Friends enjoying dessert at our dockside picnic table
When we hang out dockside, I like to serve foods that I can prepare ahead of time. Then, when folks spontaneously decide it’s time to eat, I am ready to cook before the grill is even done preheating. Advance planning and preparation remain key to super simple recipes, dining, and entertaining.
I like preparing items that offer flexibility, regarding whether you need appetizers or entrees. I also love recipes that work when you’re not sure how many people you may be feeding.
Try my Super Simple Chicken Kebabs, for example. I usually make 1-2 dozen at a time and wrap them up in groups of 4-6 kebabs. They freeze well, before or after cooking, depending on your choice of veggies. To freeze any veggie combination, simple cook them on high in your microwave oven for 40-60 seconds before threading them on the skewers with the chicken. (This serves the same purpose as par-boiling, which is all you need to do to freeze fresh vegetables.) Remember, you must NOT freeze uncooked chicken kebabs if you used previously frozen chicken. Previously frozen meats and poultry can ONLY be RE-frozen AFTER being cooked.
Chicken Kebabs on the grill
Super Simple Chicken Kebabs
Boneless chicken breast and/or thighs, cut in 1-1/2” chunks
Montreal Chicken Seasoning (or your favorite combination of salt, pepper, garlic, onion & herbs)
Sweet onions, halved, then each half quartered
Pea pods, cut in half crosswise (ends trimmed & discarded)
Sweet red pepper, cut in 1-1/2” chunks
Bamboo skewers, soaked in warm water for 20 min
Sprinkle all sides of chicken cubes with seasoning. Microwave onion on high for 1 min.
On each skewer thread chicken, 2 peapod pieces, chicken, red pepper, chicken, onion, chicken, 2 peapod pieces, chicken.
Stack on a platter, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate till needed, up to 24 hours.
Place kebabs on bbq grill, preheated to high (400°F), spritzed with high heat grilling oil.
Close cover; turn in 5 min. Close again & reduce heat to low.
Turn once more in 5 min and let cook 5 more min.
Plan 1-2 skewers per person for appetizers, tapas, or lunch. Plan 3-4 skewers for large entrée portions.
KISS Tips: Serve with a favorite pasta salad & grilled corn on the cob for a winning lunch on a warm summer’s day. Chill leftovers to serve cool for another meal atop a salad or as easy chilled appetizers. Grill any leftover vegetables, sprinkled with seasonings & wrapped in foil for 5 min per side. (Just 2-3 min for peapods) You can also choose lots of other vegetables, from green beans, asparagus and zucchini to yellow summer squash, tomatoes, and other peppers. Choose any 3 vegetables you like, considering color variety and different textures.
KISS Note: Cut a standard boneless chicken breast half into 15 chunks to make 3 kebabs. A single boneless chicken thigh makes 5 chunks or 1 kebab. Thighs are thinner, so you may have up to 10 pieces, which you then double up on the skewer, using 2 pieces pressed together for each chunk.
You’ll find plenty of our KISS recipes to help you Keep It Super Simple at http://www.qtpublishing.com/ Quiet Thunder has exclusively published our recipe collections for years! (2014 update: Two large dockside-ready recipe collections are now available at Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com Dockside Dining: Round One was joined by Dockside Dining: A Second Helping in late August, 2014.) Enjoy… with love and laughter!
Dockside Dining: Round One
Dockside Dining: A Second Helping
I’m extremely inspired by your writing talents. Keep up the nice quality writing; it is uncommon to see a nice blog like this one nowadays.