Chicken Kabobs are the exact thing you should throw on the grill this week. The chicken kabob marinade we use will make you fall in love.
It is a daily struggle in my house for me to convince Nathan to fire up the grill and eat dinner outside. He hates the heat (it will get to 91 today!), and I know that summer in Wisconsin is a short term deal.
Because he’s an amazing husband, he typically gives in. We eat hamburgers, grilled corn, steak kabobs, and now these perfect Chicken Kabobs.
The simple chicken kabob marinade is what makes this recipe so special. It tenderizes the chicken perfectly. This is a grilling recipe your family will come back to over and over.
These were excellent! Great recipe! And so easy!
Chicken Kabob Marinade
Let’s talk about this great chicken kabob marinade I keep going on about. It has everything you want in a good marinade. Lots of different elements to bring sweetness and flavor, while some acids to gently break down the meat.
- Olive Oil
- Lemon Juice
- Brown Sugar
- Soy Sauce
- Balsamic Vinegar
- Garlic
- Black Pepper
The best part is that all of those ingredients are things that I keep in my pantry all of the time. And I hope you have them on hand too! We do a lot with them around these parts.
Mariating Chicken
It’s important when you marinate chicken that you keep a few things in mind.
- Chicken should marinate for 1 to 24 hours. For this recipe I’m recommending 2 hours, but you could definitely start the marinade the night before.
- Do not marinate chicken for more than 24 hours. It will make the chicken gummy and unappetizing.
- We only want to break down the outer edge of the meat, the marinade is not meant to completely break down the meat.
Finally, though we are only marinating the chicken, it will impact the flavor of the vegetables. The vegetables will pick up the flavor of the marinade on the grill and be delicious alongside the chicken.
Metal Skewers
I would like to encourage you to use metal skewers for this recipe. They are reusable, and you don’t have to soak them. You will love having them to make this recipe and my Steak Kabobs.
Keep in mind that you should be careful to avoid the metal skewer when checking the temperature of the chicken for doneness. It will make it seem like the chicken is done well before it is.
How Long to Grill Chicken Kabobs
These pop on the grill for just a short 14 to 18 minutes. It is important to remember that if you cut your chicken bigger it will need to cook longer.
When you keep your chicken in one inch cubes, you will be able to grill these kabobs for 7 to 8 minutes on each side. Use an instant read thermometer stuck in the biggest piece of chicken to ensure that it has reached 165 degrees.
How Many Chicken Kabobs per Person
I would recommend two chicken kabobs per adult in addition to a side item. Count on 1 kabob per child.
What to Serve with Chicken Kabobs
When looking to make side dishes to go with chicken kabobs there are a few that would be delicious.
- This Three Bean Salad is made the night before and would be a perfect compliment.
- My Watermelon Salad preps very quickly and would go great with these.
- Caprese Pasta Salad would be a great side dish for this dinner.
If you make these grilled chicken kabobs or any of my other recipes, leave me a comment and let me know what you think!
Recommended Tools:
- Instant read thermometer: This is a must for grilling. It makes life so much easier not guessing when your meat is done.
- Metal Skewers: In addition to not needing soaking, metal skewers are reusable and great to have on hand.
- Tongs: When it comes to tongs for grilling, I always go with basic metal ones. The fancy once tend to freeze up in the middle of my grilling.
- Indoor Grill Pan: This is a perfect way to cook these indoors all year round.
Chicken Kabobs
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts cut in pieces
- 1 medium zucchini sliced
- 1 red onion diced large
- 1 red bell pepper diced large
- 1 orange bell pepper diced large
Marinade
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Cut the chicken into 1 inch cubes.
- In a reusable container, whisk together the ingredients for the chicken marinade. Add the cut up chicken and stir to combine. Refrigerate, covered, for 2 to 24 hours.
- When ready to grill the kabobs, preheat the grill to medium heat.
- Cut up the vegetables. Put the kabobs together by spearing the vegetables and the chicken cubes in alternating order to make 6 chicken kabobs.
- Place the kabobs on the grill and grill for 5 to 6 minutes. Then flip them using tongs and grill for 5 to 6 more minutues or until the largest piece of chicken registers 165 degrees on an instant read thermometer. Be careful not to test the chicken too close to the metal skewer as it will falsely show a higher temperature.
- Remove from the grill and enjoy.
Janie Snell says
Made these last night and they are to die for!!! Marinade is delicious and it’s a keeper in my house! Thank you for a delicious recipe! I added fresh pineapple chunks to them and it added extra goodness.
So glad to hear it! Thanks for coming back to tell me, Janie!
Kristi says
Can you use shrimp instead of chicken?
I haven’t tried shrimp, but I would probably marinate it for shorter time and cook it separately than the vegetables. Shrimp cooks very fast, and I wouldn’t want to overcook it or under cook the vegetables.
Sunny F says
I made these for dinner and they were a hit! I followed the recipe with no alterations and it was perfect. I took the leftovers off the skewers and I’m going to use them in a salad for lunch tomorrow.
So happy you like this recipe as much as me! And thank you for taking the time to let me know!
Amanda says
These were excellent! Great recipe! And so easy!
Thank you for coming back to let me know!
Jeni says
The kabobs were delicious and we will definitely be using this again. Thanks for sharing!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Laurene says
Made these tonight
Delicious
I actually soaked vegetables in zesty Italian dressing
Definitely be making again!!
I’m so glad you liked it, and what a fun twist!
Pamela says
The marinade is awesome, I did add some more veggies. Just an outstanding recipe, Thanks
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Margaret says
Made for our 4th of July picnic and it was a big hit, my son in law couldn’t get enough. Delicious. The marinade is the bomb. Glad I found this.
I’m so happy you liked these, Margaret!
Susan Dunn says
This looks great for our upcoming trip to the mountains. Have you ever frozen the cubed chicken in the marinade? I’m trying to do as much ahead as possible, but don’t want to alter the outcome! Thanks so much.
You know what is so funny? I’m going on a girls trip soon and I was trying to figure out the same thing! So, my plan is actually to make the marinade ahead of time and then add it to the chicken when we get there. Though I have heard people talk about great results of marinating and then freezing. It is definitely worth a try.
I says
Loved it grilled. The flavor was amazing. Is it possible to make this chicken in the oven?? How long and at what temperature would you suggest?
This is really similar to my Chicken Marinade. And we have grill and oven instructions for that. (The baking instructions are in the body of the post.) In that recipe we don’t cut up the chicken and you bake it, covered, for 35 to 40 minutes at 375.