Grilled Asian Chicken Skewers combine a delicious Asian marinade with cubed chicken breasts, onions, peppers, and zucchini. Serve it over a bed of rice or go low-carb with cauliflower rice. So tasty!
I’ve been on an Asian kick lately, making many of the dishes you would find at a take-out joint, including my Baked Asian Salmon and Weeknight Spicy Fried Rice. The biggest plus besides the taste, is the nutritional aspect. Chinese take-out sure tastes good, but it’s not the healthiest thing we should be putting in our bodies.
Our boys love Chinese food, and over the years, have been frequent customers at a local place. While our older son has learned to follow recipes (and actually enjoys it – YAY Josh), our younger son would rather pick something up than cook. Still working on that one!
Ingredients needed for Grilled Asian Chicken Skewers:
- Chicken Breasts – I used 1 1/2 pounds of chicken breasts, but this could easily be doubled. Make sure you double the marinade too.
- Soy Sauce
– A brown, salty, condiment that is made from fermented soybeans, salt, and water. It also has an earthy, umami flavor perfect for Asian dishes. (I almost always use lower-sodium soy sauce.) - Chili Paste – A condiment that’s ground from fresh chilis, and is perfect for spicing up your cooking. You’ll love it for flavoring seafood, chicken, and more.
- Oyster Sauce – Similar to hoisin sauce or fish sauce, this adds authentic flavor to Asian dishes giving them a boost of umami.
- Brown Sugar – The sugar gives a bit of sweetness and counteracts the spiciness.
- Sesame Seed Oil – An oil derived from sesame seeds and used as a cooking oil, it’s nutty taste adds amazing flavor to cooking.
- Garlic – You can’t make an Asian dish without adding garlic. The intensely aromatic and flavorful vegetable is closely related to the onion.
- Veggies – For this recipe, I used a zucchini, 1/2 of a red pepper, 1/2 of a yellow pepper, and 1/2 of a red onion.
- Rice – We usually serve this over long-grain rice, but you could also use cauliflower rice for a lower-carb option.
– A brown, salty, condiment that is made from fermented soybeans, salt, and water. It also has an earthy, umami flavor perfect for Asian dishes. (I almost always use lower-sodium soy sauce.)
– A condiment that’s ground from fresh chilis, and is perfect for spicing up your cooking. You’ll love it for flavoring seafood, chicken, and more.
– Similar to hoisin sauce or fish sauce, this adds authentic flavor to Asian dishes giving them a boost of umami.
– An oil derived from sesame seeds and used as a cooking oil, it’s nutty taste adds amazing flavor to cooking.You will also need some bamboo skewers
, or metal skewers
are fine too.
How to make Grilled Asian Chicken Skewers:
- Make marinade. In a medium bowl, combine the soy sauce, chili paste, oyster sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, lime juice, and fresh garlic. Reserve about 1/4 cup in a small bowl.
- Prepare chicken. Cut the chicken breasts into 1.5 inch cubes, and place in freezer bag or airtight container. Pour marinade overtop, and place in refrigerator for a couple hours or overnight.
- Prep vegetables. Cut the vegetables into evenly sized pieces for grilling.
- Soak skewers. At least 20 minutes beforehand, soak skewers in cold water.
- Prepare the skewers. Alternate the chicken and vegetables on the skewers, leaving room on the ends for turning.
- Cook. Prepare an outdoor grill to 375 degrees. Cook chicken and veggie skewers by rotating the skewers every few minutes, until chicken is cooked through. It’s done when it reaches 165 degrees on a digital thermometer.
- Serve. Serve skewers over a bed of rice or cauliflower rice. Spoon some reserved marinade over the top.
Other easy chicken recipes for you to try:
- Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas – Take a short-cut and use store-bought salsa verde and a rotisserie chicken!
- Turkey Bacon Wrapped Chicken Breasts – This one is definitely on the healthy side. 😀
- Grilled Chicken Burrito Bowls – A family favorite and go-to when life gets hectic.
Try these skewers next! Beef Vegetable Shish Kabobs
Please let know if you try this recipe. Be sure to comment and leave a review on the blog so I can see what you think. You can also like my Facebook Page, follow me on Pinterest, and catch me on Instagram.
xoxo ~Sue
Grilled Asian Chicken Skewers combine a delicious Asian marinade with cubed chicken breasts, onions, peppers, and zucchini. Serve it over a bed of rice or go low-carb with cauliflower rice. So tasty!
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast or tenders - cut into chunks
- 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1 Tablespoons chili paste - more for extra heat (I use 2 tablespoons)
- 2 Tablespoons oyster sauce
- 4 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1 lime freshly squeezed
- 3 cloves garlic - minced
- 1 large zucchini squash - sliced
- 1/2 large red bell pepper - cubed
- 1/2 large yellow bell pepper - cubed
- 1/2 large red onion - cubed
- rice or cauliflower rice - to serve
In a mixing bowl, combine the soy sauce, chili paste, oyster sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, lime juice, and garlic. Reserve about 1/4 cup, and pour remaining marinade into zip-lock bag or a dish with a lid.
Cut chicken breast into 1.5 inch cubes, add it to the marinade, and place in refrigerator for a couple of hours or overnight.
Prepare veggies by cubing them.
Heat an outdoor grill (or indoor grill works too), to medium high heat.
Place chicken and vegetables on skewers, leaving a little bit of room on the ends for flipping.
Grill chicken skewers until done inside (about 165 degrees on a digital thermometer), approximately 20 minutes or so.
Serve chicken skewers over rice or cauliflower rice. Add reserved marinade if so desired.
So much fun to grill this recipe and it tastes amazing…..
Had this for our holiday meal tonight! Loved the flavor! Thanks Sue!
We love the Asian Chicken too. Thanks for trying so many of my recipes, Danalea! 🙂
I love cooking the chicken on the grill. I also appreciate the ease of the recipe and the healthy alternative to take out Chinese food. It tastes amazing!