegetable oil and grill chicken for about 5-6 minutes per side, until beautifully charred and cooked to an internal temperature of 165 F degrees.
  • Remove chicken from grill onto a plate or platter and let chicken rest for about 5 minutes to allow juices to redistribute.

To serve

  • Top chicken with sprinkle of minced cilantro and serve with a lime wedge alongside (for squeezing on top of the chicken).

Notes

  1. Calorie count listed is for 1 serving (1 chicken breast), but may be inflated due to the nutritional calculator including the entire serving of oil, when in reality, you aren't consuming that amount.
  2. Some photos show the chicken topped with this avocado corn salsa.

Cooking chicken on the stovetop

  1. Prepare and marinate chicken as directed.
  2. Preheat a grill pan or heavy bottomed skillet over MED HIGH heat.  Add a drizzle of vegetable oil, then add chicken, 2 breasts at a time (unless you have a huge skillet or pan).
  3. Cook for 5-6 minutes per side, until beautifully charred and cooked to an internal temperature of 165°F.
  4. Set chicken aside on a plate and let rest for 5 minutes.
  5. Serve with a squeeze of lime and sprinkled with minced cilantro if desired.

Nutrition

Calories: 497kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 49g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 145mg | Sodium: 877mg | Potassium: 983mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 767IU | Vitamin C: 28mg | Calcium: 41mg | Iron: 1mg