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Chili Lime Pineapple Chicken Skewers are the perfect summer BBQ meal. Combine chicken with a favorite fruit such as pineapple or mango for a delicious meal.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
One of my favorite parts of summer is using our BBQ grill on a regular basis. We use it year round here in Oregon but the rain in the winter definitely puts a little damper on our grilling. I’m not a fan of standing out in the rain to cook my dinner! A lot of the time we are just throwing a steak or burgers on the grill but when I have a little more time one of our favorite things to grill is shish kabob or skewers.
Making shish kabob is a fun thing to do when entertaining too. You can assemble your skewers ahead of time and then grill them right before serving. It makes a fun presentation and people seem to love eating things off a stick!
I love combining the sweetness of the fruit with the chicken. The chili lime marinade gives the chicken great flavor. Marinating your meat when making skewers is a must. Since you are cutting the meat into smaller pieces they can over cook and dry out easily and quickly. The marinade helps keep the meat juicy and flavorful.
Ingredients
- Chicken Breasts
- Lime, juice and zest
- Chili Powder
- Cayenne Pepper
- Salt
- Sugar
- Pineapple
How to Make Grilled Chicken skewers with pineapple
- Cut your chicken into even bite size pieces. I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts and cut them into about 1 – 1 1/2 inch size pieces. Chicken thighs also work well. The trick to shish kabob is you want all your ingredients to be the same size so they cook evenly.
- Prepare your fruit by cutting it into similar size pieces. I like to use fresh pineapple that I buy pre cut and cubed in the produce section of the grocery store. You can use canned but the pieces tend to be smaller and fall off the skewer more easily.
- Marinate your chicken for 2-4 hours Don’t skip this part, the marinade is an important ingredient and it needs time to soak into your meat. I use a zippered plastic bag to marinate in but you can also use a shallow bowl. Just make sure the marinade covers the chicken. Turn the bag several times while it is in the refrigerator. Don’t marinade for over 24 hours as the chicken can break down and become mushy.
- Place your meat and pineapple on the skewers. I like to alternate the meat with the pineapple, leaving a little bit of air space between the pieces for more even cooking. If you are using wooden skewers be sure and soak them for 30 minutes prior to assembling skewers.
- Use a meat thermometer to make sure your chicken is cooked all the way through. I pull it off the grill at 160 degrees F. and let it sit for a few minutes before serving. It will rise to 165 degrees while resting.
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Chili Lime Pineapple Chicken Skewers
Ingredients
- 6 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 C fresh lime juice
- Zest of one lime
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper double that if you like spicy things
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 1 inch pieces
- 2-3 cups fresh pineapple cut into 1 inch chunks.
Instructions
- Soak wooden/bamboo skewers in water for 20-30 minutes prior to using them. This will prevent them from burning on the grill.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, lime zest, chili powder, cayenne, salt and sugar.
- Place in a zip-lock bag and add the chicken and pineapple, stirring gently to coat with marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 2-4 hours.
- Prepare grill (or indoor grill pan)
- Remove the chicken and fruit from the marinade and thread onto skewers, alternating the pieces and dividing them evenly.
- Be sure not to smash everything together too tightly. In order for the food to cook thoroughly and evenly, it needs room! The pieces threaded on should just barely touch each other.
- Cook on grill until nicely charred and cooked through – 6-10 minutes. Serve immediately – Yum!
Nutrition Facts:
Lena says
I would love to see nutritional information on your recipe. Is that possible?
Leigh Anne says
Lena, I don’t provide that info here on the blog but there are websites you can input the recipe information into that will give you that.
pam says
I would like to know,how long can i mainadethe chicken for.? Thank you
Leigh Anne says
You can marinade it for a couple hours or overnight.