A super easy and delicious Marinated Chicken Skewers recipe that can easily be adapted to add different vegetables and marinade. Grilled, baked or BBQ'd, these lean chicken kebabs are moist and juicy, and great for feeding a crowd. You will want to use this super easy chicken skewer marinade for everything.
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About this Chicken Skewer Recipe
Whenever we have a large group of meat eaters over for dinner, we usually make some kind of skewer. They are easy to make, can be prepared in advance, and everyone loves them. This chicken skewers recipe is a favourite, because they are so simple, but really tasty.
It really is as simple as marinading the chicken and vegetables and then threading them on to a skewer and cooking them.
If you are looking for more on a stick recipes, why not try our Halloumi Kebabs, Turkey Kebabs or Lamb Shish Kebab.
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Ingredients and Substitutions
A full ingredients list, along with US Customary and Metric measurements, can be found in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Chicken thighs - We have used boneless and skinless chicken thighs in this recipe as they are really juicy when cooked, making them perfect for skewers. You can swap them for chunks of chicken breast for a leaner recipe.
- Red onion - These add colour and crunch to the chicken skewers. You could use halves of small shallots though if you prefer.
- Bell peppers - These also add lots of colour and texture. You can use any colour pepper you like, but we find that red, yellow and orange have a sweeter flavour, especially when cooked.
- Oil - Olive oil gives a really nice flavour.
- Garlic - Fresh is always best, but you can save some time by using ready chopped garlic in a jar.
- Lemon - This gives them some delicious freshness.
- Herbs - We used dried thyme, basil and oregano for a tasty mix.
More ingredient substitutions and variations can be found in the recipe card.
How to Make Chicken on a Skewer
- Step 1: Chop up the chicken thighs and put them into a large bowl with the marinade ingredients and mix well. Put in the fridge overnight or at least for 2 hours.
- Step 2: Add the vegetables and mix well.
- Step 3: Thread onto skewers. If you are using wooden skewers, make sure you soak them for 30 minutes before threading everything on to them. This will ensure that they don't burn when cooking.
- Step 4: Put under the grill (broiler) for about 20 minutes, turning regularly.
Chicken Skewer Marinade
This marinade is lovely and light and fresh, with plenty of flavour from the garlic and herbs. It's really important to use a really good quality olive oil, as you will honestly taste the difference.
For extra spice, add some red chilli flakes to the marinade. You can also swap lemon juice for lime.
It is worth marinating the chicken overnight if you can, as it will really intensify the flavour. However, if you don't have that long then just a couple of hours will be okay.
How to Cook Them
We cooked our skewers under the grill, because I find that it cooks them pretty quickly (just 20 minutes), and it gets those nice charred edges. You can cook these in the oven too though. They will take around 25-30 minutes in the oven, but make sure to check that they are cooked thoroughly before serving. We use a Thermapen meat thermometer to check.
You can also put them on the BBQ and they will cook in around 20 minutes too. Please note that cooking times will always vary depending on the intensity of the heat you are using, and the thickness of the chicken on your skewers.
What to Serve with Chicken Skewers
These chicken kebabs are super versatile, and they will go with pretty much with any sides that you can think of. We love them with Garlic Potato Wedges, Oven Baked Onion Rings, Easy Homemade Flatbreads, Coleslaw and Tzatziki.
They are also really good as a protein addition to a salad. Why not try one of these salads - Roasted Cauliflower Salad, Roasted Butternut Squash Salad, Broccoli Salad or Roasted Sweet Potato Salad.
Dannii's Top Tips
- If you are using wooden skewers, make sure you soak them for 30 minutes before threading everything on to them. This will ensure that they don't burn when cooking.
- We used chicken thighs, because they are nice and juicy, however you could use chunks of chicken breast instead.
- Cooking times will vary depending on the size of the chunks of chicken you use.
- You can cook these on the grill, in the oven or on the BBQ.
- These are great cold the next day, so make extra and them pack them in packed lunches or for picnics.
- You could make a vegetarian version of these by swapping the chicken for chunks of halloumi.
Frequently Asked Questions
You are best to get a meat thermometer to check that you chicken is cooked all the way though. Chicken should be cooked to a temperature of 75°C (165°F). If you don't have a meat thermometer, then cut a bit of the chicken open and it should be white with no pink bits.
You don't want to overcook the chicken, otherwise it will be dry. The aim is to have nice and juicy chunks of chicken with a slightly charred outside.
These skewers will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days. They are actually really delicious cold, so we always make extra and then put them into lunch boxes or to pack for picnics with some wraps and dips.
More Chicken Recipes
If you've tried these marinated chicken skewers, let us know how you got on in the comments below.
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Recipe
Marinated Chicken Skewers
Ingredients
For the skewers:
- 3 (9 oz) Chicken thighs - chopped into chunks
- 1 Red onion - cut into chunks
- 1 Red bell pepper - cut into large chunks
- 1 Green bell pepper - cut in to large chunks
For the marinade:
- 2 tablespoon of Olive oil
- 3 Garlic clove - crushed
- 1 Lemon - (juice and zest only)
- 0.5 teaspoon of Dried thyme
- 0.5 teaspoon of Dried basil
- 0.5 teaspoon of Dried oregano
- Sea salt and ground black pepper - to season
Instructions
- Chop up 3 Chicken thighs.
- Put them into a large bowl with 2 tbsp of Olive oil, 3 Garlic clove, juice of 1 Lemon, 0.5 tsp of Dried thyme, 0.5 tsp of Dried basil, 0.5 tsp of Dried oregano and Sea salt and ground black pepper. Mix well and put into the fridge overnight or at least for 2 hours.
- Add 1 Red onion, 1 Red bell pepper and 1 Green bell pepper and mix well.
- Thread onto skewers.
- Put under the grill (broiler) for about 20 minutes, turning regularly.
Recipe Tips
- If you are using wooden skewers, make sure you soak them for 30 minutes before threading everything on to them. This will ensure that they don't burn when cooking.
- We used chicken thighs, because they are nice and juicy, however you could use chunks of chicken breast instead.
- Cooking times will vary depending on the size of the chunks of chicken you use.
- You can cook these on the grill, in the oven or on the BBQ.
- These are great cold the next day, so make extra and them pack them in packed lunches or for picnics.
- You could make a vegetarian version of these by swapping the chicken for chunks of halloumi.
Nutritional Information
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The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.
As all appliances vary, cooking times are a guide. Please note that by changing the serving size, the cooking time may also need to be altered.
Andrea Herring says
I made this last night for my family, I added some fresh garden veggies we had - zucchini & okra and cooked it on the grill in a grilling basket. My kids, who are normally very picky daughter especially, loved it! The flavor of the chicken was so delicious, they even tried the veggies and loved them! My son asked if I would write you a message to tell you. Just recently discovered your site & I am looking forward to trying many more recipes! I've been doing the picky plates for lunch and they were eating off of my plate for lunch yesterday, radishes & broccoli!!
Eleanor says
I was just thinking the other day that I wanted a good chicken marinade recipe, thanks!
I think going to the gym is a great Friday night thing. Like you say, it's sociable! Having said that, I'd never even have the energy for the gym on a Friday night :-)
Zumba with disco lights sounds brilliant too.