Caprese Chicken Kebabs

Caprese Chicken Kebabs
What better way to start out grilling season than with these Chicken Caprese Skewers? These are a new summer staple!

Bite-sized chicken pieces and cherry tomatoes are threaded onto skewers and cooked on a grill to give them a fire kissed char, then you add fresh mozzarella and finish them off with homemade pesto and a sweet and tangy balsamic glaze.

Chicken Caprese Skewers on white plate

Chicken Caprese Skewers Ingredients
For these healthy caprese skewers, you’ll need:

Chicken breasts
Olive oil
Fresh mozzarella balls
Grape or cherry tomatoes
Fresh basil (and lots of it!)
Parmesan
Pine nuts or walnuts
Garlic
Balsamic glaze
Salt and pepper

ingredients for caprese chicken kebabs
How to Make Caprese Skewers
Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and prep other ingredients. Preheat your grill.

diced chicken caprese skewers

Thread chicken and tomatoes onto skewers. Brush just lightly with oil and season with salt and pepper.

brushing olive oil onto chicken skewers
Grill until chicken is cooked through, about 4 – 6 minutes per side.

grilling caprese chicken skewers

While the chicken is grilling, prep the pesto in a food processor.

pesto ingredients in food processor for caprese skewers
Blitz it up until you get this magic sauce…

homemade pesto in food processor

Then add mozzarella to each end and serve the skewers warm with plenty of pesto and balsamic glaze. So much goodness!

Chicken Caprese Skewers drizzled with homemade pesto

How to Make Balsamic Glaze
If you can’t find the store-bought balsamic glaze or would just prefer to make it yourself, here’s how to do so:

In a small saucepan, whisk together 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar and 1 Tbsp honey.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low.
Simmer, stirring frequently, until reduced to about 3 Tbsp, about 10 – 13 minutes.
Let cool (it will thicken more as it cools).
Can I Make These With Chicken Thighs?
Definitely! I’d still recommend buying boneless skinless chicken thighs though, as they’re much easier to dice.

How Do You Know When the Chicken is Done?
You’ll know the chicken is fully cooked through when it register 165 degrees F in the center, or when its juices no longer run pink. When in doubt, cut open one of the chicken pieces to see if it’s still pink in the center.

close up of Chicken Caprese Skewers

Tips for the Best Caprese Skewers
If you want even more flavor, you can season the chicken as well (I was just trying to cut back on the ingredients list). Season with onion powder, garlic powder and Italian seasoning.
Use a store-bought pesto if short on time. It’s not as good and the color isn’t as pretty, but in a pinch it will work.
Already have sirlion steak on hand? I’m sure these caprese skewers would be good with steak in place of chicken.
Make the balsamic glaze from scratch if you’re all about homemade.

Chicken Caprese Skewers

A perfect summer recipe! Bite size chicken pieces and cherry tomatoes are threaded onto skewers and cooked on a grill to give them a light fire kissed char, then you finish them off with fresh homemade pesto and a sweet and tangy balsamic glaze.

Ingredients

2 3/4 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 lb. grape tomatoes
3 Tbsp olive oil
4 (8 oz) package mozzarella balls, drained
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbsp store-bought or homemade balsamic glaze
Homemade Pesto
2 cups (40g) slightly packed fresh basil leaves
3 Tbsp finely shredded parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp pine nuts or chopped walnuts
1 large garlic clove, minced (1 1/2 tsp)
1/3 cup olive oil (regular or extra virgin)
Instructions
If using wooden skewers soak in water at least 1 hour (I like to soak overnight. I used 11 8-inch skewers).
Preheat a grill over medium-high heat to about 425 degrees.
Thread chicken and tomatoes onto skewers (as pictured above, 4 pieces of chicken and 3 tomatoes per skewer).
Brush both sides with 1 Tbsp olive oil and season both sides with salt and pepper.
Grill chicken kebabs about 4 – 6 minutes per side until chicken registers 165 in center.
Meanwhile prepare pesto, in a food processor pulse basil, parmesan, pine nuts and garlic several times until minced.
Season with salt and pepper to taste and with food processor running slowly pour in olive oil.

Once kebabs have cooked through remove from grill and thread one mozzarella ball onto each end of the skewer, spoon pesto over kebabs and drizzle with balsamic glaze. Serve warm.
Notes
If you want even more flavor, you can season the chicken as well (I was just trying to cut back on the ingredients list). Season with onion powder, garlic powder and Italian seasoning.