Thai Chicken Thighs
Cilantro, Thai basil, fish sauce, lime juice and brown sugar = best marinade ever. Grilled or cooked on a grill pan on the stovetop!
Greetings from NYC!
Guys, it is toasty here. What’s so funny is that the last time I was here with Ben, it was for the Thanksgiving parade last year and it was 19 degrees, tying it for the second-coldest Thanksgiving Day in New York City’s history, and the coldest since 1901. (Temperatures dipped to 15 degrees in 1871.)
And now it’s just shy of 100 degrees F.
That’s okay though.
I’m just thinking about being even hotter right now, behind a hot grill, flipping these perfectly crisp-tender chicken thighs that’s been marinated in cilantro, Thai basil, fish sauce, lime juice, lime zest, brown sugar and ginger.
It’s legit a bath of all the best Thai flavors ever.
If you’d rather cook this on the stovetop, you can easily throw these on a grill pan over medium-high heat, cooking until golden brown and cooked through, about 4-5 minutes per side.
But grill or stovetop, please stay cool this weekend, folks. It’s a hot one!!!
Thai Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- ¼ cup chopped Thai basil leaves
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup fish sauce
- 3 tablespoons canola oil, divided
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1 tablespoon lime zest
- 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Instructions
- CILANTRO MIXTURE: In a medium bowl, combine cilantro, basil, green onions, fish sauce, 2 tablespoons canola oil, lime juice, lime zest, brown sugar, ginger, salt and pepper.
- In a gallon size Ziploc bag or large bowl, combine chicken and CILANTRO MIXTURE; marinate for at least 2 hours to overnight, turning the bag occasionally. Drain the chicken from the marinade.
- Preheat grill to medium high heat.
- Brush chicken with remaining 1 tablespoon canola oil; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Add chicken to grill, and cook, turning occasionally, until chicken is completely cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 10 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
Wow! So delicious and fresh tasting. My husband said this is his favorite recipe we’ve ever made! Definitely a keeper recipe!
Fam loved it. Made recipe exactly and added a couple boneless breasts in addition to thighs. Served with a cilantro rice and asparagus for a bowl presentation.
I have made several times and it is awesome. Has anyone froze it? I need to prep some some meals for freezer and would love this one.
Hi,
It looks delicious!
Before trying it, I have a few questions:
1) What about adding grated lemongrass stalks, bird’s eye chilies, and kafir lime leaves to the marinade? All of them are widely used in Thai cuisine.
2) Can I reuse the marinade as a cooking liquid for veggies (mushrooms, bell peppers, tomatoes) to accompany the chicken? In this case, should I multiply the marinade ingredient quantities by an appropriate factor?
I did and I added garlic & then coconut milk for a cooking liquid. I also sautéed some onions and baby bella mushrooms & it was really good. I don’t think I would add the salt to the marinade next time as it was a bit salty for my taste due to the fish sauce, but just salt the chicken before putting it on the grill. I love the idea of lemongrass, chilis & kafir leaves! I’m wishing I had thought of that, but making a sauce for the dish was an afterthought once I had a bag of marinade leftover. It did need some heat though! I also did not add the extra oil, salt & pepper to the chicken before grilling. Excellent dish that I will make again soon!
@melinda- Did you just add the raw marinade to a pan and cook the veggies and garlic in marinade then added coconut milk?
Planning on pan-frying and finishig in the oven..trying to work out order to use marinade as a sauce, add veggies to have over rice.
Thanks!
We grilled the chicken after only marinating for 2 hours and it turned out great!! I made it with coconut rice and asparagus. I will definitely be making this again with no changes.
These were delicious! I only used 1 tbsp of fish sauce in the marinade and cooked them in a cast iron pan! Very good dinner with jasmine rice and broccoli!
Hi,
This looks so delicious. Just wondering if you have any recommendations for cooking this in the oven. I don’t have a grill.
This was the tastiest delicious recipe I’ve had in a long while. I served it with steamed rice and broccoli.
Great tasting, family loved it. We marinated for 5 hours next time I will do long. There will definitely be a next time!
I made thus yesterday and it was really delicious. I didn’t have time to marinate overnight, but four hours was enough to get a really good flavor.
Due to the brown sugar in the marinade, you have to pay attention to the heat though. It burns more easily when it gets caramelized.
I will definitely make this again 🙂
Fantastic recipe! I marinated the chicken thighs for about 9 hours before it hit the grill and it was so delicious. Husband and son loved it — served with basmati rice and pan seared shishito peppers. The flavors were just perfect and didn’t overpower. Will make this again!
We made this tonight and it is just fabulous!!! The flavors are so rich and complex but the chicken shines through. It’s easy and so tender!! This is going to take top spot on my stack of chicken recipes. We’ll make it again and again, I’m sure. It looks like a fair amount of prep, but the fresh herbs go quickly because I chopped up the stems, too, since it was going to be drained off. Quick, easy, perfect!! I’m already sharing it with my cooking friends!!
I used peanut oil (we don’t like canola oil odor or taste)and date palm sugar (less harsh-traditional Thai ingredient) plus some minced Thai Chiles/Phrik Kee Nu (also available in jar minced if fresh not available)
My family LOVED this recipe! We will absolutely make this again. I saw lots of comments on the “stinky” fish sauce. Invest in a quality fish sauce like you would invest in a good olive oil. It makes all the difference! I personally love the brand of fish sauce called Red Boat.
Good call!
Don’t know the recipe managed to smell more like the fish sauce than anything & the taste wasn’t good enough to get past the fish smell. I wanted to really love it, especially since it had such great reviews but unfortunately was not what I was expecting
We’re sorry to hear this one didn’t turn out for you, Paula. If you are not a fan of fish sauce, then this recipe is certainly not for you.
The quality of Fish Sauce is a huge factor. The higher the quality, the less pungent the smell. I used to use grocery store brands. Now I get a brand that doesn’t have much English in it.
My husband and I thought these were absolutely delicious – I used a combo of fish sauce and soy sauce as I finished up my fish sauce and did not have quite enough – it worked fine. They smelled heavenly while cooking – We will be doing these again. Thank you for such an easy and delicious recipe!
We’re so glad you and your hubby enjoyed it so much, Paula! 🙂
Where is the nutrition information?
Hi EB! Nutritional information is provided only for select and new recipes at this time. However, if it is not available for a specific recipe, we recommend using free online resources at your discretion (you can Google “nutritional calculator”). Hope that helps!
Made this for supper last night and it ended with deliciously positive reviews from my family! So quick and simple to make, I love trying new marinades!
We’re so glad this was such a hit with the family, Kimberley!
Although these are a little stinky where the marinade is concerned (the fish sauce is culprit), the end result is absolutely delicious…i.e. Damned Delicious. We marinated overnight to get maximum flavor and used Italian basil instead of Thai basil because of availability. After grilling them, the chicken thighs remained succulent and mildly flavored with the marinade ingredients with a slight kiss of the smoke from the grill. These are quite simple, but extraordinarily tasty and tender and would make a great dinner party entree.
Yes, the fish sauce is very strong but so so worth it! 🙂
I was so excited to try this recipe. It’s not often that I have all the ingredients at home! I’m actually growing Thai basil in my garden this year, so I was anxious to use it. This recipe did not disappoint! I love the flavors and it was easy to put together in the morning for dinner. Thank you.
Homegrown is the best! Thanks for sharing with us, Maria!