Ingredients
Chicken, marinade and vegetables
- 600 g boneless skinless chicken thighs 3 cm pieces
- 120 g plain whole-milk yogurt
- 15 ml olive oil 1 tablespoon
- 30 ml fresh lemon juice 2 tablespoons, measure after squeezing
- 3 cloves garlic about 9 g, finely grated
- 1 tsp ground cumin about 2 g
- 1 tsp smoked paprika about 2 g
- 1 tsp dried oregano about 1 g
- 0.75 tsp fine salt about 4.5 g
- 0.5 tsp ground black pepper about 1 g
- 150 g red bell pepper 3 cm pieces
- 120 g red onion chunked into separated thick petals
Equipment
- Outdoor grill with cooler heat zone
- 8 flat 12-inch metal skewers
- Large nonreactive bowl and cover
- Whisk
- Knife and separate cutting boards
- Measuring spoons and kitchen scale
- Tongs and clean serving platter
- Instant-read food thermometer
Instructions
Marinate
- Whisk the yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, cumin, smoked paprika, oregano, salt and black pepper in a large nonreactive bowl until evenly combined.
- Add the chicken pieces and turn to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours. Keep the chicken refrigerated while it marinates; do not leave it on the counter.
Thread and grill
- During the final 15 minutes of marinating, preheat a clean outdoor grill to medium-high, about 400–450°F / 200–230°C. Leave a cooler zone available by lowering or switching off one burner, or banking charcoal to one side.
- Divide the chicken, red pepper and red onion between eight flat 12-inch metal skewers, alternating the pieces and leaving small gaps. Let excess marinade drip back into the bowl. Discard the used marinade; do not serve it as a sauce.
- Grill for about 12–15 minutes, turning about every 3 minutes, until the chicken has golden edges and several of the thickest pieces reach 165°F / 74°C on a food thermometer. Insert the probe into the chicken without touching the hot metal skewer. Timing varies with the grill and piece size. If the outside browns too quickly, move the skewers to the cooler zone and close the lid until the chicken reaches the safe temperature.
- Use clean tongs to move the cooked skewers to a clean platter. Rest for 5 minutes before serving. Take care with hot metal handles and slide the chicken and vegetables off the skewers before eating.
Video
Notes
Related instructional video credit: Refika’s Kitchen and its chicken şiş demonstration. The ingredient proportions differ; use the quantities in this card for this lemon-yogurt version.
Contains milk. This is a Turkish-inspired version with pantry spices, red pepper and onion. Any yogurt dip served alongside should be made separately from fresh ingredients, never from used raw-chicken marinade.
Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours, or within 1 hour if the surroundings exceed 90°F / 32°C. Keep refrigerated cooked chicken for 3–4 days and reheat thoroughly to 165°F / 74°C.
Estimated cost: about US$8.50 for the whole four-serving batch of skewers, counting the portions of ingredients used rather than full packages. Local prices and brands vary.