These Grilled Chicken Thighs are marinated in a delicious roasted garlic and herb marinade. It gives the chicken a fresh and smoky flavor you'll love.
Garlic Sage Chicken Thighs can be prepared either in the oven or on the grill, but I highly recommend the grill for the added flavor. This recipe was a dual effort between Russ and I. I created the marinade, and he was the grill master. I love recipes that allow us to prepare a meal together.
The fresh herbs in the marinade really shine and create a vibrant flavor that is perfect for chicken. I'm lucky to have herbs growing in my small patio garden, but you can find the sage, rosemary, and thyme in the produce section of most markets. If you do have to use dried herbs, use about half the amount that is called for the fresh.
Yes, you could use chicken breasts if you like. I just really like how juicy the thighs turn out on the grill. We also elected to use bone-in, skin-on thighs, but the rub goes both on the skin and under, so you can pull the skin off after the chicken is grilled if you don't care to eat it.
Grilled Chicken Thighs with garlic and sage is an easy recipe that will impress at your next cookout.
Ingredients for Garlic Sage Chicken Thighs:
- Chicken thighs: I used bone in, skin on. If you choose to use boneless, skinless, your cook time will be shorter.
- Avocado oil: It's a neutral oil with a high smoke point.
- Roasted garlic: Has a light, nutty flavor without the bite of raw garlic.
- Fresh herbs: I combined sage, rosemary, and thyme.
- Smoked Paprika: Adds extra smoky flavor to the marinade.
Ingredient Tip:
- Roasting Garlic brings out its sweet notes and gives it a caramelized, nutty flavor. It's a fantastic condiment to keep on hand in the freezer for using in sauces, salad dressings, dips, and so much more. Check out How to Roast Garlic.
How to Prepare Grilled Chicken Thighs:
First, prepare the wet rub. Rough chop the herbs, then blend them with the roasted garlic, avocado oil, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper in a small food processor.
Apply the rub to the chicken thighs making sure to get under the skin as well. Let the chicken marinate while the grill preheats, or up to four hours.
To Cook on the Grill:
Preheat the grill to 400ºF. Lightly coat grill grate with oil. Grill over indirect heat skin side down for twenty minutes. Turn chicken over and move the thighs to direct heat. Grill skin side up for about twenty more minutes, or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165ºF. If the skin is not as crispy as you like, pop the chicken in your oven’s broiler for a few minutes, just keep a close eye on it so it doesn’t burn.
To Cook in the Oven:
Place a baking rack on a lined sheet pan. Place chicken skin side down. Bake for twenty minutes in a preheated 400ºF oven. Remove sheet pan, and turn chicken skin side up, and continue baking for twenty to twenty-five minutes or until a thermometer reads 165ºF. Let rest five minutes before serving.
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Recipe Notes:
- Want some great grilling tips? Checkout Carnivore Style's article 12 Grilling Tips and Tricks (Proven & Tested). I plan on trying the onion tip.
- I love my Traeger Grill. It makes smoking easy, even for a beginner.
- Hickory pellets are a good all around choice for the Traeger grill, but apple or cherry will give the chicken a sweeter flavor.
- Avocado oil has a very mild flavor and is rich in healthy fats and antioxidants. It also has a higher smoke point (around 500ºF) making it a fantastic all around oil for a pantry staple.
- I love my Magic Bullet for small blending jobs.
Ingredient Substitutions:
- Chicken thighs: This recipe works just as well with chicken quarters.
- Roasted garlic: Use two cloves finely minced garlic.
- Fresh herbs: Use about ⅓ the amount of dried herbs.
- Smoked paprika: Aleppo pepper has a similar flavor profile with fruity notes.
- Avocado oil: Use any neutral oil with with a smoke point of at least 400ºF.
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Grilled Garlic Sage Chicken Thighs
The fresh herbs in the marinade for Grilled Garlic Sage Chicken Thighs really shine and create a vibrant flavor that is perfect for grilled chicken.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken thighs bone-in, skin on
- ⅓ cup avocado oil
- 2 tablespoons roasted garlic
- 2 tablespoons fresh sage, rough chopped
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, rough chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, rough chopped
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- First, rough chop the fresh herbs. Then, blend the avocado oil, fresh herbs, roasted garlic, smoked paprika, and salt and pepper in a food processor. Apply the rub to the thighs making sure to get under the skin as well. Let marinate for while grill preheats, or up to four hours.
- For the grill: Preheat the grill to 400ºF. Lightly coat grill grate with oil. Grill over indirect heat skin side down for 20 minutes. Turn chicken over and move the thighs to direct heat. Grill skin side up for about 20 more minutes, or until chicken reaches 165ºF. If the skin is not as crispy as you like, pop the chicken in your oven’s broiler for a few minutes, just keep a close eye on it so it doesn’t burn. Let rest 5 minutes before serving.
- For the oven: Place a baking rack on a lined sheet pan. Place chicken skin side down on the rack. Bake for 20 minutes in a preheated 400ºF oven. Remove sheet pan, and turn chicken skin side up, and continue baking for 20-25 minutes or until a thermometer reads 165ºF. Let rest 5 minutes before serving.
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Nutrition Information
Yield 4 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 447Total Fat 36gSaturated Fat 7gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 28gCholesterol 166mgSodium 615mgCarbohydrates 2gFiber 0gSugar 0gProtein 31g
Note: Nutritional information is an approximation. Different brands and/or quantities will change the nutrition profile.
Cathy
This is so good with fresh herbs from the garden !! YUM