This delicious recipe for Lemony Marinated Chicken Skewers features an irresistible blend of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern flavors. Chicken is quickly marinated with a vibrant burst of lemon, garlic, herbs and spices. It’s the perfect recipe for grilling and summer cookouts.
Here in Southern California we love to grill. Hot summer days seem made for for cooking and eating outdoors. During the warmer months we love grilling for our family and friends. I make salads, prepare various chilled mezze, and blend batches of icy limonana to keep everybody cool in the hot summer sun.
Nearly every time we grill, I serve some version of this lemony marinade. It’s a perfect combination of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern flavors – lemon, herbs, spices, and garlic. Sometimes I add a little more cayenne for a kick, other times I use more lemon for tartness. No matter which little tweaks I make, the chicken always turns out tender and tasty. Use chicken thighs for a juicier, more flavorful result.
I recommend serving these skewers with toum, a tasty Middle Eastern garlic dipping sauce. This is truly one of my favorite summer grilling marinades. I know you will love it!
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Lemony Marinated Chicken Skewers
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs I prefer thighs
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons fresh minced cilantro or parsley I prefer cilantro
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh garlic
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
NOTES
Instructions
- Cut the chicken into 1 ½ inch strips for skewering. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, cilantro or parsley, crushed garlic, paprika, salt, cumin, turmeric and cayenne pepper. Place the chicken pieces in a glass dish. Pour the marinade over the chicken and stir to coat. Cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator and let the chicken marinate for 20 minutes. If using wooden skewers, soak them in water while the chicken is marinating.
- Generously grease the grill and heat over medium. Skewer the chicken, evenly divided between 6-8 skewers.
- Place the skewers on the hot grill and cook for 10-15 minutes, turning once during cooking, until cooked through. Serve hot.
Nutrition
Made for a dinner party, and everyone LOVED it…I used chicken breast tenders, and they melted in your mouth. I marinated the chicken for about 45 minutes.
So glad to hear that! I recently made these for a family get together, and was reminded just how tasty they are.
This lemony chicken recipe is DELICIOUS! I am going to make it again and make more of the marinade and bring it to a boil to pour over the chicken and rice. Bravo!
We LOVE these! We make them probably once a week. Add in Red Peppers, zucchini and mushrooms and some pita bread. What a great dinner! Thank you for this!
Truly pleased to have stumbled on your website, Tori. I’m cooking a lot for my mother, who is not as interested in food as she once was. I’m going to try her out on your lemony chicken tonight.
Glad you’re enjoying it, Mary!
I am in LOVE with these! I’m used thighs and cilantro. Doubled the recipe using 8 boneless thighs. Such a hit! Leftovers were amazing cold too-great hi protein snack!
Yummy! I used chicken tenders and cilantro as well as more cayenne pepper and maranated for 6 hours. they were amazing!!
Referred to me by my son in law who also likes to cook. Best chicken Marinated recipe I’ve tried. Taste similar to Chick-fil-A grilled chicken.
Oh my goodness this is a great recipe! A lot of flavor here! We have made it several times and now add more lemon juice, a bit more olive oil and garlic. My husband had me add some zest from the lemons as well. We both love this dish!
Tori Avey, everything we have tried from your recipes has been wonderful. Your recipe also taught me how to make really good matzo balls, finally!
Thank you!
This has become one of my go to chicken marinades. Tastes amazing. I love cooking this and then using the chicken for gyros. Great recipe!
Glad to hear it!
Could these be served at room temp?
I suppose they could, though I wouldn’t leave them out at room temp for longer than an hour. They’re better warm.
This sounds delish. Thinking of serving for a Passover luncheon (outside during these COVID times.) Do you think I could broil, without skewers? Serving quite a few folks and don’t want to be stuck by the grill.
Absolutely! You can broil using these instructions – they’ll work for this recipe too: https://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/smoked-paprika-chicken/
Fabulous!