Chicken Shish Taouk Skewers with Garlic Toum and Grilled Tomatoes

Steps

1. Step 1

   Make the marinade: in a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil, tomato paste, minced garlic, allspice, paprika, cinnamon, black pepper and salt until smooth.

   10 min

   • 1/2 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
   • 1/4 cup lemon juice
   • 3 tbsp olive oil
   • 2 tbsp tomato paste
   • 6 cloves garlic
   • 1 1/2 tsp ground allspice
   • 1 tsp sweet paprika
   • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
   • 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
   • 2 tsp kosher salt
2. Step 2

   Add the chicken pieces and turn until every piece is coated. Cover and refrigerate.

   5 min

   • 2 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
3. Step 3

   Let the chicken marinate at least 4 hours, or overnight for the best flavor.

   4 hr, hands-off

4. Step 4

   Make the toum: put the garlic cloves and salt in a food processor and run until finely minced, scraping down the sides. Add 1 tbsp of the lemon juice and run for 30 seconds more. No food processor? Pound the garlic and salt to a smooth paste in a mortar, scrape it into a bowl, and whisk in the oil drop by drop at first, then in a very thin stream.

   5 min

   • 10 cloves garlic
   • 1 tsp kosher salt
   • 1 tbsp lemon juice
5. Step 5

   With the processor running, add the oil in a very thin, steady stream, almost drop by drop at the start. After about 1/2 cup has gone in, the mixture should look white and creamy. Keep streaming, alternating with the remaining 1 tbsp lemon juice and the ice water, until all the oil is in and the toum is thick and fluffy like mayonnaise. Scrape into a bowl, cover and refrigerate until serving. If it looks loose or separated, stop adding oil and whip in 1 tbsp ice water to bring it back together.

   10 min

   • 1 tbsp lemon juice
   • 2 tbsp ice water
   • 1 1/2 cups neutral oil, such as canola or sunflower
6. Step 6

   If using wooden skewers, soak 8 of them in water for 30 minutes. Heat the grill to medium-high (about 450°F) and oil the grates.

   10 min · 450°F

7. Step 7

   Toss the tomatoes and onion wedges with 1 tbsp olive oil and a little salt. Thread the chicken onto skewers, pressing the pieces snugly together, and thread the tomatoes and onion onto separate skewers so everything cooks evenly.

   15 min

   • 1 lb cherry or small Roma tomatoes
   • 1 large red onion
   • 1 tbsp olive oil
   • salt
8. Step 8

   Grill the chicken skewers, turning every 3 minutes, until charred in spots and cooked through, 10 to 12 minutes total (165°F at the center of a piece). Grill the vegetable skewers alongside, turning once or twice, until the onion is softened and the tomatoes are blistered, about 8 minutes.

   12 min

9. Step 9

   Move the skewers to a platter and let the chicken rest 5 minutes. Warm the pita on the grill for about 30 seconds per side.

   5 min

   • 4 pita breads
10. Step 10

    Scatter the parsley over the skewers and serve with the toum, lemon wedges and warm pita.

    • 1 lemon
    • 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley

Where it’s from

Written by AI from an idea

Version 1, saved Oct 5, 2026