Today I wanted to share with you a favorite recipe for the most amazing Mediterranean chicken kebabs you ever had! During the summer months, grilling becomes a great option for quick family dinners, or for entertaining, leaving the kitchen cool and virtually mess-free.
The flavor of lean grilled meats often depends on a great marinade, which is especially true with this recipe. This flavor-packed marinade is bursting with bold and assertive Mediterranean flavors and gives the chicken an incredibly deep and smokey flavor. Besides oregano and thyme, this marinade also includes paprika and sumac–a Middle Eastern spice with a citrus-like flavor, which adds a subtle dimension to grilled meats that cannot be duplicated.
When grilling kebabs, I prefer to grill the vegetables separately on their own skewers, because I find that they never cook properly next to raw meat. It is so easy to make individual skewers with grape tomatoes, zucchini ribbons or whatever other vegetables you have on hand. These incredible chicken kebabs can be served all pilled up in a big platter, surrounded with toasted Greek pita wedges (the ones without a pocket), red onion slivers, fresh parsley and lemon slices. Make a simple salad to go with it and dinner is served!
- 3 medium boneless chicken breasts or chicken thighs (1 lb.)
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1-2 TBSPS fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp. mustard
- 1 tsp. fine sea salt
- ½ tsp. freshly ground pepper
- 2 tsps. fresh thyme
- 1 tsp dried Greek oregano
- ½ tsp. paprika
- ½ tsp sumac
- --- toasted Greek pita wedges
- --- red onions, chopped
- --- fresh parsley
- --- lemon slices
- Dry the chicken well with paper towels. Trim it and cut it into 1” to 1½”-inch cubes.
- Prepare the marinade: In a large bowl mix the olive oil, the lemon juice, mustard and all the seasonings.
- Place the chicken pieces into the marinade, cover and refrigerate for 4 hours.
- Soak the bamboo sticks in water for 30 minutes. Thread four to five pieces of chicken onto the skewers.
- Grill the chicken, basting it once with any of the marinade that is left in the bowl. Do not overcook.
- Transfer the kebabs to a platter, cover with a piece of foil and let them rest for 5 minutes.
- Garnish the serving platter with the grilled pita bread wedges, red onions, and fresh parsley.
If you are grilling vegetable kebabs too, choose hearty vegetables that are good for grilling. Place the vegetables (or vegetable chunks) in a bowl and toss them with some olive oil, salt, pepper and oregano and then thread them through skewers. Depending on their size, the cooking time should be just about the same with the chicken kebabs. Grill until you see some nice grill marks, turning every three minutes or so and brushing them with the seasoned olive oil.
What to serve with these amazing Mediterranean chicken kebabs
Chopped Salad with Toasted Pita
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Made the Amazing Kebabs and really liked the marinade. Tried the chicken thighs but found them a bit hard to keep in a tidy cube for putting on the skewer. Will try breast meet next time. The Greek Oregano is really Key! Thanks, Marilena! John declared this one “a keeper!”
I made these chicken kebabs again last night for dinner, following the recipe exactly, and they were delicious, Marilena –so flavourful! Thanks for another winner!
That’s great, Dianne, so glad you liked them! It is one of my favorite marinades for grilled chicken!