Baked chicken kebabs are flavorful and bite-sized, perfect for entertaining! Make a plate of these to serve as an appetizer, or put them in a bun or on top of a salad and enjoy as a meal.
The best part about this appetizer is how quickly they bake – in just 10 minutes! And even faster if using an air-fryer!
These juicy and flavorful kebabs are sure to be a hit at your next event! They’ve been my go-to lately – I most recently served them at a Diwali Dinner Party.
You can make these a day ahead and then reheat them the day of your party – either on a pan or in the oven. They are easy and quick to make, taste delicious, and go perfectly with my sweet and spicy Tomato Chutney.
Chicken Kebab Ingredients
These flavorful patties are made with ground chicken, onion, cilantro, garlic, and spices. They’re easy to assemble and quick to bake.
- Ground Chicken: technically any ground meat will work. I sometimes make this with ground turkey but I prefer ground chicken – it comes out juicier.
- Onion: finely chopped
- Cilantro: finely chopped
- Garlic
- Green Chilli: use your favorite! I use Indian green chilli – which you can find at your local Indian grocery store. Serrano pepper works well too.
- Spices: salt, coriander powder, roasted cumin powder, fennel seeds, paprika, black pepper, turmeric, cayenne
Can I Use the Air-Fryer to Make Kebabs?
You can bake, air-fry, or pan-fry these kebabs. I’ll include all three methods in the recipe card below.
While testing this recipe, I tried all three methods and found baking to be the easiest method and there was nearly no difference in flavor between baking vs. pan-frying, which was surprising considering that to pan-fry, you need oil or ghee.
I will say if you like using an air-fryer, go for it. The patties turn out great – the only downside is that you can only fit a few in the air-fryer at a time. Still, not a bad option if you’re meal prepping and just wanting to cook a few for the family.
How to Make Kebabs:
Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl.
Use a medium cookie scoop to portion out anywhere from 33 to 35 patties. You’ll want to roll and flatten them into thin patties, especially if you’re making these for a crowd.
You can also always make these into thicker patties or burgers, you’ll just need to adjust the baking time – for example, if you double the thickness, you’ll need to double the bake time too (approx 22 minutes).
And then bake! These patties can take anywhere from 10 to 12 minutes at 350F.
Because ground chicken is made up of both dark and light meat, you can always add an extra few minutes and it won’t hurt or overcook the meat. If you have a digital thermometer, you want the meat to reach an internal temperature of 165F.
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Can I Use Another Type of Ground Meat?
I’ve tested this recipe with ground chicken and ground turkey and trust me, ground chicken is WAY tastier. Ground turkey is fine, but it’s leaner and drier. The chicken kebabs turn out really soft and perfect.
Tips for Making Chicken Kebabs
- A medium cookie scoop is key to making this quickly and easily! If you want to make similar sized thin patties, this scoop is very helpful. Otherwise, the baking time will vary.
- You’ll want to make sure to oil your hands when forming the patties – otherwise, the ground chicken will stick to your hands and it will be difficult to make a nice round shape.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground chicken
- ½ cup finely chopped onion
- ÂĽ cup finely chopped cilantro leaves
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 Indian green chilli minced
Spices
- 1 Âľ teaspoons salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon coriander powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon roasted cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon paprika sweet/regular – not smoked
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- â…› teaspoon cayenne
- Oil to grease hands
Instructions
To Bake:
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Combine all of the ingredients together in a bowl and mix well.
- Add a bit of oil to the palm of both hands, then use a medium cookie scoop to scoop out a portion of the meat and press it firmly into the cookie scoop. Form into a round pattie (approx. ¼ inch thick and 2 ½ inches long). Make sure to tuck in any onions or cilantro that pop out. Use more oil as necessary to grease your hands.
- Bake at 350F for 10-12 minutes or until cooked through. The time will depend on the thickness of the patties.
To Shallow Fry:
- Shallow fry: Heat ¼ inch of oil in a pan over high heat for 1 minute, then reduce the heat to medium and place the patties in the pan (making sure not to crowd the pan). Cook for 2 minutes then flip the patties and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes, or until each side is golden brown and the inside is at least 165F. (Once the oil is hot, you may only need to cook for 1 minute per side.)
To Air-Fry:
- Air Fryer: Lightly spray oil on tray. Place patties on tray and air-fry for 4 minutes at 360F (no pre-heating necessary).
Notes
- You’ll want to make sure to oil your hands when forming the patties – otherwise, the ground chicken will stick to your hands and it will be difficult to make a nice round shape.
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Brine the chicken:
Brining the chicken before grilling adds moisture and flavor to the meat. Soak the chicken in a solution of salt and water for a few hours before marinating.
Use indirect heat:
For larger chicken pieces, use the indirect grilling method. Place the chicken on the side of the grill away from direct heat, and allow it to cook slowly and evenly.
Baste with marinade:
While grilling, baste the chicken with the leftover marinade or a fresh glaze to add extra flavor and keep the meat moist.
Opt for natural charcoal or wood chips:
If you prefer a smoky flavor, use natural charcoal or wood chips while grilling. Soak the wood chips in water for 30 minutes before adding them to the grill.
Let the chicken reach room temperature:
Before grilling, let the marinated chicken come to room temperature. This ensures even cooking and prevents the chicken from drying out. But Agaro OTG oven toaster griller in affordable budget and make awesome dishes. You post is really helpful
SONAL says
Can you prep these and freeze them before cooking?
Kavya says
Hi ! So i pan fried mine yesterday and they turned out a bit hard. If i bake them is there any way to tell if they are done and not undercooked? Also do.we flip them?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Kavya, I am a big fan of using a meat thermometer – it helps me from overcooking meat. If you don’t have one yet, I’d recommend getting one. This is the one I have an love but you can find other brands online too: https://www.thermoworks.com/thermapen-one/?tw=MYHEARTBEETS
Mareen says
Very easy to make, quick, and tasty. I tried the oven method this time and will try the air fryer method next. Since one can store it in a container and go, makes it a convenient snack food for me.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Mareen, I’m so glad to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how much you like this 🙂
N says
Can this be frozen either cooked or uncooked?
muft says
My oven-baked chicken kebabs were tasty but released a lot of liquid – please explain what did I do wrong?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Glad to hear that you liked them! As for the liquid, it’s normal for chicken to release its juices as it cooks – I’m not sure there’s any way around that. Some brands will add more water to their chicken than others. I always try to choose organic and have noticed that for ground chicken at least, it seems to release less liquid, but there’s still some.
Christina Pandian says
You make it so simple and fast.Thank you Ashley. Happy New year.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Thanks, Christina! Glad you liked the kebabs 🙂 Happy New Year!
Priyanka G says
Hi, so do you buy ground chicken from store or maybe do the grinding of chicken breadt yourself ?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Priyanka, I buy ground chicken from the grocery store 🙂