How long should I marinade shish tawook?

For best results, marinating for 4-12 hours is ideal. This really helps to tenderize the chicken and meld flavors together.

Do I need to soak my wooden skewers?

This is a personal preference, I have personally never soaked my wooden skewers on any grill I've used (gas grill) and have had no problems. I'm currently using a flat top grill so no open flames to worry about. If you have done it successfully in the past and it works for you - you certainly can soak them for 30 minutes prior to skewering and cooking.

Do I need toum to make these?

I love the addition of traditional toum with these, it gives a garlic flavor but not as overpowering as minced garlic. If you are omitting the yogurt due to dairy restraints I'd say YES to ensuring you use toum. Otherwise, you'll get a delicious chicken dish even without it.

I'm dairy free, can I still make these without yogurt?

I have details on dairy free options above, it's best with the yogurt as that is what makes it's truly shish tawook, but if you have toum - you can still create a very comparable dish.

Authentic Shish Tawook - Lebanese Chicken Kebabs

Name: Authentic Shish Tawook - Lebanese Chicken Kebabs
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Cuisine: Lebanese
Ingredients: 2.5 pounds of chicken breast (or thighs) cut into 1.5" cubes; 6" wooden or metal skewers; 3/4 cup plain full-fat yogurt*; zest of 2 lemons; juice of 2 lemons, 1/4 cup; 1/4 cup toum (sub 15 cloves minced garlic); 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil; 2 teaspoons paprika (sweet or smoked, your preference); 1 teaspoon sumac spice (add an additional zest of 1 lemon if you don't have); 2 teaspoons Diamond kosher salt*; 1 teaspoon black pepper

Description

Tangy, tender and flavorful Chicken Shish Tawook (Taouk) is a common grilled dish in Lebanon. Marinated with a combination of yogurt, garlic toum and spices it's flavor packed. You won't go back to eating plain chicken again!

Ingredients

Units Scale

2.5 pounds of chicken breast (or thighs) cut into 1.5" cubes
6" wooden or metal skewers
3/4 cup plain full-fat yogurt*
zest of 2 lemons
juice of 2 lemons, 1/4 cup
1/4 cup toum (sub 15 cloves minced garlic)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons paprika (sweet or smoked, your preference)
1 teaspoon sumac spice (add an additional zest of 1 lemon if you don't have)
2 teaspoons Diamond kosher salt*
1 teaspoon black pepper

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Instructions

Begin by preparing your chicken, cut into large cubes about 1.5" each, set aside.
In a large bowl, combine all your marinade ingredients and whisk until fully combined.
Place your chicken cubes into marinade, cover and set in fridge for 4-12 hours.
When ready to cook, remove from fridge and place 4-5 pieces of chicken on your skewer (more if using a larger skewer).
Heat your grill, grill pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Grease your grill grates or drizzle a little oil on your skillet or flat top grill.
Place shish tawook skewers on heated grill and allow each side to cook for about 4 minutes, rotating on all 4 sides until charred and fully cooked through.
Chicken should be cooked to 165 degrees Fahrenheit if using a thermometer, if you don't have a thermometer, remove one piece of chicken, cut and make sure it is fully white on the inside.
Remove from grill and cover with foil to keep juices and moisture locked.
Enjoy with additional toum and pita!

Notes

If using Morton's kosher salt, reduce to 1.5 teaspoons - if using table salt, reduce to 1 teaspoon
If omitting the yogurt, be sure to increase your toum or olive oil to 1/3 cup
Feel free to add onion chunks in between your chicken on the skewers.

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