Greek Chicken Skewers

I have certain herbs that stare at me month after month from their home on the spice rack.  I open my cabinet, quickly grab the paprika, and avoid making visual contact with those other jars who have long been forgotten, like an ex-boyfriend you narrowly escape running into on the street.  I'm talking about you: saffron, turmeric, allspice... and perhaps the most embarrassing jar I neglect: oregano.

I should use it more often, I know this.  I hear all the time how I am missing out, that I'm stunting my cooking, that oregano is this herb of the gods that makes marinara out of tomatoes and then does the dishes for you after.

I just don't get into it. That being said, I don't think that oregano (or bell pepper, for that matter) is completely without merit. I don't mind a dash in Italian food, or even a bit in a salad dressing, but overall I tend to put it in the same culinary category as bell peppers: overused and overpowering.

So this week, when I had already decided that I most definitely wanted to make some sort of chicken skewer (because food on a stick is awesome), it was begrudgingly that I went for the oregano.  Why am I admitting this?  Why tell the world (okay, okay, not the world... more like my parents and the three friends who check in on my blog from time to to)... ahem... why tell the world that I hate oregano, and then immediately post a recipe full of it?

Because--

Because I hate oregano.

And this recipe is full of it....

And it is delicious.  Shockingly delicious.  Company-worthy delicious!

So just this once, forget what you think you know about oregano, and give this one a try.

Greek Chicken Skewers

4.67 from 3 votes

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Cuisine: American, Chicken, Greek

Prep Time: 2 hours hours

Cook Time: 8 minutes minutes

Total Time: 2 hours hours 8 minutes minutes

Servings: 3 servings

Author: Basil and Bubbly

Ingredients

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• skewers soaked in water overnight
• ⅔ cup olive oil
• ⅓ red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 1 tablespoon parsley
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cloves garlic chopped
• juice of two lemons

Instructions

• Combine all ingredients (other than chicken) to create the marinade and set aside.
• Turn your broiler on to high heat.
• Slice the chicken into ¼ - ⅓" strips.
• Slide the strips onto the skewers and place in a shallow pan or container. Pour the marinade over the chicken and let marinate for at least two hours (or for as long as 12).
• Place the marinated chicken skewers on a broiler-safe pan (I used one that is a shallow pan with a rack that rests on top that simulates a grill.) Broil the skewers for 3 -4 minutes on each side (or until they are thoroughly cooked through).

Tried this recipe?Mention @basilandbubbly or tag #basilandbubbly!

A few notes about this recipe, as I feel it is significantly more vague than most of my recipes:

1. You don't have to soak the skewers, but it will prevent them from burning when under the broiler or on the grill if you do soak them.
2. You'll notice that I don't list a specific number of skewers to use: see number 3.
3. I simply state 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts because the weight is not really dependent on the yield.  You can slice your chicken as thin as you like, and reduce your cooking time, or you can make thicker slices and have a more substantial skewer.  I did find that the two chicken breasts I used (which totaled around .6 lbs) yielded enough skewers for my husband and I to have for dinner (with two side dishes) twice, and lunch the next day, with a few left over even after that.