Want to learn how to make kabobs on a pellet grill using a simple recipe? The simple recipe mentioned here is for lemon pepper chicken kabobs. This recipe is healthy, nutritious and simple, all at the same time. Not only is it inexpensive, but it also flavorful and healthy for you.
This easy recipe calls for the use of skinless, boneless chicken breasts. These versatile chicken pieces are perfect for so many different recipes. Vegetables are also included for color, flavor, and nutrition. Louisiana lemon pepper seasoning will add the right level of tanginess and a savory flavor, leaving the kids pleading for more. Even grownups won’t mind extra servings.
You can also include interesting sides to turn this tasty snack into a zestful and nutritious meal. Plain boiled rice may be easiest to cook, but baked potatoes will make this tasty meal even more interesting.
Cooking Kabobs on Your Pellet Grill
A pellet grill is best for this recipe as the pellet smoke will infuse a true mouth-watering barbecue flavor to this meal. Making your recipes on a pellet grill is about as joyful as consuming the smoke-flavored barbecue itself since the irresistible aroma wafting in your backyard will entice everyone.
The preparation time for this delicious recipe is just 10 minutes. The cooking time is just around 15 minutes at a relatively mellow 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Smoking will take at least half an hour though. Although you can use any hardwood pellet variety for great results, the maple type is one that you should definitely try out for a tantalizing and exotic aroma.
Let’s see how this recipe is made without further ado.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This recipe calls for two pounds of skinless and boneless chicken breasts cut down to one-inch cubes. Other items include:
- One sweet onion (small) cut into two-inch pieces.
- Red, green and yellow bell peppers cut into two-inch pieces. One medium-sized bell pepper of each color is enough.
- Louisiana lemon pepper seasoning. The recipe for this tangy seasoning is given below.
- Wooden skewers immersed in water for half an hour.
Preparing Your Pellet Grill
First, prepare your pellet grill. Check your stock of wood pellets and load them into the pellet hopper. To get the grill ready, moisten it lightly with cooking spray. Scrape the grill grates to ensure that they are perfectly clean.
Place the chicken pieces and vegetables on the wooden skewers alternately. Sprinkle the lemon pepper seasoning to taste.
Set the temperature of your pellet grill to 450 degrees Fahrenheit and fire it up. Give the grill 15 minutes to allow it to heat up properly and burn off the residue from the grilling grates.
Smoking Your Kabobs
It is good to smoke your meal for at least 30 minutes to give it a rich authentic barbecue smoky flavor. You can smoke your barbecue for up to an hour for the best smoke flavor. Aim for the one-hour time mark to get the best from your pellet grill.
When the grill has been preheated for 15 minutes, turn down the temperature to 180 degrees Fahrenheit. The grill is now ready for smoking. Place the skewers on the grilling grates and allow them to remain there for up to 60 minutes to soak up the rich flavor and aroma of hardwood pellet smoke. This process is also known as ‘hot smoking’ or more simply ‘smoking’.
Keeping the barbecue in there for less than 30 minutes won’t do much to change the flavor. However, after 30 minutes have passed, the surface will open up and the chicken pieces will begin to absorb the smoke flavor.
When 30 minutes have elapsed, pull the skewers out from the grill. Set the temperature control to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. When the grill reaches this temperature, you can put the chicken skewers back on the grill. You will get great results in just 15 minutes.
The internal temperature of the chicken should be about 165 degrees Fahrenheit. After you have withdrawn the chicken, cover it and allow it to rest for 10 minutes prior to serving. During the time that the barbecue is being allowed to rest, the chicken is being cooked and the flavor is being further developed.
Wood Pellets
People are often interested in knowing about the best wood pellets for smoking. This question is hard to answer because it is really a matter of personal taste. You can try out different wood pellets to find out which flavor suits you best. You can even experiment with different combinations to ascertain which mixture is right for you.
But there is one thing that you must keep in mind, no matter what kind of pellets you use. Smoking works only for temperatures below 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Heating at temperatures above 250 degrees Fahrenheit will produce little smoke while cooking the food rather quickly. So the smoke flavor will be lost if you take the temperature beyond 250.
You can apply the same basic technique and recipe for a number of different seasonings to get rich and varied flavors. You can also use different vegetables like mushrooms, zucchinis, tomatoes, carrots and more.
Home Made Lemon Pepper Seasoning
Seasoning and sauces are the secret ingredients, which give amazing barbecue recipes their distinctive and unique flavors.
Lemon pepper seasoning is an all-purpose item, which can be used in many other recipes as well. This recipe is simple to make and does not require any artificial ingredients.
With just three easy ingredients – freshly ground pepper, kosher salt, and lemons – this seasoning is also light on your budget.
Lemon Zest
Make lemon zest from four to five large lemons. You can use five lemons if you want a stronger lemon flavor. Making lemon zest is easy. However, it should be done properly if you want to avoid bitterness. With the right technique, you will be able to separate the flavor-filled zest from the bitter white part. Obtaining the lemon zest is a simple two-step process.
Using a vegetable peeler, carefully slice strips of the lemon rind without gathering any of the white pith. Arrange the slices in a stack and using a sharp knife slice off the rind lengthwise. Make sure that the cut sections are as thin as possible. You now have your lemon zest. The rest of the seasoning recipe requires much less dexterity.
Add Peppercorn
Put all the lemon zest in a bowl and add freshly ground peppercorn. It is best to use peppercorn medley which is a distinct mixture of green, pink, white and black peppercorns. In addition, it also has coriander and allspice. One-third cup of peppercorn medley is enough. Mix all these ingredients nicely in the bowl and then transfer them to the spice grinder. Give the mixture a pulse to grind and mix the concoction.
Bake Mixture
Now pile this mixture in the middle of a baking sheet. Spread out the mixture as evenly as possible. Put this baking sheet in the oven and bake it at the mildest temperature until the moisture is all gone. The mixture will dry out completely if you spread it so that all of it is exposed to the environment. The baking process will take up to an hour or even longer.
For best results, check the baking sheet every now and then and toss the mixture. Spread it evenly and put it back into the oven. When the spice mix is completely dried, you can take it to the spice grinder and pulverize it. You will get a texture like fine gravel.
After the grinding is complete, you can add kosher salt to taste and mix it well. The lemon pepper seasoning is now ready. Put the seasoning in an airtight container where it can last for a few months.
It might take a little more effort than the store-bought variety, but the taste is definitely better since it is fresh and homemade.
You can level up the flavor by thinking up some good additional ingredients. For instance, you can throw in some onion flakes or garlic powder to get your very own exotic flavor, which everyone will admire.
Our Final Thoughts
Learning how to make kabobs on a pellet grill is not as tricky as you might think. It can take some time to master, but you will get pretty decent results early on if you are careful enough and don’t make haste.
As with all great recipes the secret lies in the sauces and seasonings. You can use the lemon pepper seasoning recipe provided and make interesting variations by trying out some different extra ingredients.
