I don’t know about you, but I love summertime and fall since we’re able to enjoy being outside and cooking on the grill! I wanted to create a new recipe that combined the flavors of caprese salad (which I love very much), without the mozzarella cheese, because dairy and I really don’t mix. So I came up with these Whole30 “Caprese” Chicken Kabobs, that combined all the flavors that I love, and didn’t leave me feeling crappy. Win, win.
Ok, now lets get to the recipe!
Italian Chicken Marinade:
So first you’ll want to cut up your chicken into bite sized kabob pieces (Just try to make them universal for cooking purposes-I try to cut them into a cube shape). The amount of chicken you use will depend on how many kabobs you want. I used slightly more than 1.5lbs of chicken (3 decent sized breasts) and it yielded about 9 kabobs.
Then, Mix all of the following marinade ingredients together and pour over the chicken in a bowl
- 3/4 Cup Avocado Oil
- 1/4 Cup Red Wine Vinegar
- 1.5 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tsp Oregano
- 1/2 tsp Ground Black Pepper
- 1/2 Bay Leaf
- Juice of 1/2 a lemon
Once you’ve mixed and poured the marinade over your chicken, cover and refrigerate. I like to let the chicken marinate for 24 hours, but if you don’t have that much time, you can obviously do less. I would say no less than 6-8 hours though so those flavors can really infuse your chicken and tenderize it as well. Stir the marinating chicken occasionally and return to the refrigerator.
Assembling the Kabobs
Next you’ll want to gather everything you need to assemble the kabobs. If you’re using wooden kabob sticks, I would recommend soaking them in water so about 3 hours ahead of time, so they don’t char really badly. I also spray the kabobs with some olive oil prior to loading them up, so that the meat and vegetables don’t stick to them.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- About 10 metal or wood kabob sticks (I used 9″ ones)
- 2 red onions- Chopped into large pieces
- About 20 grape or cherry tomatoes, the bigger the better!
- Marinated Chicken breast cubes
Start by loading a piece of the marinated chicken on the kabob stick, followed by a grape/cherry tomato, and then a chunk of red onion. Then repeat once so you end up with 2 pieces of chicken, 2 tomatoes, and 2 pieces of onion on each kabob
Continue loading all your kabob sticks until you’ve used up all of your marinated chicken. Once the kabobs are loaded, set them aside for a few minutes and make your balsamic reduction.
Balsamic Reduction:
Follow the recipe found here for the date paste used in several of my recipes. Once you have that made, heres what you’ll need:
- 1.5 Tbsp Date Paste
- 1 Cup of balsamic vinegar
Place the balsamic vinegar and date paste in a saucepan and turn the heat to high (you want it to boil). While its heating up, stir the date paste around in the vinegar to break it up into smaller pieces so it will continue to cook down and into the vinegar.
Once it boils, turn the heat down to a simmer and stir frequently while the vinegar reduces. You’ll end up with a thick consistency that is easy to drizzle over the kabobs and coats the back of a spoon.
Cook the Kabobs:
Throw those kabobs on a preheated grill and grill until chicken is cooked through.
(Suggested grilling instructions:)
- Preheat grill to medium heat (Approx 375 degrees)
- Place kabobs on grill and turn heat down to low
- Cook for approximately 12 minutes (or until chicken reaches 165 degree internal temperature. Time will vary depending on grill), turning halfway through.
- If you want a more charred effect on vegetables, at 10 minutes, turn heat up to high and cook at that temperature for 1 minute on each side
- Remove from grill and cover. Allow meat to rest for 5 minutes
Garnish and Serve
Gather about 7-8 basil leaves and cut into ribbons. Sprinkle over the top of the kabobs. Drizzle balsamic reduction over kabobs and serve.
ENJOY!
I really hope you enjoy these! We all LOVED them. Don’t forget, if you make any of my recipes and post about them, please tag me (@lindsey_van_cleave). I just love to see/hear how my recipes turn out for you!
I hope you all have a happy and safe 4th of July!
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Whole30 "Caprese" Chicken Kabobs
These Chicken Kabobs combine the delicious flavors of caprese salad, without the mozzarella! They’ll be a hit at your next BBQ!
Italian Chicken Marinade
- 3/4 Cup Avocado Oil
- 1/4 Cup Red Wine Vinegar
- 1.5 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tsp Oregano
- 1/2 tsp Black Pepper
- 1/2 Bay Leaf
- 1/2 Lemon Juiced
Balsamic Reduction
- 1.5 Tbsp Date Paste
- 1 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
Chicken Kabobs
- 1.5-2 Lbs Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
- 10 9" Kabob Skewers
- 20 Cherry or Grape Tomatoes
- 2 Red Onions (chopped in large chunks)
Garnish
- 7-8 Basil Leaves
Italian Chicken Marinade
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Cut your chicken in to uniform cubes and place in a bowl
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Combine all of the marinade ingredients and pour over chicken
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Cover and refrigerate. The longer you refrigerate, the better. I like to do 24 hours if I have the time. I would suggest at least 6-8 so that the chicken is well marinated and does not dry out during grilling. Stir occasionally during marinating process
Chicken Kabobs
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Once chicken has marinated, gather ingredients for the chicken kabobs
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If using wooden skewers, I suggest soaking them in water for a few hours and then spraying them with olive oil before loading them so that they don’t char and the food is easy to remove from them
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Load each kabob with a chicken cube, tomato, chunk of onion, and then repeat once so each kabob has 2 pieces of each item
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Continue loading kabobs until all of the chicken is gone. Set chicken aside and start your reduction
Balsamic Reduction
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Place balsamic vinegar and date paste in a saucepan and turn heat to high
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Stir the date paste around to break it up into small chunks
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Once it boils, turn down to a simmer and allow the reduction to cook down until it coats the back of a spoon
Cooking the Kabobs (Suggested Grilling Instructions)
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While vinegar is reducing, turn your grill on to medium heat (about 375 degrees for reference)
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Add kabobs and turn heat to low.
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Cook kabobs for about 12 minutes total (Or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. Grills will vary), turning kabobs halfway through.
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If additional char is desired on vegetables, at the 10 minute mark, turn grill to high and cook at that temperature for 1 minute on each side.
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Once chicken is cooked through, remove Kabobs, cover, and allow to rest for 5 minutes
Garnish
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Cut Basil leaves into ribbons. Once chicken has rested, arrange on a tray and sprinkle basil on kabobs
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Drizzle with balsamic reduction and serve