Honey, Lime & Sriracha Chicken Skewers
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These chicken skewers marinated in honey, lime juice and Sriracha taste every bit as good as they look.
These chicken skewers marinated in honey, lime juice, and Sriracha are every bit as good as they look — and if you haven’t tried Sriracha, the Asian hot sauce named after the coastal city of Si Racha in Thailand, this is the perfect recipe to taste just how delicious it is. Made from sun-ripened chili peppers, distilled vinegar, garlic, sugar, and salt, Sriracha is used in soups, sauces, noodle dishes, omelets, burgers or anything else to add a delicious spicy taste. It has become so popular in the States that you can find it in the international section of most supermarkets.
What You’ll Need To Make Honey, Lime & Sriracha Chicken
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by making the marinade. In a blender, combine the zest of a lime, fresh lime juice, honey, soy sauce, vegetable oil, garlic, ginger, and Sriracha. (Even though you’re puréeing the marinade, it’s a good idea to roughly chop the garlic and ginger so they get incorporated — some blenders can’t handle large chunks.)
Purée until completely smooth, then set aside 1/2 cup of the marinade to use as a drizzling sauce.
Next, prepare the chicken. I’ve specified boneless skinless chicken thighs for this recipe because they’re more flavorful than chicken breasts and easier to cook without drying out. I know many people prefer white meat but I’ve tried both in this recipe and, trust me, it’s much better made with dark meat.
The only drawback to using chicken thighs is that they need to be trimmed before you cook them. I think it’s easiest to use kitchen shears as opposed to a knife. So, using scissors, simply cut off any gristle and large chunks of fat (don’t fret over every little bit as it mostly melts away on the grill) and then cut the meat into 2-inch pieces.
Place the chicken in a Ziplock bag with the remaining marinade and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.
After the chicken has marinated, thread the pieces onto skewers.
Preheat your grill to medium-high heat. Scrape the grates clean to prevent the chicken from sticking, then dip a wad of paper towels in oil and rub the grates until smooth and shiny.
Grill the chicken, turning occasionally to promote even browning, for 10-15 minutes.
Keep an eye on it — the honey in the marinade causes the chicken to caramelize on the grill and turn a beautiful, rich brown color; however, the chicken can burn if the grill is too hot. Lower the heat if the chicken is browning too fast.
Transfer the skewers to a platter and drizzle with the reserved marinade. Sprinkle chopped cilantro over top and serve. Enjoy!
It was a mouth-watering photo from a blog called Kitchen Meets Girl that caught my eye on Pinterest and inspired this recipe.
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Honey, Lime & Sriracha Chicken Skewers
These chicken skewers marinated in honey, lime juice and Sriracha taste every bit as good as they look.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce (use gluten-free if needed)
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon lime zest, from one lime
- 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, from 2 limes
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1½ square inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped (see note)
- 1½ tablespoons Sriracha sauce
- 1¼ teaspoon salt
- 2½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs (between 8-10), trimmed and cut into 2-inch chunks
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro, plus a few whole sprigs for garnish
- Limes, sliced into wedges, for garnishing platter (optional)
Instructions
- In a blender, combine the soy sauce, honey, oil, lime zest, lime juice, garlic, ginger, Sriracha and salt. Blend until completely smooth. Pour ½ cup of the marinade into a small bowl; cover and refrigerate until ready to serve (this will be your drizzling sauce).
- Combine the chicken and remaining marinade in a large Ziplock bag and seal tightly. Place in a bowl (in case of leakage) and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- Remove the chicken from the marinade and thread onto skewers, folding the pieces in half if they are long and thin.
- Be sure the grill is clean, then preheat to medium-high heat. To grease the grill, lightly dip a wad of paper towels in vegetable oil and, using tongs, carefully rub over the grates several times until glossy and coated. Grill the chicken kebabs, covered, until golden brown and cooked through, turning skewers occasionally, for 10 to 15 minutes. (Keep an eye on it -- if they are browning too quickly, turn the heat down.) Transfer the skewers to a platter. Warm up the reserved marinade in the microwave and either drizzle it over top or pass it alongside. Scatter the chopped cilantro over top and garnish the platter with lime wedges and cilantro sprigs, if desired.
- Note: Check out easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger here.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 321
- Fat: 10g
- Saturated fat: 2g
- Carbohydrates: 20g
- Sugar: 18g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 37g
- Sodium: 1147mg
- Cholesterol: 180mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This is one of my favorite recipes of yours (even though it is hard to pick just one!). Have you ever made this marinade with salmon? Thinking it would be great.
So glad you like it! Yes, it should work with salmon but be sure to only marinate it for 30 minutes or so, otherwise the acid in the marinade will start to “cook” the fish. Please LMK how they turn out!
Hi Jen.
Is there a substitute for soy sauce I could use, or can I omit it without a big change in flavour?
Hi Michelle, omitting it would definitely change the flavor. You could use Braggs Aminos or tamari in place of the soy sauce.
Delicious! Will definitely make again! I was very hesitant to add all that honey but it was perfectly fine. I added chilli flakes in the marinade and toasted sesame seeds on top and using thighs made the chicken not dry out at all. I also only had to time to marinate it for 2 hours and they still came out great,
Made the Honey, Lime, Sriracha chicken last night and it was a top 10. Also added jasmine rice with shallots and a tad of butter. Absolutely delightful 🙂
Next time I’m going to make the Thai salad with peanut dressing with it. What do you suggest for dessert that is easy and what kind of wine do you pair with the meal ?
Outdoor dinner party coming up soon.
I am true follower of your wonderful recipes. Thank you and keep up the terrific work.
So glad this was a hit!! I’d love this with a really cold white wine — maybe a chardonnay or sauvignon blanc. In terms of dessert, this wild be nice with something lemony like these lemon bars or lemon berry parfaits. I’m also about to share a Vietnamese No-Churn Coffee Ice Cream which would also be great here (although it’s influenced by a different part of Asia)! 🙂
Just made this tonight with basmati rice and the suggested Thai crunch salad. Lots of happy flavors on the tongue. Hubby loved it too. He cannot eat anything spicy and found this was perfectly spiced.
Since I made the full recipe for just two of us (yay leftovers!), I served the sauce on the side and it was great over the chicken and the rice combo.
Can’t wait to make this for the next cookout.
Jenny: I made the chicken kabobs and your key lime pie for the 4th. Absolutely delicious. You are the bomb.
Do you think the marinade would freeze well so when I wanted some pre-prepared I could have it ready to go, just thaw it? Or how long would it keep in the refrigerator to make a big batch?
This is hands down the BEST chicken I have ever made. I didn’t bother w/skewers, I just cooked the chicken in chunks on the grill. It will be my go to for when friends come over. Delish, Delish, Delish.
Has anyone tried it on pork?
So glad you like this, Ruby! I’ve never frozen the marinade, but I think you could (and I suspect you could store it in the fridge for 4 to 5 days). 🙂
Made this tonight, marinating by 11am cooked at 7pm. Absolutely delicious!
Absolutely excellent! I will make this over and over and over again.
This is the BEST chicken recipe I have come across in a long time. It is easy to make. I did not cut up the chicken and put in on skewers; I just cut the fat off and sliced some of the thighs in two and off to the grill they went. We used a rotisserie basket for the grill to hold the thighs. They were absolutely perfect – melt in your mouth perfect! We marinaded the thighs for about 20 hours – they absorbed almost all of the marinade. Delicious! I needed to give it 10 stars but, alas, only 5 were available…
🙂 Glad you enjoyed it!
I have no grill; can this be successfully made under the broiler of my electric oven?
Yep, definitely. The cook time will be about the same. 🙂