Chipotle’s Grilled Chicken Marinade Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 lbs Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs
- 2 7oz Cans Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 4 tbsp Olive Oil
- 8 Cloves Garlic
- 2 tbsp Ancho Chili Powder
- 2 tsp Salt
- 2 tsp Ground Cumin
- 2 tsp Dried Oregano
- 2 tsp Black Pepper
- 2 tbsp Fresh Lime Juice
- 1.5 Cups Water
Instructions
Blend The Ingredients
- Add all the chicken marinade ingredients to the blender. I used 1 whole can of Chipotle Peppers and 1 can of just the adobo sauce. I removed the chipotle peppers from 1 can.
- Blend everything for about 1 minute
Marinate the Chicken Thighs
- I separated the chicken into 2 ziplock bags and poured half the chipotle chicken marinade into each bag.
Grill the Chipotle Chicken
- Grill the chicken thighs on high heat until they reach at least 165 degrees. If you want this chicken to be just like Chipotle's then cook the chicken on a cast iron pan or flat top over high heat.
Rest and Chop
- Let the chipotle grilled chicken rest for at least 15-20 minutes
- Cut the chicken into 1/2" pieces. This chipotle grilled chicken is VERY juicy and smells delicious. If you made it this far in the recipe without trying a piece of chipotle chicken, you are way better than I am. On a side note, I am glad I had the obnoxiously large juice groove on the End Grain Cutting Board because it was needed after cutting up 16 juicy chicken thighs.
Nutrition
Chipotle’s Grilled Chicken Recipe.
I asked my daughter what foods she wanted to serve at her 16th birthday party to 16 of her closest friends and she immediately said “Grilled Chicken Burrito Bowls from Chipotle”. So then I started to think about actually placing that order. 16 grilled chicken burrito bowls each with a different combination of toppings & salsas. What a nightmare that would cost upwards of $300 once everyone added on guacamole. And everyone loves guacamole. So I decided to make these myself. This is when I took to the internet to find Chipotle’s grilled chicken recipe and found a former Chipotle employee who gave us this chipotle chicken marinade in a quick video. The video has over 2 million views and everyone in the comments seems to love the chipotle chicken recipe, so I figured I would give it a try.
I was making about 16-18 boneless skinless chicken thighs, so I doubled the chipotle chicken recipe that the Chipotle employee showed in the video. I also thought the marinade was just a little too salty the first time I made it, so I did not double the salt in the recipe that you will see below. Also, I had some fresh limes from my neighbor’s tree, that I had to use, so I added the juice of 1/2 lime to the recipe. Please note the salt and lime variation from the recipe the Chipotle employee told us about.
Chipotle Peppers in Abodo Sauce
When you purchase the chipotle peppers, make sure they come in an adobo sauce. In this recipe, I used 1 whole can of the chipotle peppers and then I removed the actual chipotle peppers and only used the adobo sauce in the second can.
Copycat Chipotle Chicken Recipe
Sure, I made a couple of small tweaks to this copycat chipotle chicken recipe, but isn’t that what cooking is all about? Each dish might start with an exact recipe, but I always try to make it my own or use certain ingredients that I have on hand to add my unique flare. By the way, have you tried the carne asada recipe?
Would I make this Chipotle Chicken Recipe Again?
Yes, the grilled chicken was juicy and delicious and tasted very similar to Chipotle’s Grilled Chicken at the restaurant. We set up a buffet station and allowed the girls to build their own chicken burrito bowls, adding whatever they wanted from the many toppings like cilantro lime rice, black beans, pico de gallo, lettuce, cheese, sour cream, salsa, and of course, guacamole.
Love it!
Perfect ! Didn’t change a thing! So glad to have found your recipes.
Glad to hear it, Joy! Thanks for the feedback!