Jazz up plain, boring chicken with this el pollo loco citrus marinated chicken recipe! This delicious, zesty marinade is made with simple ingredients, and will instantly transport your taste buds to warm tropical sunshine - it's the perfect copycat recipe!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Use the whole bird: You can often find whole chickens on sale for a fraction of the cost of chicken breasts or thighs alone. This recipe is a great way to take advantage of those sales, aside from classic roast chicken. This citrus el pollo loco chicken has something for everyone, whether you prefer white meat or dark.
- Easy homemade version: The El Pollo Loco chicken recipe is charbroiled, meaning it is cooked over an open flame. This recipe uses an air fryer instead, giving the chicken skin a crispy char just like the famous fire-grilled chicken, without any special tricks!
- Five-ingredient marinade: You do not need several spices and ingredients to replicate the El Pollo Loco recipe. Five ingredients are all you need for the best pollo experience!
Ingredient Notes
- Whole chicken: You can typically find a whole chicken broken down into 8 pieces in the meat section of your grocery store. If you can only find a whole chicken, this is a great guide to breaking down a chicken.
- Orange juice: You can use standard bottled orange juice for this recipe. The sugars in bottled orange juice help caramelize the skin of the chicken in the air fryer, which replicates the char from a flame grill.
- Sazon con azafran: Sazon is a classic spice mix used in many Latin American and Mexican recipes. Sazon is a mix of garlic, cumin, annato, saffron, yellow food coloring and MSG. Con azafran means "with saffron", but you can find sazon seasoning without saffron as well.
A full list of ingredients with measurements is located on the recipe card, below.
Substitutions
- Whole chicken: You can use all bone-in, skin-on chicken breast or thighs if you prefer. If using boneless, skinless chicken, you will want to cook the chicken for a shorter time to avoid drying out the meat.
- Orange juice: You can use fresh juice from a navel orange instead of bottled juice. You will want to add a tablespoon of brown sugar to the marinade to mimic the sugar in bottled juice.
- Fresh lime: Bottled lime juice can be used instead of fresh. The flavor will not be as bright as fresh though.
- Vegetable oil: You can use olive oil or avocado oil instead.
Variations
- Spicy: Add a dash of spice to the chicken marinade with smoked chipotle and ancho chile powder.
- Restaurant flavors: The restaurant version of this recipe has a splash of pineapple juice in the marinade. I omit the pineapple as it can change the texture of the chicken if you marinate it for too long. To stay on point with restaurant flavors and taste the real thing, feel free to add it in.
- Different cooking methods: Aside from air frying, you can cook this chicken on an open grill, on the barbecue, under the broiler, or sear in a cast iron skillet.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Prep Work Before Cooking
Collecting all ingredients: This will make cooking so much easier. Gather all the spices you will need, and keep them nearby.
Dry the chicken: Using paper towels, pat the skin of the chicken dry to get rid of extra moisture.
Add the marinade ingredients to a large bowl. Whisk well until combined. [photo 1]
Transfer a quarter of the marinade to a small bowl and set aside.
Add the cut chicken pieces to the large bowl of marinade. Toss well using tongs to cover each piece of chicken in the marinade. Cover with plastic wrap, and marinate in the fridge for 24 hours for maximum flavor. [photo 2]
Once ready to cook, preheat your air fryer to 400°F. Add the chicken pieces to the heated air fryer basket. [photo 3]
Brush the chicken pieces with the reserved marinade constantly, while cooking. Continue basting the chicken until the reserved marinade is all used up. [photo 4]
Cook the chicken for 25-30 minutes until the internal temperature of the chicken reads 165°F on an instant-read meat thermometer. The chicken skin should be crisp, and the chicken juices should run clear.
Expert Tips
Remove excess marinade: Before adding the chicken pieces to the air fryer, allow the excess marinade to drip off. This will help the skin crisp and will prevent quick burning.
Cover with foil: If your chicken skin is burning too quickly, loosely cover with foil in the air fryer.
Marinating time: You will get the best results from marinating this chicken for 24 hours. If you are in a rush, I recommend marinating the chicken for at least one hour.
Do not overcrowd: To allow the hot air to circulate all sides of the chicken, do not overcrowd the air fryer. You may need to cook in two batches.
Make Ahead & Storage
- As the recipe recommends, this chicken can be marinated 24 hours in advance of cooking.
- Marinated chicken can be frozen in a freezer-safe ziplock bag or container.
- Thaw frozen chicken in the fridge before cooking.
- Leftover chicken can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days in an airtight container or ziplock bag.
- Reheat leftover chicken in aluminum foil in the air fryer to prevent drying out.
Serving Suggestions
- Side dishes: This chicken is versatile, and will go with almost all your favorite sides. Serve with warm tortillas, pinto beans or black beans, homemade Mexican red rice, honey lime coleslaw, or a corn and avocado salad. For a BBQ twist, serve with warm bacon and corn potato salad a bright avocado kale salad, garlic butter potatoes, or loaded twice-baked potatoes.
- Salsas: Fresh salsa is the perfect pairing with this citrus-marinated chicken. Serve with grilled chile and corn salsa, Chipotle's fresh tomato salsa, or a delicious roasted tomato salsa, too!
- Sauces & Condiments: Pair this charred chicken with homemade Mexican pickled onions, dill ranch dressing, avocado goddess dressing, or a delicious chimichurri aioli.
More Chicken Recipes
El Pollo Loco Copycat Citrus Marinated Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 Whole chicken - cut into 8 pieces, bone-in & skin-on
- ½ cup Orange juice
- 3 cloves Garlic - minced
- 2 Limes - juiced
- ¼ teaspoon Dried oregano
- ¼ cup Vegetable oil
- 1 packet Sazon with azafran
- ½ tablespoon Kosher salt
Instructions
- Pat the chicken dry with paper towels to remove excess moisture.1 Whole chicken
- Add the marinade ingredients to a large bowl. Whisk well until combined.½ cup Orange juice, 3 cloves Garlic, 2 Limes, ¼ teaspoon Dried oregano, ¼ cup Vegetable oil, 1 packet Sazon with azafran, ½ tablespoon Kosher salt
- Transfer a quarter of the marinade to a small bowl and set aside.
- Add the cut chicken pieces to the large bowl of marinade. Toss well using tongs to cover each piece of chicken in the marinade. Cover with plastic wrap, and marinate in the fridge for 24 hours.
- Once ready to cook, preheat your air fryer to 400°F. Add the chicken pieces to the heated air fryer basket.
- Brush the chicken pieces with the reserved marinade constantly, while cooking. Continue basting the chicken until the reserved marinade is all used up.
- Cook the chicken for 25-30 minutes until the internal temperature of the chicken reads 165°F on an instant-read meat thermometer. The chicken skin should be crisp, and the chicken juices should run clear.
✱Recipe Notes
- Remove excess marinade: Before adding the chicken pieces to the air fryer, allow the excess marinade to drip off. This will help the skin crisp and will prevent quick burning.
- Cover with foil: If your chicken skin is burning too quickly, loosely cover with foil in the air fryer.
- Marinating time: You will get the best results from marinating this chicken for 24 hours. If you are in a rush, I recommend marinating the chicken for at least one hour.
- Do not overcrowd: To allow the hot air to circulate all sides of the chicken, do not overcrowd the air fryer. You may need to cook in two batches.
Lorraine says
Been looking & tried so many recipes for El Pollo loco for years & this is the ONE! I added the juice of on large lemon & put half of the squeezed lemon & lime in tge bag. Awesome