Chicken Shish kebab

Grilled foods like kebabs are popular in Middle East countries. Among them, Shish kebab is very easy to make and cherished by people of America also. My first authentic kebab tasting experience happened after coming to US only. I started making them after tasting the kebabs of  New york street vendors, which is one of the most sought experiences one should have there. Middle East kebab made in NYC would be served as 'chicken over rice' or as kebab stuffed flat breads with a creamy white sauce.  According to my knowledge, this shish kebab is a colorful kebab with many vegetables likes bellpepper, tomato, onion , pineapple etc skewered together with meat pieces and grilled.
I made this Shish kebab with boneless chicken thigh , green bellpeper and onion and Indian touch. Instead of grilling I baked and broiled them (which is also equally delicious). Any Halal shop can cut this kind of pieces if requested.  I am narrating a baked kebab version with Indian spices and a juicy marination method which I learned through foodnetwork channel.
Enjoy the Independence day with these healthy colorful kebabs !

Baked chicken shish kebab

Kebab before baking.

Ingredients:
Chicken - 1.5 lb
ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
turmeric - 1 tsp
red chilly powder - 2 tsp
black pepper powder - 1 tsp
cumin powder - 1 tsp
curry masala powder - 1 tsp
vinegar - 1/4 cup
Indian yogurt - 1/4 cup
Extra virgin olive oil / butter - 2 tbsp + 1 tbsp
all purpose flour - 1 tbsp
salt - to taste ( 2 tsp)
Vegetables like mushroom, bell pepper, pineapple, cherry tomato, onion, zucchini can be skewered along with meat.
lemon - 1 (to garnish)

Method:
Rinse the meat and cut it into 2 inch size cubes (approx).
Mix salt 1 tsp, red chilly powder, 1 cup water and vinegar and marinate the  chicken pieces in this solution overnight or 2 - 6 hours inside refrigerator. This step makes the chicken juicy and tender and a must if using chicken breast (white meat).
Take out the chicken pieces by draining the marination completely. Pat dry if possible.
In a mixing bowl add ginger garlic paste, curd (yogurt), red chilly powder 1 tsp,  salt , pepper powder, curry masala powder, cumin powder, oil / butter and All purpose flour. Mix this into a thick paste and marinate the chicken pieces for 1 hour in this paste or longer inside fridge. (we can prepare this paste ahead and save it in fridge till marination).
In the mean time soak the skewers in water.
Thread the chicken pieces in the skewer in the following fashion or any thing as we wish....chicken piece ..1/2 inch gap... chicken piece 1 ..gap.... bell pepper square ...gap...2 chicken pieces... gap ...onion wedge ...gap...2 chicken pieces ....like this.
The 1/2 inch gap is necessary to save the kebab from getting soggy.
Heat oven to 350 deg . Line a  baking tray with Aluminum foil. Coat it with 1 tbsp oil / butter.
Arrange the skewers without touching each other.
Bake for 20 minutes on one side, flip and bake for 10 minutes the other side.
Broil for 2 minutes. Take out and enjoy!
(The above can be made in a  grill also).
Chicken shish kebab is ready!

Serving suggestion:
Squeeze lemon above ( if needed) before serving.
Serve over any rice like briyani or ghee rice.
Serve as appetizer or main course.

Note:
Here is one more marination recipe with Americanized kebab flavor, which is easy to follow and an alternative to Indian marination.
Do the first marination if using white meat and use the below for marination for 1 hour:. or simply marinate in the below for 1-2 hours before grilling.
chicken - 1 lb,  salt - as per need, pepper powder - 1/2 tsp, turmeric - 1/2 tsp, cumin - 1/2 tsp, dry powdered oregano - 1 tsp, basil powder - 1/2 tsp,  dry garlic powder - 1 tsp, cayenne pepper - 1/2 tsp, vinegar - 2 tsp, butter / EVOO - 2 tbsp
Serve with white sauce or ranch dressing.

Grape juice

Many a times we squeeze fresh juice from raw grapes but by that way the juice would not get the color of the grapes. Also some people can't take grape juice , because of its cooling nature. But here is a method to extract the juice along with its natural color and suitable for all body types.
Few months back hubby brought a big pack of red grapes but it was a large quantity for him. So I made few recipes using it.  I saved some grapes for juice, so that he can take it to office for snack time:) This is not a regular juicing technique for grapes. But I love it very much, as my mom got this recipe from her sister, my Gandhi chithi . During one fine summer, when our chithi was visiting us, mom tried to make some grape juice as welcome drink instead of regular lime juice. Chithi told amma to follow the below method so that kids can drink it without any hesitation and after that she had used this recipe every time she made this juice and now I am continuing that:)

Ingredients:
Grapes - 200 gm (2 coffee mug full approx)
water - 5 cups
sugar - 2 tsp per cup

Method:
Rinse the grapes thrice or till it runs clear.
Add 1 tbsp salt per 2 cups of rinsing water and let it soak to remove any chemicals (optional).
Again wash well in water. Drain water and keep aside.
Bring 5 cups of water to boil and add the grapes.
wait till it boils and grapes start cracking.
Switch off. Keep closed for 10 minutes. Let cool.
Take out the grapes alone and squeeze using hands. Add the sugar and scrub the fruit with sugar and extract all the juice.
Repeat with the boiled water and extract all the juice from grapes.
Filter to remove any seeds or skin.
Pour in a pitcher, let cool completely and serve chilled.

Note:
Red / black grapes look gorgeous by this recipe. I have used red grapes here.
Prepare this juice few hours before serving, let cool in room temperature or serve chilled.
Stays good in fridge for a 3 days.
Sour grapes will make incredibly tasty juice.