Yogurt Marinated Chicken
Updated Apr 28, 2025
Juicy yogurt marinated chicken! You can grill, bake, or air fry this yogurt marinated chicken breast. It is a great chicken recipe to make year round!
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Add Yogurt to Your Chicken!
If you’ve never had yogurt marinated chicken, get ready for the juiciest chicken ever! Adding yogurt to your chicken is a great cooking hack I learned from my mom which tenderizes the chicken, locks in the moisture and makes it so juicy! And then you can cook it on the grill, in the oven, stovetop or even in the air fryer!
This Greek yogurt marinated chicken is a great recipe to marinate in advance and have it ready to throw on the grill for a summer cookout!
Happy Cooking!
– Yumna
“Tried this today and it was sooo good. Thank you for sharing it. Since I couldn’t grill it I put it in a pan and we loved the flavors. Made some mashed potatoes on the side and a salad. Everyone in the family ate it and even my daughter who is a very picky eater. This will for sure be a meal that will be done many times.” – Nesrine
Yogurt Marinated Chicken Ingredients
- Chicken: I prefer to use boneless, skinless chicken breasts for this recipe, but you can also use chicken thighs or drumsticks.
- Yogurt: I’ve made this with regular full-fat yogurt and Greek yogurt. You can use either one, but I recommend going with full-fat yogurt so that the marinade doesn’t get watery.
- Lemon: To help tenderize the chicken and add a fresh flavor. You can skip it or swap with vinegar.
- Garlic: Use fresh garlic and mince them so they blend into the chicken marinade.
- Spices: I use a mixture of paprika, oregano, onion powder, salt, and pepper. You can also try adding or swapping smoked paprika, garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, or even 7 spice seasoning blend.
Popular Additions
- Add some veggies: Skewer some vegetables like cherry tomatoes, onion wedges, or mushrooms along with the chicken for a complete meal. You can also just make grilled veggie kabobs on the side.
- Add olive oil. The yogurt marinates the chicken really well without the need for oil. But you can still add 1-2 tablespoons of oil to add more flavor and help prevent the chicken from sticking to the grill.
- Add mustard. It can be regular mustard or dijon mustard, but it also helps to add moisture to the chicken like the yogurt, and enhances the flavor of the chicken.
How to Make Yogurt Marinated Chicken
To Bake The Chicken
- Preheat your oven to 425°F.
- Line a sheet pan or baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent sticking. Place the chicken breast on the pan with an inch or two in between each piece of chicken.
- Bake until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.
To Air Fryer The Chicken
- Preheat your air fryer at 375°F.
- Spray the basket with a light coating of non-stick spray. Place the chicken in an even layer leaving space between each breast. Cook, flipping halfway through until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.
“Omg!!! This is a quite simple recipe, but probably one of the best chicken recipe I’ve ever made!!!! Thank you so much! I marinated for almost 24hours, and baked 20mins 200 degree. So tender and moist, and easy!! – Kaori
Recipe Tips
- Double-grease the grill grates. Because of the yogurt used in the marinade, the grilled chicken can sometimes stick to the grill otherwise. Adding extra oil to the grill will help, and be sure not to try to flip the chicken too soon, which will also help.
- Pound the chicken to an even ½-inch thickness. This will help the chicken cook evenly and prevent it from drying out.
- Use a grill pan or cast iron skillet If you don’t have a grill. Just heat the pan over medium-high heat and cook for about the same amount of time.
- Marinate the chicken for a full 24 hours. This will give the chicken plenty of time to absorb all of the flavors from the marinade.
- Let the chicken rest before cutting into it. This will help keep all the juices in and make for a juicier grilled chicken breast.
Serving Ideas
- Hasselback Sweet Potatoes
- Cheesy Gouda Scalloped Potatoes
- Pasta in Yogurt Sauce
- Greek Orzo Salad
- Restaurant Quality Creamy Risotto
Recipe Help & FAQs
This chicken is best served fresh, but leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. When ready to eat, reheat in a skillet over medium heat until warmed through.
You can freeze the chicken before or after cooking. If freezing before, just place the chicken in a freezer-safe bag with the marinade and freeze for up to four months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator when ready to cook.
If freezing after cooking, let the chicken cool completely, then place it in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to four months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then reheat in a skillet over medium heat until warmed through.
No, you don’t need to poke holes in the chicken. The yogurt marinade will penetrate the chicken on its own. That being said, you can certainly poke holes in the chicken if you’d like.
Yes, you can marinate chicken in yogurt overnight. In fact, I recommend it because it gives the chicken plenty of time to absorb all of the flavors from the marinade.
More Chicken Recipes:
- Grilled Dijon Chicken
- Roasted Whole Chicken
- Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan
- Tortilla Crusted Chicken
- Pecan Crusted Chicken
- Oven Baked Balsamic Chicken
- Broccoli Chicken Alfredo
- Sweet Potato Noodles with Chicken
- Honey Mustard Chicken
- Skillet Cilantro Chicken
If you try this Yogurt Marinated Chicken recipe or any other recipe on Feel Good Foodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below! It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe. We would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots, share it on Instagram so we can repost on Stories!
Yogurt Marinated Chicken
Video
Ingredients
- 4 (6-ounce) chicken breast about 1 ½ pounds
- ¼ cup Greek yogurt
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
To Grill The Chicken
- Pat the chicken breast with a paper towel to remove excess moisture. Pound the thicker end of the chicken to even out the sides for even cooking, if needed.
- Add Greek yogurt, lemon and garlic on top of the chicken and season with the paprika, onion powder, oregano, salt and pepper. Rub the chicken breasts with the yogurt and seasoning and coat well. Allow the chicken to marinade for at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.
- Preheat an outdoor grill to medium-high heat. Place the chicken on the grill and cook with the lid open for 6-8 minutes on one side without touching. Use tongs to flip the chicken and cook for 6-8 more minutes on the other side, until the chicken reaches internal temperature 160°F. Keep in mind that the temperature will continue to rise about 5 degrees after you remove from heat and the chicken rests.
- Transfer the chicken to a plate or cutting board and tent with aluminum foil, if desired. Allow them to rest for 5 minutes before slicing or serving.
To Bake The Chicken
- Preheat your oven at 425°F.
- Line a sheet pan or baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent sticking. Place the chicken breast on the pan with an inch or two in between each piece of chicken.
- Bake for 16-18 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.
To Air Fryer The Chicken
- Preheat your air fryer for a few minutes at 375°F.
- Spray the basket with a light coating of non-stick spray. Place the chicken in an even layer leaving space between each breast. Air fry at 375°F for 8 minutes, then flip and air fry for 4-7 more minutes until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Comments
So far I just marinated my chicken, let’s see tomorrow
Can’t wait to hear what you think once you try it, Rea!
Anyone tried freezing the raw marinaded chicken to cook later?
You can definitely freeze the chicken before cooking—it turns out great! Just place the chicken in a freezer-safe bag with the marinade and freeze it for up to four months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator when ready to cook. Enjoy!
I made this chicken for dinner tonight and it was a huge hit from my family. They absolutely loved the taste and how moist the chicken breasts was. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I’ll be making it regularly from now on.
Aww, so happy they loved it!! Thank you, Olivia!
I multiplied this recipe and have the chicken marinating overnight. I plan to follow your air fryer instructions. I’m now seeing you suggest to add mustard. How much would you add? Thanks in advance!
I recommend adding 1-2 teaspoons of mustard to the marinade. Hope you enjoy!
I’ll have to try that next time. The big batch I made following your listed recipe was delicious! I make your air fryer chicken breast recipe weekly, but this will definitely be my new go to recipe! Love having cooked chicken breast on hand for easy meals.
Aww, so glad you liked how it turned out!! Thanks, Amira!
I loved it, thank you! I made it on my skillet and it was perfect for my family.
Yay!! So happy you and your family loved it! Thanks!
The whole family loved it even 2 of my kids who are picky! I did add some olive oil baked it then used a grill pan.
Amazing! So glad you all loved it!!
First off, I do NOT cook, like ever. But recently got into meal prepping for health and came across your recipe. It is so good! I baked it in the over for 17 minutes and my chicken breast is still tender and full of flavor, thank you so much for this!
Aww, so happy you liked it and found the recipe easy to follow! Thank you, Jessica!!
Super easy and delicious. Will be a regular staple.
Yay, so happy you liked it!! Thanks, Katie!
What are the amounts of ingredients to use?
Hi Mary, the full recipe with ingredient amounts can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the post (above the comments section). If you click ‘jump to recipe’ it will bring you straight there. Hope that helps!
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