Grilled Curry Chicken Kebabs

A great marinade and a little technique put these kebabs over the top.

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Grilled chicken kebabs packed with curry flavor. . Shao Z.

Why It Works

  • A flavor-packed marinade made with curry and coconut milk not only adds flavor but also improves browning.
  • Salt in the marinade seasons the chicken and helps it retain juices as it cooks.
  • Using a two-level fire allows you to control how quickly the chicken cooks.

If kebabs were the cast of a high school coming-of-age movie, beef would be that kid who has the looks and the substance to back them up, pork would be the goofy-yet-lovable fat kid, and vegetables might be the nerd with the heart of gold. So where does that leave chicken breast? Chicken is the showboat. The one that puffs itself up and looks great to begin with, but doesn't seem to have much to offer once you get past the facade.

Similarly, a pile of grilled chicken skewers, cross-hatched with grill marks, shows the promise of tender meat and smoke from the grill, but more often than not breaks that promise with dry, cottony meat and no flavor to speak of. But we said this is a coming-of-age movie, right? Even the showboat gets a chance at redemption in this story. All it takes is a quick injection of flavor and a little bit of good technique.

The first step is the easiest: Forget about chicken breast. Sure, it looks thick and meaty, but it's also relatively bland and prone to drying out, particularly when cut into small pieces, as in a kebab. Chicken thigh remains tender and moist even when diced and cooked on a grill.

Next step? A big injection of flavor. I don't make curries at home often, but I always make sure to have a decent curry powder around the kitchen. I love using it in singapore noodles, but it's also great with vegetable fried rice or even roasted potatoes. On its own, curry powder lacks freshness, so I also add plenty of minced garlic and shallots, along with some chile flakes. (I like my curry extra spicy.)

A can of coconut milk not only rounds out the flavors, but also provides a good medium for the fat-soluble flavors of the curry paste to distribute themselves easily over the chicken. Plus, coconut milk improves the chicken's browning qualities, ensuring that it gets some nice crusty browned flavors from the grill.

To up the meatiness of the chicken, I add a big splash of fish sauce, which gives the chicken that umami boost it needs to really compete with other grilled meats. Finally, a fair amount of salt in the marinade both seasons the chicken and helps the marinade act as a brine, breaking down the chicken's muscle structure just enough to help it retain moisture.

After that, the rest is a cakewalk. I let the chicken marinate for at least half an hour (overnight is even better), thread it onto skewers, then grill it. With a meat like chicken, I find that moderate heat is best, so I set up my grill with a two-level fire—all the coals banked up under one side of the grill—then place the chicken skewers in the center. That way, if I notice that they're cooking a little too slowly and threatening to come up to temperature before any browning occurs, I can shift them over to the hot side to get some extra color. Conversely, if they're browning too fast and still raw in the center, some time on the cooler side will help them finish cooking more gently. In either case, the lid helps the chicken to cook more evenly.

That chicken goes from raw to cooked in just about 10 minutes total. With prep time and marinating, the whole transformation takes under a couple of hours to complete. That means that if this really were a feature film, we'd still have about half an hour left for this newly emerged chicken to find a date to the prom.

Oh, look! The nerdy vegetables took off their glasses to reveal that they were movie-starlet gorgeous the whole time. How convenient!

August 2015

Recipe Details

Grilled Curry Chicken Kebabs

Prep 30 mins
Cook 50 mins
Active 30 mins
Marinating Time 30 mins
Total 110 mins
Serves 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons coconut milk

  • 6 cloves garlic, minced (about 4 teaspoons)

  • 2 teaspoons curry powder

  • 2 teaspoons fish sauce

  • 1/4 teaspoon chile flakes

  • 1 tablespoon minced shallot (about 1 shallot)

  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 1 pound skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch cubes

Directions

  1. In a mixing bowl, combine coconut milk, minced garlic, curry powder, fish sauce, chile flakes, minced shallot, and kosher salt. Stir until everything is combined and add chicken. Mix well and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 12 hours.

    A collage of photos: a bowl of cubed raw chicken, the same bowl next to a bowl of spices and coconut milk, that same mixture poured into the bowl of chicken, and a bowl of everything mixed up.

    Serious Eats / Shao Zhizhong

  2. When you’re ready to cook, thread chicken onto bamboo skewers.

  3. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange coals on one side of charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill, and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Alternatively, set half the burners on a gas grill to the highest heat setting, cover, and preheat for 10 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate.

    Skewered coconut milk and curry chicken on a grill.

    Serious Eats / Shao Zhizhong

  4. Place skewers on middle of grill (between hot and cool sections), cover, and cook until skewers are well browned on first side, about 5 minutes. If skewers are browning too fast, shift them to the cooler side; if not browning fast enough, move them closer to the hotter side. Flip skewers and cook until second side is browned and the thickest piece of chicken registers 160°F (71°C) on an instant-read thermometer, about 5 minutes longer. Transfer to a serving platter, let rest for 2 minutes, and serve.

Special equipment

bamboo skewers (soaked overnight or at least 3 hours), grill, instant-read thermometer

This Recipe Appears In

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
145 Calories
7g Fat
2g Carbs
19g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4 to 6
Amount per serving
Calories 145
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 7g 10%
Saturated Fat 3g 16%
Cholesterol 92mg 31%
Sodium 345mg 15%
Total Carbohydrate 2g 1%
Dietary Fiber 0g 2%
Total Sugars 0g
Protein 19g
Vitamin C 1mg 4%
Calcium 17mg 1%
Iron 1mg 7%
Potassium 247mg 5%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)