Greek Chicken Kabobs
These EASY Greek Chicken Kabobs 🇬🇷🍗 are seasoned with garlic, lemon, oregano, and cooked to tender, juicy PERFECTION! I prefer cooking these on my outdoor gas grill 🔥 but indoor grill pan and oven-baking instructions are provided so everyone can enjoy a taste of Greece!
Servings: 8
Calories: 133cal
Equipment
- indoor grill pan (on stovetop)
- grill rack over baking sheet (oven baking)
Ingredients
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt (0% fat, 2% fat or 5% fat; I use most of a 5.3-ounce container of 2% Fage Greek Yogurt which is a bit more than 1/2 cup but I use 2 lbs chicken)
- 3 or 4 cloves garlic peeled and grated on a microplane, or finely minced
- 1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- Half of 1 lemon juiced (about 1 1/2- 2 tablespoons)
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon paprika (smoked paprika may be substituted for smokier flavor)
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper or to taste
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary or more to taste if desired
- 1 1/2-2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts diced into 1 1/2-inch chunks (keep the pieces uniform, boneless skinless chicken thighs may be used)
- tzatziki sauce for serving, optional (homemade or store bought)
- fresh herbs (dill, parsley, mint) optional for garnishing, to taste
Instructions
- To a large bowl, add the Greek yogurt, garlic, oil, honey, lemon juice, oregano, paprika, salt, pepper, rosemary, and whisk to combine to create the chicken marinade. Tips - Make any desired flavor adjustments such as more garlic, oil, more of a certain seasoning, etc. This is a very flexible recipe. If you're using closer to 2 pounds of chicken rather than 1.5, go heavier handed or add a bit more of everything.
- Add the diced chicken pieces to the bowl, toss well, cover tightly with foil or plastic wrap, and place bowl in the fridge to marinate for a minimum of 30-60 minutes, up to 8 hours. I aim for 2-3 hours. The longer you marinate, the juicier and more flavorful your chicken will be. If you're using wooden skewers, soak them in water for at least 30 minutes.
- After marinating, thread the chicken on approximately 5 to 8 skewers, depending on how much chicken you're using and the exact length of your skewers. Don't compress or overly compact/squish the chicken onto a skewer. If you're running out of space, start a new skewer.
- When ready to cook, follow the method below that's best suited for you. In all cooking methods: -Discard the marinade that was in the marinating bowl. -Chicken is done at 160F, rest it on a plate for 5-10 minutes so the internal temp rises to 165F as measured with a digital thermometer, which is the safe temperature to consume chicken.
- Grilling (outdoors) - Oil the grill grates, and preheat outdoor gas grill to medium-high heat. When ready to grill, place the skewers on the grill, close the lid, and grill for approximately 3-4 minutes, open the lid, flip the chicken using tongs, and cook for another 2-4 minutes, or until the chicken is done. Tips - Because most grills are at least 500-600F and these pieces of chicken are small, it's going to cook very quickly. Use common sense and lower the heat if it's burning, flip and turn as much as necessary, and if it's not done after 8 minutes total, keep grilling until it's done. If it sticks when you are trying to flip it, let it cook for another minute before trying to flip it.
- Grill Pan (indoors on stove) - Preheat a grill pan over medium-high to high heat on your stove, place the skewers on top, and cook for approximately 5 minutes, flip the chicken using tongs, and cook for another 3-5 minutes, or until the chicken is done. Tips - These pieces of chicken are small and will cook very quickly but all grill pans vary in their thickness, composition, the size of the chicken pieces varies, etc. so use common sense and keep cooking until it's done. If it sticks when you are trying to flip it, let it cook for another minute before trying to flip it.
- Oven Baking - Preheat oven to 400F and place a grill rack over a parchment-lined baking sheet (do not skip lining your baking sheet because the marinade runoff will char your baking sheet otherwise!), and arrange the skewers on the prepared rack. Bake in the preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and lightly charred on the edges. I recommend flipping midway through baking with tongs. Tips - Baking time will vary based on the size of the chicken pieces, personal preference for doneness, heat output of your oven, etc. so use common sense and keep cooking until it's done. If your oven runs hot, and/or the chicken pieces are smaller, it could be done in 18-20 minutes, so I recommend checking early.
- Optionally garnish with fresh herbs as desired. Serve the chicken right on the skewers with tzatziki sauce, or with pita bread, flat bread, black olives, etc. Remove the chicken from the skewers and serve over a salad, or as desired.
Notes
Storage: Leftovers will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat in the microwave for about 30 seconds, or as desired.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 133cal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 55mg | Sodium: 395mg | Potassium: 356mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 159IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 1mg
