Turkish Chicken Kabobs In Oven

Have you ever baked Chicken Kabobs in oven? They come out as soft and juicy as the grilled ones and they are so flavorful thanks to the great kabob marinade with milk and spices. Although these are baked in the oven, the fun part about kabobs is still there. 

You know we have a crush on kebabs. We often make döner kebab, kofta kebab, iskender kebab, Adana kebab and Lamb Shish Kabob Recipe. And sometimes we make veggie kabobs in oven to serve as a side dish. So, we love kabobs for dinner and we love to create new recipes with them. 

Jump to:

• What goes in the marinade? 
• How to prepare chicken 
• Instructions
• Tips
• Veggies to pair with kebabs
• How to reheat?
• Recommended side dishes
• FAQs
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

What goes in the marinade? 

I have to tell you that this chicken kebab marinade has a key role in this recipe so that you get soft and juicy chicken. So what goes in this amazing marinade? Here are what we need: Milk, olive oil, tomato paste, salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, thyme.

The marinade is so important for the perfection of the flavor. And you can absolutely use this chicken kabob marinade for grilled chicken kabobs too.

You will also need a few hours to let the chicken sit in the marinade so that they can soak in the marinade properly and you can get the most of the flavor.

How to prepare chicken 

We use chicken legs for this chicken shish kabob recipe but chicken thighs work well too. Just remove the meat from the bones and dice them. We mostly prefer these because they are tastier and softer when cooked. That being said, chicken breast is a great option too if you don’t want to work on the bones. Place the diced chicken in the marinade and keep it in the refrigerator overnight or at least for 1 hour.

Instructions

We have five easy steps for this recipe: Preparing the chicken, making the marinade and marinating the chicken, threading them on the skewers and baking.

First, start with preparing the chicken for skewers. If you are using chicken legs or thighs, remove the bones and chop the chicken meat in cubes (1 ½ inch) and put them in a deep dish. 

Second, make the chicken shish kabob marinade. Whisk together milk, olive oil, tomato paste and seasonings.

Then, pour the marinade over the diced chicken and give it a good stir. Make sure all the chicken is covered with the marinade. You need to refrigerate it for at least 1 hour, but 4 hours would be even better. Then your chicken will absorb the marinade flavors better and will be softer and tastier.

Next, thread the chicken on your skewers. If you are using metal skewers, you’re good but if they are wooden, remember to soak them for an hour. Then thread the chicken cubes on skewers. Place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet or on the edges of the baking pan. (See how we do it in the pictures). You can use a cooling rack on a baking sheet to give it a grill effect.

Finally, bake your shish kabobs. You will need 30 minutes of baking time. First bake in the oven for 20 minutes, then flip them over and bake for another 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked.

Tips

• Chicken thighs or legs (bones removed) are the best type of chicken to make skewers. They give the softest and juiciest result.
• Marinating chicken overnight will give you the best result. But if you don’t have that much time, marinate at least 1 hour.
• If you are using wooden skewers, remember to soak them in water for an hour. This is very important. 
• You can place the chicken skewers on a parchment paper lined baking paper. But if you want to give a grill effect, you have two options: 1)Put a cooling rack on a baking sheet and place the skewers on it. 2)Use a baking pan and place the skewers on the edges so that they don’t touch the pan. This is what we do in this recipe. Please see the pictures in the post content above.
• You can add tomatoes and green peppers in the pan so that they bake at the same time.
• Flip the chicken skewers over after baking them for 20 minutes. Then bake for another 20 minutes.
• If you are after a dairy-free marinade, leave the milk out and add in 2 tablespoon lemon juice. You will have equally soft chicken kabobs.

Veggies to pair with kebabs

We love to pair baked chicken kabobs with roasted tomatoes, green peppers and green onions. These are all optional but highly recommended. Just place them in the same pan and roast them altogether.

How to reheat?

It is very unlikely that you will have any leftovers from this delicious meal but if this is the case, it makes a great lunch next day. Remove from the skewers and reheat them in a non-stick pan. Either in a sandwich bread or wrapped in lavash bread or flour tortillas, it is a very practical go to lunch. If you want to go light, chop some greens and add in your leftover chicken and you will have a delicious chicken salad for lunch next day. Keep in mind that chicken must be reheated only once. Try not to have any leftovers after reheating it.

Recommended side dishes

Our favorite sides to serve with chicken shish kabobs are as follows: Fluffy Rice Pilaf with Orzo, Bulgur Pilaf with Lentils, Turkish Shepherd Salad, Turkish Ezme Salad, Easy Yogurt Cucumber Dip (aka Turkish Cacik or Greek Tzatziki sauce).

These baked chicken kabobs disappear in no time when served with the sides above. Protein packed and easy to make, chicken skewers make a great dinner both for your family and your guests. They are so healthy and delicious when paired with one or more of these.

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