Margarita Chicken

Juicy and delicious pan-seared chicken breasts topped with a quick salsa is what you’re about to enjoy with this Margarita Chicken recipe!

Chicken with Margarita Marinade

Perfectly seared chicken breasts are one of my family’s favorite dinner proteins, and today’s Margarita Chicken recipe is one I often serve with my son’s favorite cilantro lime rice.

I also included my go-to cilantro lime marinade in the recipe, which infuses the chicken with tons of flavor in just 20 minutes. While the chicken cooks, you can whip up the salsa, which combines my famous pico de Gallo and my cucumber salsa into one epic topping to get the classic Margarita flavors without using tequila!

How to Make Margarita Chicken

Here I share the steps and all my tips so you can save time when making this chicken dinner:

1. Marinate the chicken in a zip bag for 20 minutes while you make the salsa.
2. Make the salsa by mixing the ingredients in a bowl. Store the Margarita salsa until ready to serve.
3. Pan-sear the marinated chicken in a hot skillet. Remember to discard the marinade!
4. Combine the juicy pan-seared chicken breasts with the delicious Margarita salsa.

Tips for Juicy Pan-Seared Chicken

Now that you know how easy it is to make this Margarita Chicken recipe, check out these tips for perfectly juicy pan-seared chicken:

The skillet must be hot
Add a few water droplets to ensure your greased skillet is hot enough. If they sizzle, you know you can place the chicken on the skillet.

Cook chicken at medium-high heat
While the skillet must be hot, it doesn’t mean the heat must be high. If you cook the chicken at high heat, the oil will burn, and the chicken will turn out cooked on the outside but raw in the middle.

Don’t move the chicken
Once you place the chicken on the skillet, let it cook -without touching it- for 5 to 7 minutes before flipping. If you try to move it while it sears, you’ll notice it’s stuck to the pan and you’ll end up disrupting the cooking process.

What to Serve with Margarita Chicken

Aside from sipping your favorite Margarita cocktail, you can add some delicious side dishes, like this flavorful Mexican cauliflower rice, this quick corn and tomato salad, Parmesan green beans, caramelized roasted vegetables, or simple white rice.

Margarita Chicken (Pan Seared)

Servings: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes mins

Marinate: 20 minutes mins

Cook Time: 15 minutes mins

Total Time: 45 minutes mins

Margarita chicken is the ultimate fresh, flavorful, and healthy recipe you'll want to make on repeat.

5 from 8 votes

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Ingredients

Chicken & marinade:

• ¼ cup lime juice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• ¼ bunch chopped fresh cilantro
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 small garlic clove, grated
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ lbs boneless chicken breasts

Margarita salsa:

• 1 seedless English cucumber, chopped
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 small shallot, chopped
• ½ jalapeño, optional, finely chopped
• ½ bunch cilantro, chopped
• 1 lime, juiced
• ½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

Marinate the chicken:

• Add lime juice, 1 tablespoon olive oil, chopped cilantro, cumin, garlic, salt, and chicken breasts to a large zip bag. Let chicken marinate for 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, make the salsa.

Make the Margarita salsa:

• In a medium bowl, combine the cucumber, tomatoes, shallot, jalapeño (if using), and cilantro. Squeeze the lime juice over the top, season with salt, and toss to combine. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Cook the chicken:

• In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat up the remaining olive oil.
• Place the chicken breasts on a skillet and cook for 5-7 minutes on each side until the chicken is cooked through at an internal temperature of 165F. Discard chicken marinade. Remove the chicken onto a plate and let it rest for 5 minutes.

Serve:

• Serve the seared chicken breasts topped with spoonfuls of the Margarita salsa.

Equipment

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Meat Thermometer

Nutrition

Serving: 1 serving | Calories: 289kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 37g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 109mg | Sodium: 642mg | Potassium: 892mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 433IU | Vitamin C: 23mg | Calcium: 40mg | Iron: 2mg