GRILLED CHICKEN THIGHS (WITH LEMON AND ZA’ATAR)

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GRILLED CHICKEN THIGHS (WITH LEMON AND ZA’ATAR)

prep time 30 MINUTES
cook time 33 MINUTES
additional time 8 HOURS
total time 9 HOURS 3 MINUTES

Grilled Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Za’atar is perfect for an easy summer dinner and everyone who likes middle eastern flavors will love this chicken.

INGREDIENTS

  •  8 bone-in, skin on chicken thighs, well trimmed with only the top piece of skin remaining (see notes)
  •  6 T fresh squeezed (or fresh-frozen) lemon juice (see notes)
  •  2 tsp. lemon zest
  •  2 tsp. garlic powder
  •  2 T Za’atar (see notes)
  •  1/2 tsp. salt (or more to taste)
  •  1/2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper (or more to taste)
  •  1/4 cup olive oil
  •  fresh lemon pieces to squeeze on at the table (optional)

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INSTRUCTIONS

  1. If you don’t find pre-trimmed chicken thighs, trim excess fat and skin from each piece of chicken, leaving only the top flap of skin on each chicken thigh. (I don’t worry about internal fat for chicken thighs cooked on the grill because it keeps the chicken moist, and a lot of fat drips out.)
  2. Mix together the lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic powder, Za’atar (affiliate link), salt, and pepper, and then whisk in the olive oil to make the marinade.
  3. Put the trimmed chicken into a Ziploc bag or plastic container with a snap-tight lid, add the marinade, and let chicken marinate in the fridge all day if possible. (Or put chicken in the fridge to marinate when you go to bed at night and cook after work the next day.)
  4. When it’s time to cook, drain the chicken in a colander placed in the sink and let it come to room temperature before you cook it.
  5. Preheat a gas grill to medium-high heat, spraying the grill with olive oil or brushing with a high-smoke point oil. If you’re preparing a charcoal grill, or a gas grill where you can have different temperatures on each side, make one side medium-high heat and the other side medium heat.
  6. When the chicken has reached room temperature, lay each piece skin-side-down at an angle to grill grates and let it cook without moving for about 4 minutes (or until you see nice grill marks on the skin when you lift up the edge of one piece.)
  7. When you have nice grill marks, rotate each piece of chicken so it’s at the opposite angle to the grill grates to create criss-cross marks, and cook about 4 minutes more.
  8. Turn chicken so skin side is up and turn down heat to medium or move chicken to a cooler part of the grill.
  9. Cook about 25 minutes more  depending on how thick your chicken is.)
  10. For bone-in chicken I would definitely use an instant-read meat thermometer to make sure the chicken has reached the safe internal temperature of 165F/75C. (All the juices should be clear and not pink when you cut into a piece of chicken.)
  11. Serve hot, with piece of lemon to squeeze on at the table if desired.

NOTES

 

If you can buy pre-trimmed chicken thighs, I highly recommend it.

Za’atar is a blend of fresh or dried thyme, sesame seeds, Sumac, and salt. If you don’t have Za’atar (affiliate link) and don’t want to buy it, just use a teaspoon or two of dried thyme, Sumac, and sesame seeds, whichever ones you have, and a little pinch of extra salt.

I used my fresh-frozen lemon juice for this recipe (affiliate links). Use more or less lemon to taste, but I like it lemony!

Recipe adapted from Za’atar and Lemon Grilled Chicken at Sunset Magazine.

 

NUTRITION INFORMATION

Yield

4

Serving Size

1Amount Per ServingCalories208Total Fat19gSaturated Fat3gTrans Fat0gUnsaturated Fat14.7gCholesterol42mgSodium437mgCarbohydrates4gFiber.9gSugar0.7gProtein8.3g

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