Rarely a trip to nature is complete without cooking barbecue. Juicy pieces of meat, smelling pleasantly of various spices and smoke, are considered an essential attribute of any picnic. This dish is prepared from pork, beef, lamb or chicken.
The advantage of poultry is that it marinates very quickly, and you can prepare it immediately before departure. But for the barbecue to be successful, you need to know how to choose, marinate and fry chicken meat correctly.
How to choose chicken for barbecue
The most tender and juicy kebab is made from chicken thighs. You can use wings, drumsticks or fillets, but these parts of the bird are somewhat dry. When choosing meat you need to pay attention to the following nuances:
- Type of storage. For marinating, it is better to choose chilled rather than frozen poultry.
- Color. Chicken meat should be soft pink, with small patches of creamy fat.
- Structure. There should be no dark spots or damage on parts of the bird.
- Leather. In young chickens it is light and thin, while in old chickens it is yellowish and coarse.
- Smell. The aroma of chicken should not contain any unpleasant impurities.
Important! If thighs, drumsticks or wings are purchased not by weight, but in packaging, you need to pay attention to the shelf life. You can make a high-quality dish from chilled meat, packaged no earlier than 3-4 days ago.
Useful tips when choosing meat
To prepare an exquisite and aromatic kebab, you can use absolutely any part of chicken - fillet, drumstick, thighs, wings. Both a whole carcass, cut up independently, and individual parts of the bird are used.
Recommendations for choosing meat:
- the bird’s skin should be free of any wounds, abrasions, or damage;
- for chicken skewers, it is better to take chilled, but not frozen meat, as it is tougher and its taste is worse;
- the skin is light pink, clean and dry;
- the carcass should have a fresh, pleasant smell;
- fresh meat is always elastic - when pressed with a finger, it instantly returns to its previous shape.
Chicken fryes extremely quickly and can burn quickly, so you need to strictly control the cooking time. For tender chicken fillet, 15-18 minutes is enough.
What to marinate chicken in?
Chicken meat is very soft and tender, and the main function of the marinade is to give the bird a piquant taste and aroma, as well as maintain juiciness. You can marinate chicken kebab using one of the following ingredients:
- table, apple or wine vinegar;
- mayonnaise;
- sour cream;
- kefir;
- ketchup;
- pomegranate and lemon juice;
- soy sauce;
- wine or light beer;
- liquid honey.
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These types of marinade are supplemented with the following products:
- onions;
- garlic;
- grated ginger root;
- mint leaves;
- tomatoes;
- kiwi pieces;
- greens;
- slices of orange or grapefruit;
- aromatic herbs and spices.
On a note. If you need to prepare shish kebab from poultry fillet, it is better to use mayonnaise or sour cream as a marinade and supplement it with tomatoes or kiwi pieces. These components will help eliminate excessive dryness of the meat.
Tea marinade for poultry
Products for the recipe:
- black tea (dry brewing) – 3 tbsp. l.;
- boiling water – 300 ml;
- salt – 1.5 tsp;
- dried dill – 1 tsp;
- soy sauce - half a teaspoon;
- ground black pepper - a third of a teaspoon.
Mix all the ingredients from the list. Keep covered until partially cooled. When the mixture is warm, immerse the meat in it. Keep for 1 hour, then fry.
For other options for tea marinade for meat, see the article.
Spices and seasonings for barbecue
Another secret to a successful campfire meal is the right spices. You can purchase a ready-made mixture marked “For barbecue” or highlight the taste of chicken with the following seasonings:
- ground pepper;
- bay leaves;
- curry and turmeric;
- cardamom;
- Provençal herbs;
- coriander;
- paprika;
- almonds or nutmeg;
- cinnamon;
- saffron;
- dried rosemary or savory.
Attention! You should not overuse spices, just add them a pinch at a time, choosing 2-3 types, otherwise the aromatic additives will “overwhelm” the taste of the meat.
Georgian marinade with tomato paste for barbecue
In Georgia they really like to use ripe tomatoes. But if you don’t have them on hand, then tomato paste is quite suitable, which will give the chicken a sweet and sour original taste.
Ingredients:
- Chicken fillet – 1.5-2 kg.
- Tomato paste – 200 gr.
- Spices, salt, red and black pepper, onion - to taste.
Preparation:
1. Cut the fillet into cubes or identical rectangles and place in a pan.
2. Add tomato paste, season with red and black ground pepper, lightly add salt and add your favorite spices.
Tomato paste can be easily replaced with your favorite type of ketchup
You can use special Caucasian sets of spices for barbecue and onions at your discretion.
3. Mix well and put in the refrigerator. You can let the slices soak for 1 to 24 hours, and then thread them onto skewers and grill them.
Bon appetit!
Rules for preparing ingredients
Before soaking chicken in the marinade, you need to prepare the ingredients. At this stage, you will need to follow the following rules:
- If a dish is prepared from frozen meat, do not fill it with water or use the microwave. Chicken should only be defrosted naturally, at room temperature.
- You need to cut the bird into pieces of equal size so that it marinates and cooks evenly.
- You need to cut onions, tomatoes, kiwis or citruses immediately before adding the ingredients to the meat.
Advice. It is better to marinate shish kebab in enamel containers; it is not advisable to use containers made of plastic, glass or stainless steel.
How to marinate chicken with onions and vinegar
In accordance with the classic recipe, chicken kebab is marinated in vinegar and onions. To do this you will need the following components:
- 2 kg poultry;
- 4-6 onions;
- 40 ml table vinegar 9%;
- 80-100 ml of water;
- bay leaves;
- a pinch of sugar;
- salt and 1-2 types of suitable spices.
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How to cook meat:
- Dilute vinegar with water, add sugar, stir.
- Cut the bird into portions, add salt and season.
- Cut the onions into rings and add to the chicken.
- Add the marinade, add bay leaves and mix with your hands, lightly pressing the meat and onion, and then put in a cool place.
On a note. It is better not to cover the container with kebab with a lid, but to place a plate on top of the chopped pieces, using a jar of water or some heavy object as a pressure.
Juicy chicken kebab: marinade with soy sauce
Soy sauce is one of the common additives. With this spice, the meat becomes spicy and tasty. You don't need a lot of ingredients for refueling.
youtube.com/watch?v=NOf1HT8c_dc
The ingredients are as follows:
- poultry – about 2 kg;
- onions – 2 pcs.;
- sauce – 100 ml;
- salt and pepper - to taste.
You need to marinate for at least 120 minutes.
Start by preparing your ingredients. Peel the onions, rinse the meat. Next, follow the instructions.
Step 1. Cut the onions into quarters of rings. It is not necessary to cut thinly. Transfer to a deep container.
Step 2. Mash with your hands to release the juice.
Step 3. If you bought a whole chicken, then divide it into portions and transfer it to the same container. If you are using chicken parts (legs, drumsticks, wings, breast), then rinse, dry and add to the onions.
Step 4. Pour in soy dressing, salt, pepper, and season with spices.
step 5. Stir and leave to simmer for several hours in a cool area.
During simmering, you can occasionally stir the bird so that the juice does not accumulate at the bottom. After a good simmer, you can put it on skewers and fry.
Recipe for marinating in vinegar with onions, lemon and mayonnaise
You can marinate the bird using mayonnaise, lemon juice and vinegar, adding onion and citrus zest. To prepare the dish you will need the following products:
- 2.5-3 kg of chicken;
- 4-5 onions;
- lemon;
- 110-120 g mayonnaise;
- a tablespoon of vinegar;
- peppercorns;
- salt and suitable spices.
How to make shish kebab:
- Chop the onion into rings or half rings and sprinkle with vinegar.
- Remove the zest from the citrus and squeeze the juice out of the pulp.
- Cut the washed chicken into portions.
- Place the meat in a pan, add onion, lemon juice, zest and mayonnaise, add salt and seasonings.
- Mix the ingredients and marinate.
On a note. You can change the cooking order a little and soak the onion in lemon juice and add the vinegar to the dish along with seasonings and mayonnaise.
How much time to cook
Cooking time is directly related to the size of the chicken or chicken part. So, for example, a whole carcass is baked or fried at the rate of 20 minutes for every 450 g. Plus add 15 minutes to the total time.
Chicken legs are cooked in the oven at temperatures up to 200°C for 40-50 minutes. If you fry them, then each side is allocated 15 minutes. For barbecue - 20 minutes of cooking on well-heated coals. The same principles work with wings.
Fry a whole breast for 4-5 minutes on each side. If cut into pieces, the time increases to 10-15 minutes (stirring occasionally). Cook in the oven for 20 minutes: 10 minutes in foil, 10 minutes without.
How long does kebab marinate?
Chicken kebab marinated in vinegar very quickly. 1-2 hours is enough for this. Preparing meat in advance, for example, in the evening, is not recommended. If the bird is left in the marinade for a long time, it will “give up” too much juice and the dish may turn out dry.
It is better to keep the container with meat on the middle shelf of the refrigerator or in a cool place with a temperature no higher than 10-12 degrees.
