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These Baked Chicken Kabobs in the oven are really simple to make and do not require a grill or grill pan! Marinated in garlic, oregano, and dijon and paired with fresh peppers and shallots, they’re an easy and healthy meal.
I love this recipe because it can be made any time during the year, no matter what the weather is like. And there’s no grill pan to clean with baked chicken kabobs!
Basically there are a few simple steps to making kabobs – marinating and threading the chicken and vegetables, baking, and finishing with the broil if you love those little charred pieces. You can even do this technique with beef and make oven baked beef kabobs!
Need a dairy and gluten free dinner recipe that’s ready in just 30 minutes? This is perfect! It fits Whole 30, paleo, low carb, and a migraine diet.
Table of Contents
Baking Kabobs In The Oven
Although grilling can give a smoky flavor to kabobs, they can still turn out just as flavor and juicy when baked in the oven. There are just a few key items you want to make sure you have.
- Skewers – I recommend using metal skewers as you don’t need to soak them and they will heat the meat evenly throughout. Plus they’re just less wasteful and can be reused. If you only have wood skewers, make sure to soak them for at least 30 minutes before baking.
- A large sheet pan – Using a large sheet pan allows for you to spread the kabobs out and cook evenly. They shouldn’t be touching on any sides.
- Cut pieces into uniform sizes – When trimming the meat and vegetables, be sure to cut into similar sizes so everything bakes evenly.
Ingredients
You don’t need a lot of ingredients to make kabobs in the oven. Here are a few that you should have on hand in the pantry.
- Chicken – I used boneless skinless chicken breasts. I prefer air-chilled because there’s no added water or solutions, providing a better taste and cooking experience. Without added water, the chicken won’t release a bunch of liquid and essentially “steam” but will bake nicely. It’s also a great way to make sure there’s no hidden MSG.
- Dijon Mustard – I love using dijon in marinades for chicken. It gives such a great flavor in a quick amount of time. My brand of choice is Annie’s or HEB.
- Spices – Garlic, oregano, and sumac. Sumac gives this dish a lemony flavor without added citrus.
- Red and Yellow Bell Pepper – A great way to get in the traditional kabob vegetables.
- Shallots – I love shallots instead of red onion for this recipe. Because they’re smaller, I try to buy the biggest ones for the skewers. The small size makes them perfect for kabobs! You can also use red onion if that works best for you.
How to Bake
Step 1: Marinate the chicken. Begin by cutting the chicken breasts into bite-sized cubes. In a large bowl, mix together the olive oil, dijon, garlic, oregano, and sumac. Add chicken, along with kosher salt and pepper, and stir till well-coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, up to 12 hours. (Picture 1 and 2)
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy clean up.
Step 2: Thread the skewers. Using metal skewers, alternate threading pieces of chicken, shallots, and peppers until filled. (Picture 3)
Step 3: Bake the kabobs. Place the kabobs onto the baking sheet, at least 1 inch apart to bake. Bake at 425 degrees F for 15-20 minutes until chicken is completely cooked through and registers 165 degrees for an internal temperature. (Picture 4)
Step 4: Broil for a nice char. If you’d like to add a bit of char to the vegetables and chicken, place the broiler on high heat and the skewers about 6 inches away. Broil for 1-2 minutes or until it’s browned enough to your liking.
Recipe Tips
- Start with great quality chicken. Air chilled is more important than organic for the best flavor, but both are great if you can make that work for your budget.
- Marinating is a must. Plan on at least 30 minutes of time to marinate the chicken. The longer you can leave it, the more flavorful and tender it will be. Because you’re cutting these into bite sized pieces, I would not marinate for longer than 12 hours or the meat can turn mushy.
- Watch the broiler. If you do decide to broil, just watch it carefully. From someone who knows how easy it is to get distracted in the kitchen, set a timer if you plan to do something else. Or you’ll end up with burned meat!
- Mix it up. Mix up the vegetables with zucchini squash, tomatoes, and mushrooms. All would work well here if you don’t like peppers.
- Buy metal skewers. Metal kabob skewers make your life easier. No one has time to soak wooden skewers. Unless you find pleasure in soaking skewers in which case I support you. You have more patience than I do. The world needs more people like you.
Variations
- Use chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts, or do baked beef kabobs!
- Sumac – Sumac is a Mediterranean spice that has a tart flavor. Juice from 1 lemon or zest from 1 lemon can be substituted for the sumac, add 1/2 teaspoon of paprika for extra flavor.
- Vegetables – Zucchini, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, and yellow squash can be added or substituted for any of the vegetables.
Side Dishes for Chicken Kabobs
What’s nice about these chicken kabobs is the vegetable side dish is pretty much built into the recipe. But if you’re looking for something extra for these baked chicken skewers, some of my favorites are:
- Roasted Garlic Mashed Cauliflower
- Healthy Coleslaw
- Chipotle Sweet Potatoes
- Corn and Basil Pasta
- Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
- Mexican Brown Rice
- Simple Green Salad (pictured)
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Kabobs are actually wonderful in the oven and easier to clean up too. The key is to make sure to marinate them, since they are missing out on some of the flavor from the grill. Also, they do take a little bit longer to cook through than you would on the grill.
At 425 degrees Fahrenheit it takes about 15-20 minutes to cook these kabobs in the oven. For larger pieces of chicken, you may want to cook for 20-25 minutes. Line the baking sheet with aluminum foil for very easy clean up once they are done baking.
If you want that charbroiled flavor you get from the grill while still cooking kabobs in the oven, try broiling at the end! Set the sheet pan about 6 inches away from the heat source and turn to high heat. Broil for about 1 minute, watching carefully, until just lightly charred on the tips of the chicken and vegetables.
If you’re not a fan of bell peppers, I recommend substituting small white button mushrooms, mini sweet peppers, zucchini or summer squash to add to these oven baked chicken kabobs.
Baked Chicken Recipes
For more recipes that are easy to cook like these chicken kabobs in the oven, check out these posts.
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Baked Chicken Kabobs
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon sumac
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 red bell pepper, cut into bite sized pieces
- 1 yellow bell pepper, cut into bite sized pieces
- 3-4 large shallots, peeled
Instructions
- Cut chicken breast into 1 inch pieces and set aside. In a large bowl, mix together olive oil, dijon, garlic, oregano, sumac, kosher salt, and pepper. Add in chicken breast and mix with the marinade till evenly coated. Cover and marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 12 hours.
- Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy clean up. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Thread alternating pieces of chicken, peppers, and shallots onto metal skewers. Bake for 15-20 minutes until cooked through, meaning no pink in the center and registering 165 degrees F on a meat thermometer.
- If you'd like more of a grill-like char on the outside, set your oven broiler to high. Broil kabobs about 6 inches away from the heat source for 1-2 minutes until lightly charred on edges. Serve warm!
Notes
- Hate peppers? Mix up the veggies with cut zucchini squash, mushrooms, and tomatoes.
- Use metal skewers to avoid having to soak the wood, but either can be used.
- If tolerated, red onion can be substituted for shallots, although I prefer the flavor of shallots.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This post was originally published August 2021 and has been updated with new photographs. Below is an original image.
Yum
Can I let it marinate for like 24 hours? I’m making this for a project in school, and we are doing lab prep today, and we are cooking tomorrow.
Yes – should be extra tasty!
What’ll happen if you don’t let it marinate?
They just won’t be quite as flavorful, but they won’t be bad.
MSG..one of the several umami flavor enhancers. It does not cause any ill effects, and has less sodium than table salt..there’s no need to fear MSG anymore. That early study that linked it to headaches and “Chinese restaurant syndrome” was not true, and has been rigorously disproven. I’ve started using it not only in my Chinese food, but everything else, it’s a terrific secret ingredient!
I believe you mean does not cause ill effects for the average person. You may not personally have an issue with it, but glutamate in lots of forms (including parmesan, mushrooms, soy…) can be an issue for many people with migraine disorders. It may have been disproven for the average “healthy” human being (although the studies can be controversial based on dosage/sample size/etc.), but those studies didn’t specifically include test subjects with neurological disorders. The other part is not all patients with migraine react to it, but it’s definitely something I see as a fairly common food trigger in the community. Usually the people who use my recipes are here to eliminate it for a while and see if it helps them out.