Chicken Souvlaki

Grilled Meat on a Skewer

This is a “foodie’s” or even Chicken lovers Wet Dream. You’ve just impressed the hell out of… well, everyone who was present for your awesomeness, including yourself!  

I am making this out of my NYC apartment… therefore ANYONE can make this at home, and good for you if you happen to have a real grill! I once made this for The Taste of Tribeca, which meant I showed up at 7 am and made 1000 on the Grill inside! Yes 1000, and Chef was outside on a BBQ Pit making another 1000! You honestly couldn’t tell which was made where with the smoky and intensity of layered flavors… all I know is people devoured that meat as if they hadn’t eaten in a month! They couldn’t get enough and we sold out long before the event was over.  I had to call Chef and tell him to fire up some more! Thankfully our restaurant was only 2 blocks away.

Chicken Souvlaki &  Rice Pilaf , topped with Sperma

Prep Time: 1 hr & Marinate 3hrs + Difficulty: Intermediate   Cook time: depends

This really is a fairly easy dish, it’s so robust and beautiful, it simply takes time and patience to do it right.

Ingredients:

• 4 Chicken Breast  = approx 12 Skewers  
• Salt - You’ll season after you’ve threaded the chicken onto skewers.

*Don’t mix dark meat in… you’ll hate yourself trying to cook evenly.

Marinade: this is an outline, if you’re making a ton of chicken, then more oil and a bit more herbs, you don’t need to be verbatim here.

Olive Oil - to cover

4 Garlic cloves - crushed

3 sprigs Thyme

3 sprigs Oregano - plucked & rough chop

2 sprigs Rosemary

3 sprigs Parsley

Salt & Pepper  - Generous amount

*Note you can use the herbs from Sperma in addition to if you made that today.

Sperma: The recipe is easy to follow and slightly different than your Marinade, but it’s essential and what makes the dish… again this is all about the deep intense layers of flavor. (Click on link for recipe)

What You’ll NEED:

• Skewers
• Grill Pan (obviously not if you’re lucky to have a Grill!)
• Tongs
• Paper towels
• Olive or Veg oil for the Grill (pan)
• If making massive amount covered sheet pan or plate if not
• Serious appetite! *Or Self control!*

Start with the marinade…

Cut the chicken into 1” by 2” or what you feel comfortable with. They shouldn’t be much smaller because they’ll burn and dry out. Ideally they should all be the same size.

Leaving excess fat and thin pieces aside.

Toss in the marinade and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours… if you can marinate over night… You’ll do the dance of Joy when you finally eat!

I find it easier to line everything in foil, especially when dealing with meat or large batches of things because you just throw it away when done and the clean up is much easier.

Next...

I use 4 pieces and serve 2 skewers to adults, but do what you’d like.

Read the recipe below to see if you are going to need to preheat your oven. If so, now’s the time… *375.

Oil your pan and get it as hot as possible!

Open your windows, turn the hood fan on high, and turn your smoke detector (temporarily) off!

Don’t forget to season each skewer before it goes on the fire!

Once you put your Chicken down let it work without touching, or it will stick to the pan and start to crumble # a mess.

*If you’re working on a grill pan over the stove top, you want to flip it both long wise and rotate after they’ve started to color because of hot spots. Though this isn’t going to take time at all so you never want to leave especially because you’re inside! This is going to go much faster than you think.

**If you’re serving at a later time, cook just enough to color on all sides, pull off and we’ll toss in the oven when you’re ready. (I’ll explain below.)

Stand back from the Grill…

SPERMA! This is going to keep them juicy and flavorful… layers upon layers!

The smoke is going to add a gorgeous dimension

Watch out for the flame and stand back.

This meat is bursting with juice if you’ve followed the recipe, but if the fire freaks you out or the smoke is overwhelming… You’re finished here. Take the meat off the fire, and finish the same way as if you were serving the masses or at a later time.

When serving amass amount, you’re obviously going to have to work in batches. You really need to make sure the meat is cooked all the way through which is difficult in that situation, which is why the oven is a better option to finish, as well to make sure their all hot when you serve. At this point you’re taking the meat off the fire after desired color. Put it on a baking sheet and finish it in the oven *375 for 5-8 minutes… pending on how far you’ve cooked it.

More Sperma!

Now go bask in your awesomeness and let the praise come in.