The Best Mojo Chicken Recipe
A delicious recipe for Mojo Chicken. Thighs and legs roasted in the oven with a citrusy mojo marinade alongside yams and peppers. An easy sheet pan dinner!
How to Make the Best The Best Mojo Chicken
This Cuban mojo chicken is a flavor-packed sheet pan dinner that brings the bright, citrusy flavors of traditional Cuban cuisine right to your table. The magic is in the mojo marinade—a zesty blend of fresh orange and lime juices, garlic, cumin, and fragrant herbs that infuses the chicken with incredible depth of flavor while keeping it incredibly juicy.
What makes this recipe so appealing is its simplicity. Everything roasts together on one pan: succulent bone-in chicken thighs and legs alongside sweet yams, tender onions, and colorful bell peppers. The vegetables soak up all those delicious pan juices while the chicken skin crisps to golden perfection. It’s the kind of meal that looks impressive but requires minimal hands-on effort.
Whether you’re cooking for a weeknight family dinner or entertaining guests, this mojo chicken delivers restaurant-quality results with home-kitchen ease. The key is giving the chicken enough time to marinate—the longer it sits in that citrusy bath, the more flavorful and tender it becomes. Serve it with rice, black beans, or warm tortillas for a complete Cuban-inspired feast.
The Best Mojo Chicken
A delicious recipe for Mojo Chicken. Thighs and legs roasted in the oven with a citrusy mojo marinade alongside yams and peppers. An easy sheet pan dinner!
Ingredients
Mojo Marinade
Chicken and Vegetables
Garnish
Instructions
Prepare the Marinade
- Zest oranges and lime and add to a food processor or blender along with juice from lime and orange, cilantro, mint, garlic, oil, salt, pepper, and cumin. Blend together until mostly smooth.
- Set aside 1/4 cup of the marinade to use on the chicken while baking.
Marinate the Chicken
- Pour the larger portion of marinade over the chicken in a sealable container, making sure it is well distributed.
- Marinate for at least 1 hour, ideally 6 hours or overnight (up to 24 hours) in the refrigerator.
Roast the Chicken
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Remove the chicken from the marinade. Scrape the marinade off of the skin side and lay on a parchment-lined sheet pan, skin side up. Pat the top dry with a paper towel for crispy skin.
- Brush the bare chicken with a light coating of olive oil.
- Toss the peppers, onions, and yams with a little oil and a sprinkle of salt. Arrange around the chicken on the pan.
- Bake in the top third of the oven for 30 minutes.
- Remove from oven and brush the reserved 1/4 cup of marinade over the chicken and veggies. Bake for another 15 minutes until chicken is golden brown and registers 185°F internally.
Notes
- The internal temperature of 175°F is safe, but 185°F will result in more tender meat. Thighs and legs retain their juicy goodness even at higher temperatures.
- For best results, prepare the marinade in the morning so it's ready for dinner.
- Use mineral salt rather than table salt, which can be saltier.
