Lemon chicken kebabs recipe

Just a few simple ingredients can add bags of flavour to barbecued food. Here lemon juice, olive oil and garlic are used to marinate chicken and vegetables before they are threaded onto skewers and cooked on the barbecue. The acidic lemon juice helps to tenderize the chicken and olive oil keeps it moist during cooking. If you’re planning a big barbecue party then treble or quadruple this recipe, marinate everything overnight then make up the kebabs in the morning. Keep covered in the fridge until about 30mins before you plan to cook them. Remember to soak the wooden skewers in cold water for 30mins to prevent them burning on the barbecue.

Ingredients

• 500g skinless chicken breast fillet, cubed
• 2 red peppers, deseeded and cubed
• 2 green peppers, deseeded and cubed
• 1 medium-sized courgette, sliced
• Finely grated zest and juice from 1 large lemon
• 2tbsp olive oil, plus extra for brushing
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1tbsp freshly chopped parsley

Method

1. Place the chicken, peppers and courgettes in a large shallow non-metallic dish. Mix together the lemon zest and juice with the oil and garlic and pour over the chicken and vegetables. Cover and leave to marinate for 1 hr at room temperature or overnight in the fridge.
2. Thread the chicken peppers and courgettes onto 8 wooden skewers. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
3. Cook the kebabs on a medium-hot barbecue for 12-15mins, turning frequently until the chicken is cooked through and the peppers and courgettes and lightly charred. Brush with a little olive oil once or twice during cooking to prevent the chicken from drying out. Serve sprinkled with the chopped parsley.