Chicken Thighs in Yogurt Marinade
on Jan 03, 2023, Updated Apr 01, 2024
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This 🍗 Chicken Thighs in Yogurt Marinade recipe is a weeknight wonder! You’ll get the juiciest chicken ever using just 6 simple ingredients! 🇧🇬 Bulgarian cooking is known for using yogurt in both savoury dishes and in baking. Plain yogurt makes for the perfect marinade and also makes so many of our baked goods 🍰 incredibly delicious, fluffy, and moist. Yogurt has a very long history in our country.
Many Bulgarians claim yogurt was accidentally discovered in Bulgaria thousands of years ago when nomadic groups roamed the land. In Bulgaria, yogurt is everywhere. You’ll find it on 🥙 falafel wraps, slathered on moussaka, and lined up in supermarket refrigerators. It is a key ingredient in traditional Bulgarian dishes such as “Tarator,” a cold soup made of yogurt, water, 🥒 cucumber, and dill; and “Snezhanka,” a salad consisting of yogurt, cucumbers, garlic and dill. People sip yogurt drinks in the streets and we dip fried zucchini slices into yogurt dips too. We love yogurt with sweet bread, in soups, 🍲 stews, and so many other recipes as well.
There is a type of bacterium that can only be found in Bulgarian yogurt. Our particular yogurt is a combination of bacteria that characterizes the thickness, acidity, taste and aroma of the yogurt and it’s more tangy. Bulgarian yogurt is prepared using a unique combination of the two strains: Lactobacillus Bulgaricus and Streptococcus Thermophilus. Discovered by a Bulgarian scientist 🔬, this specific bacterium causes milk to naturally turn into yogurt. As you can see, we are very passionate about cooking with it, so I hope you love it too!
Why You’ll Love Chicken Thighs in Yogurt Marinade
This 🍗 Chicken Thighs in Yogurt Marinade recipe will save you during the week. Just 6 simple ingredients to the juiciest chicken ever. The marinade is so simple and totally foolproof thanks to the secret ingredient: tangy plain yogurt! PLUS it’s a great make-ahead, you can mix it all together and marinade overnight. The results are juicy, tender, fall-off-the-bone chicken thighs, with a perfectly crisp skin that everyone will love.
How to Prepare
🍗 First, add the chicken to a mixing bowl with the oil, yogurt, salt, pepper, paprika, and Italian seasoning. Massage well.
❄️ Now, let the chicken sit and marinate in the fridge for at least 1 hour or up to overnight. (You can bake it right away but it will be so much more tender if you let it marinate.)
🔥 Next, preheat the oven to 400F (200C) and remove the chicken from the fridge. Then, transfer the chicken and juices to an oven-safe baking dish.
💧 Now, push the chicken to the side with a spoon and add some water or broth. Then, move the chicken around to evenly distribute all the juices.
🌡️Bake uncovered for 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the size of the thighs, or until the juices run clear and a meat thermometer measures at least 165F.
⏲️ To crisp up the skin further you can broil the chicken on top for 1 to 2 minutes but keep a very close eye on it.
🥗 Enjoy on salad, mashed potatoes, in wraps, with rice, or with any side you like.
Nonna’s Tip
A minute or two under the oven’s broiler is all you need to get that golden crispy skin that everyone loves. Broiling means you use the upper heating element of the oven only so that you crisp up the chicken skin.
Variations and Substitutions for Chicken Thighs in Yogurt Marinade
- I love Bulgarian yogurt in this recipe, but you can use plain Balkan-style, or plain Greek yogurt instead. Alternatively, sour cream or mayo will work, too!
- If you’re dairy-free, you can certainly make this 🍗 Chicken Thighs in Yogurt Marinade by using your favourite non-dairy yogurt, sour cream or veganaise.
- Instead of Italian seasoning, you can use your own favourite blend of 🌿 dried oregano, parsley, rosemary, onion powder and garlic powder.
Similar Recipes
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Best Served With
- A big, beautiful salad 🥗 such as my Simple Green Salad or Green Goddess Salad.
- A slice of warm, crusty homemade 🍞 Bread.
- My delicious Crispy Parmesan Potatoes or 🍠 Crispy Roasted Sweet Potatoes are the perfect side dish with juicy chicken.
Common Questions
You can absolutely use any cut of chicken here, such as chicken breast, but the cooking time will have to be adjusted. Less time for white meat and more time for dark meat. Breast will take anywhere from 15 to 25 minutes depending on the thickness and cut. I think even a whole chicken would be delicious using this method. To be sure the meat is fully cooked, it’s best to use a meat thermometer (chicken is done when it hits 165F).
Any thick, plain yogurt will be wonderful in this Chicken Thighs in Yogurt Marinade recipe. I love Bulgarian, but Balkan-style or Greek will work, too!
Absolutely! You can use your favouite non-dairy yogurt, sour cream or vegannaise here instead of plain yogurt.
Yes, you certainly can make my Chicken Thighs in Yogurt Marinade recipe in the air-fryer. I suggest checking your air-fryer’s manual for the suggested temperature and cook time.
A minute or two under the broiler is the best way to get that golden crispy skin that’s so delicious. Broiling means you use the upper heating element of the oven only so that you crisp up the chicken skin. I believe it’s called a top grill or griller in places like England and Australia.
If you don’t have an Italian seasoning blend, you can use a mixture of dried oregano, parsley, rosemary, garlic and onion powder.
Chicken Thighs in Yogurt Marinade
Ingredients
- 8 chicken thighs ( I used bone in, skin on) , any cut of chicken works
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ⅓ cup plain yogurt , Bulgarian, Balkan-style, or Greek
- ½ teaspoon salt, to taste
- ¼ teaspoon pepper , to taste
- ¼ teaspoon paprika, to taste
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, or dry oregano
- ¼ cup water , or chicken broth
Instructions
- Add the chicken to a bowl with the oil, yogurt, salt, pepper, paprika, and Italian seasoning. Massage well. Let the chicken sit and marinate in the fridge for at least 1 hour or overnight. You can bake it right away but it will be so much more tender if you let it marinate for at least 1 hour.
- When the chicken has marinated, preheat the oven to 400F (200C).
- Remove from the fridge and transfer the chicken and juices to an oven-safe baking dish.
- Push the chicken to the side with a spoon and add some water or broth and move the chicken around so that the juices are distributed evenly.
- Bake uncovered for 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the size of the thighs, or until the juices run clear and a meat thermometer measures at least 165F. To crisp up the skin further you can broil the chicken on top for 1 to 2 minutes but keep a very close eye on it. Enjoy on salad, mashed potatoes, on wraps, with rice, or with any side you like.
My Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi can I use plain greek yogurt?
If I use chicken breast, can I airfry it? What is the temperature and how long?
I personally haven’t tried so I don’t want to lead you the wrong way until I test it out. You can also look at your air fryer manual to see the timing for chicken breast as it will depend on the size and if it’s bone in or boneless
Hello how to i broil in oven? Is that a different setting ? Trying to get throat crispy end which I havnt been able to 🙂
Hi Natalia, Broil is the very top burner. If you turn on the top only, it will crisp up the chicken skin at the end
How long do I bake boneless skinless thighs for with this recipe?
Hi Birdy! Sorry for the delay. 45 minutes would be perfect
Hi! I have a question. Why didn’t my chickens get crispy at all? They were just cooked 🙁
I used conventional heating. Should I use bottom element heat?
Also, I had to keep them in the oven for about half an hour to grill but the result wasn’t like yours at all 🙁
Did you put them on broil at the very end ? Using the top broiler only at the very end is what will make them crisp up
Love this recipe! Could i make it in a pan instead of baking it?
I would prefer the air-fryer, bbq, or oven. In a pan it might burn quicker because of the yogurt
The flavor was great but I didn’t get the crust I was hoping even after broiling. Any tips?
Hi love, did you leave it on broil at the end for a few minutes? I would leave it on broil and keep a very close eye on it ( top broiler only )
Could this be grilled or would that not work with the milk fats and would it be too easy to burn?
Absolutely works beautifully. Keep it on medium heat ❤️
Does the water/chicken broth go in the marinade? Or just in the pan for baking?
Just in the pan right before you bake it 🙂
I think you once mentioned an alternative to using yogurt in this recipe- possibly mayo?
Hi sweetheart, yes great memory I have to adjust the recipe notes to add that in, you can definitely use mayo or sour cream