Sometimes they say that chicken kebab is not a kebab at all. Ideally, meat should be used. Everyone has their own opinion. But they continue to actively fry the chicken on the grill and call it kebab. Moreover, now we have it in the first place in popularity. Let's cook without mistakes!
Error one: not every bird is suitable for kebabs
Everyone knows that the meat is tough, it needs to be marinated for a long time, so they try to get a chilled product that was not frozen. A bird can have a completely different problem. More and more on the shelves of “stuffed” chicken, which has practically no coarse fibers, is soft, sometimes watery, and even without taste. Such frankly cheap chickens are not suitable for shish kebab. Yes, they are juicy and soft, do not require long marinating, but the result is so-so.
The main nuances of choosing a chicken:
- It should have a color. If the skin is white and translucent - the chicken is grown in an accelerated way, pumped with antibiotics and additives. A normal carcass has a yellowish tint.
- Home and farm chickens are considered the most delicious and fragrant, but they are much tougher, they have developed muscles, they will have to be bought and marinated in advance, it will take time.
- It is advisable to choose broiler chickens. Layers are designed for eggs, they have little meat, a lot of bones, besides, they are more suitable for broths and stews.
It is possible to buy whole carcasses for shashlik and chop, use only chicken legs or drumsticks. Grilled wings are very popular.
Error two: remove all unnecessary
If the kebab is prepared from a whole carcass, then you should not lay it completely. Some parts will have to get rid of. Some tasteless, others mainly consist of pits. Therefore, having bought chicken for 2 kg, approximately 30% will go to waste (more precisely, to broth and other dishes). Buy with a reserve, kebabs do not happen much.
What you need to remove:
- ridge or back, on which there is practically no meat;
- extreme phalanxes of wings, they often burn, there is nothing in them;
- tail and adjacent wen.
Basically there are legs, wings and a breast. Therefore, often for the kebabs acquire only the thigh or tibia or chicken legs. The wings are especially loved, there are a lot of interesting marinades and cooking methods for them. In addition, the wings are instantly fried, always juicy, serve as a hearty snack at parties and are excellent for beer.
By the way, white meat, that is, breast, is considered the most useful. But it is the driest, especially on the grill. Therefore, it is better for the kebab to use other parts or to cook the breast on a separate skewer, remove from the coals before.
Error Three: Do Not Soak
No, this is not about marinating. It is not a mistake. Very often, the hostess in order to remove from the bird all the harmful, soaked it in water for several hours or even for the whole night. Yes, this technique helps to wash the blood, maybe some chemistry, but kebabs are clearly not good. For this reason, it is better to remove attention to the search for a high-quality bird, after which it should just be washed well with cold water.
Error four: marinade is simple, but important
Broiler from the store is not necessary to marinate for a long time, it will still cook quickly anyway. You can simply sprinkle such chicken with spices, onions, leave for a couple of hours. But much more tasty and interesting is the kebab with marinades, moreover, they give pieces of that same ruddy crust.
What marinades are usually made for chicken skewers:
- kefir with garlic;
- mayonnaise with garlic, spices;
- seasoned mustard;
- soy sauce with honey, mustard.
There are many options, you can continue the list. But one detail is important - the amount of salt. Meat can be over-salted, chicken can not. It will turn out to be fresh, tasteless, the “emptiness” will be felt in the kebab.
As for spices, you need to adhere to one simple rule - the worse the bird, the more spices you need to add. They will improve the taste and aroma of a modest chicken from the poultry farm.
Fifth error: how much to pickle
If a poultry from a factory (store hens) is used, then it is marinated only for flavor. It is enough to soak in spices and sauces for 1-2 hours. During this time they will have time to penetrate deep into the fabric.
If a domestic chicken is marinated or a bird purchased from a farmer has to be soaked for at least four hours, it’s best to leave it for the whole day or night. In addition to the taste, the marinade should soften the fibers, give the pieces juiciness, speed up their cooking on the grill.
Error Six: Grate or Skewer
On skewers and on the grid is obtained absolutely different kebabs. But the choice depends on the used parts of the carcass. If wings are being prepared, then it can be poured onto a grid or strung on a skewer. They have a stable form, do not turn, the skin does not hang down, does not burn. Kebabs from the legs can also be cooked there and there.
If you use chopped chicken meat, thighs with skin, then it is better to lay it all on the grill, but leaving space between the pieces. So diverse parts will be cooked on all sides. You can try to string the hips on a skewer, but the bones and skin will interfere, the hanging parts will burn, the thickness on all sides will be different, as well as the degree of roasting.
Error Seven: temperature is not always bad
The most common mistake - fry kebab for a long time. Chicken dries faster than meat. Cooking time on the grill should not exceed 20 minutes, and the wings need even less. To make everything work out perfectly, we use hot, hot coals. Also, make sure that they were not enough.
Error eight: do not grease
When frying chicken skewers, in no case do you need to sprinkle the bird with cold water, oil it with the remaining pickles or do something like that. All these procedures lower the temperature of the product, increase the cooking time. If suddenly there is a fire in the grill, you do not need to extinguish it with water through a skewer with kebabs, it is better to carefully lift and sprinkle with salt. You can grease chicken skewers with special glaze (honey, mustard, soy sauce) to get a beautiful crust. But this is done at the very end, when the bird has already reached readiness.
Error Nine: Garnish and Sauce
Skewers - a festive dish, often preparing for some event, so do not bother with a side dish. Rice, pasta and mashed potatoes are not needed at all. A large enough bowl of fresh salad and greens. If you still want to cook a hot side dish, then let it be vegetables or mushrooms on the same grill.
What sauces sauces, then the main mistake is to serve kebab ketchup. Gentle chicken is better combined with garlic sauce on sour cream or mayonnaise than with tomato. You can also serve teriyaki, fruit and soy sauces. Be sure to greens - the chicken loves her much more than onions.
