These easy chicken kabobs are sticky-sweet with a beautiful char from the coals. Best of all, they only need 20 minutes on the grill until they’re ready to serve.
Sometimes you just want something easy that still delivers big bold flavors, and that’s something these honey garlic chicken skewers deliver, big time. Prepared in a honey, garlic, and soy sauce Asian-style marinade, these juicy boneless chicken thighs are packed with punchy flavor.
And the two-step approach to cooking them helps the fat in the thighs render for flavor and moisture, while the final char helps the sugars in the marinade caramelize and give you a beautiful sweet finish.
This recipe uses a dual approach to grilling, first cooking over indirect heat and then directly over the coals. For the uninitiated, this method requires a 2-zone grill setup, where your lit coals are banked to one side of the grill underneath the grates. You then place your food on the other side of the grill, where it is not directly over the heat of the coals, to allow it to cook slowly and more evenly.
For this recipe, we give the meat a quick finish over direct heat to give it a nice char on the outside without risking burning it or letting the inside of the meat dry out.
Quick Tips
- Metal vs. Wood: I prefer to use metal skewers because they’re reusable and help cook the chicken from the inside. But if you’re using wooden skewers, soak them in water for 30 minutes before threading the chicken onto them. This will stop them from burning on the grill.
- Don’t Over-Trim: When trimming the chicken thighs, only remove the biggest clumps of fat. Leave some fat for flavor and moisture.
- Pack Them On: Thread the chicken pieces onto the skewers close together to keep them juicy.
- Watch for Flare-Ups: For our direct heat finish, we want some char on the meat and caramelization of the sugars. But keep turning the skewers to help avoid burning and any fat dripping onto the coals and leading to flare-ups. Wear gloves and don’t stand directly over the grill.
Grilled Honey Garlic Chicken Thigh Skewers
Equipment
- 4 skewers
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken thighs boneless & skinless
- 1 tbsp cooking oil for grill grates
Marinade
- 6 tbsp honey
- ¼ cup dark soy sauce
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil optional
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
Garnish
- sliced spring onions
- sesame seeds
- lime wedges
Instructions
- Trim the chicken of any excess strands of fat or gristle. Then, cut the chicken into strips of about 2-3 inches in length (see notes).
- Whisk the marinade ingredients together. Add the chicken pieces to the marinade and toss to coat, then cover and refrigerate for 4-6 hours.
- Skewer the chicken by threading each piece at one end, folding over, and threading through the other. Thread about 4-8 pieces onto each skewer (this will depend on the size of your skewers), bunching them so they’re lightly compressed. Place the completed skewers on a wire rack, cover lightly with plastic wrap, and set aside while you start up your grill.
- Light a full charcoal chimney, then bank the coals to one side of your grill, setting the grill up for 2-zone cooking. Apply a thin layer of cooking oil to the grates (this will stop the chicken from sticking).
- Once your grill is at an ambient temperature of 350-400°F (180-200°C), place the chicken skewers on the indirect side of the grill (the side not directly above the coals). Cook for 10 minutes, then flip and rotate the skewers to ensure they all cook evenly. Cook for another 10 minutes, until the chicken hits an internal temperature of 175°F (79°C) and is golden brown and firm to the touch.
- Move the skewers directly over the coals to give them a quick charred finish, cooking for 1-2 minutes max.
- Pull the chicken skewers from the grill and let them rest for 5 minutes. Serve with a sprinkle of spring onions and sesame seeds, and finish with a squeeze of fresh lime.
Notes
- To thread the chicken onto the skewers, we need them in rectangular strips so that we can pierce one end with the skewer, fold the chicken over, and push the skewer out the other side. This will help the chicken thighs keep their shape on the grill as they cook.
