These Chicken Skewers are crispy on the outside and so juicy inside. The marinade tenderizes the chicken and adds tons of flavor to this chicken. It’s no wonder this easy chicken recipe has been a family favorite for years.
Breading chicken is one of my favorite ways to prepare chicken because it adds crunch and helps keep the chicken from drying out, just like with our Crispy Chicken Sandwiches and Chicken Parmesan. It also makes the chicken reheat nicely.
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Chicken Skewers Video
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This Breaded Chicken Skewers recipe comes from my Aunt Tanya in Washington. Seems like everyone in our family has adopted these chicken skewers. It’s perfect for parties or your next family meal. If you take them off the skewers to serve, they resemble Popcorn Chicken. The kids gave this recipe two thumbs up.
Ingredients for Chicken Skewers
The list of ingredients for chicken skewers is short and simple and you may already have everything you need in your refrigerator and pantry:
- Chicken – we use chicken breast but you can substitute with chicken thigh meat that has been trimmed of fat. It’s just too much work for me. Chicken breast requires almost no prep.
- Bread crumbs – we use Italian-style bread crumbs, pictured below.
- Mayonnaise – adds wonderful moisture and tenderness to the chicken. If you don’t want to use mayo, you can also use ranch but go light on the salt since ranch has more salt in it than mayo.
- Mrs. Dash – this is our favorite salt-free seasoning. Any all-purpose salt-free seasoning will work here. you could also use the garlic-flavored dash.
- Salt & Pepper – simple seasonings are all you need.
- Oil – to sautee the skewers. I use extra light olive oil for nearly all of my cooking, but canola oil, vegetable oil, or any high heat neutral oil will work great.
- Skewers – I used 12 small wooden skewers. Make sure your skewers fit the length of your skillet comfortably so you can flip them easily.
How to Make Skewered Chicken
- Cut chicken – cut into 3/4″ wide pieces and add to a large mixing bowl.
- Season with salt, pepper, and Mrs. Dash. Stir in 3/4 cup mayo.
- Marinate – cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight (although I have also breaded and fried right away without any marinating and they still worked well).
- Skewer the chicken onto the wooden sticks.
- Breading – Pour bread crumbs on a large plate or platter. Roll the chicken skewers in bread crumbs until evenly coated.
- Sautee – In a large non-stick pan, add enough oil to generously cover the bottom and place over medium heat. Saute the chicken skewers for 3 minutes per side or until well browned on all sides and 165˚F at the thickest part of the chicken on a thermometer. Place on a paper towel-lined plate to soak up excess oil.
To Serve
You’ll want lemon wedges to squeeze over the fried chicken. It adds brightness and freshness to the chicken. You can also pair these with your favorite dipping sauces such as:
- Tomato Marinara
- Homemade Salsa
- Avocado Ranch
- Jalapeno Ranch
- Ketchup
- Fry Sauce
- Ranch
Make-Ahead
- Marinate – you can marinate overnight for super tender and flavorful chicken then bread and fry before serving.
- Keeping Skewers Warm – You can make them earlier in the day and warm them up in the oven in a baking dish before your party or dinner.
- Refrigerating – Once skewers have been sauteed and cooled, cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
I hope these Chicken Skewers become a new favorite for your family for years to come. It’s a chicken recipe that’s worth discovering.
Breaded Chicken Skewers
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken breast
- 1 cup Italian-style breadcrumbs
- 3/4 cup real mayonnaise
- 1 tsp Mrs Dash
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
- extra light olive oil, or canola oil, to fry
- 12 small wooden skewers
Instructions
- Cut the chicken into 3/4" wide pieces and place in a large mixing bowl. Season with salt, pepper, and Mrs. Dash. Mix in 3/4 cup mayo then let the chicken marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour or overnight.
- Thread the chicken pieces onto the skewers. Try to have the flat sides facing in one direction for even cooking.
- Pour bread crumbs on a large plate or platter. Roll the chicken skewers in bread crumbs until evenly coated.
- In a large nonstick pan, add enough oil to generously cover the bottom, set pan over medium heat. Sautee the chicken skewers for about 3 minutes per side, flipping until golden brown on both sides and the internal temperature reaches 165˚F on an instant read thermometer.
- Transfer to a paper towel lined platter to absorb any excess oil then serve.
Nutrition Per Serving
We first published this chicken skewer recipe in 2010. It’s an oldie but a goodie. This is a photo from back in the day. I still have that plate!
Made these tonight using thighs. Yes it was more work trimming the fat, but it’s what I had on hand and they were SOOO worth it. Absolutely delicious and a hit with the whole fam. I even ate one of the cold leftover skewers straight out of the fridge about an hour ago. YUM!
That’s wonderful, Courtney!
Can these be baked instead of frying in a pan? How will that affect the result?
Hi Anna, that will work. I would suggest letting it come to room temperature for about 30 minutes then preheat the oven to 400 and bake the chicken (arranged in a single layer on the baking sheet) for about 12-15 minutes or until the chicken is hot.
How do you recommend reheating these chicken skewers if you need to fry the a day ahead? Will the coating fall off or get mushy?
I would suggest letting it come to room temperature for about 30 minutes then preheat the oven to 400 and bake the chicken (arranged in a single layer on the baking sheet) for about 12-15 minutes or until the chicken is hot.
Hello! I am planning on making this recipe tomorrow do you think I can make this recipe without the bread crumbs?
Hi Abby, I haven’t tested that yet but I saw one of our readers shared this comment “When we made the second batch my husband forgot to put the bread crumbs on after he marinated the skewers and had them in the refrigerator for 2 hours. They were still delicious.👏🏼😊” Hope that helps.
Hi Natasha,
I have made these several times and they are always a hit with my family. Only one problem, I can’t cook them fast enough, they seem to disappear quickly.
Also spotted sharky, he sure knows how to cut lemons:)
Thank you for your so yummy recipes “You’re The Best”
Hi Melinda! You’re very welcome! I’m so glad you enjoy the recipes.
Have made these several times as they’re a go-to recipe for my toddlers. Prepping for baby #3 with freezer meals and wondering if this one is freezer friendly? I was planning to prep as directed and freeze prior to cooking (with breading). Would that be advisable or is there a more ideal method? Thanks!
Hi Angela! I’m glad you love the recipe.
To be honest, I’ve never tried freezing this. I assume prepping and marinating the meat them freezing would be fine and continuing with the recipe as instructed when it’s thawed. Sorry I can’t be more help. Congrats on baby number 3!
Hi Natasha
Can I put the chicken in deep fryer? If yes for how long? As I’m doing it for a party of 150 persons. Thanks
Hi Margrit. I think it would work fine but I have not done it myself to advise.
Hi Natasha, i have tried quite a few of your recipes and always turn out delicious 😊
Is it possible to Barbecue these breaded chicken skewers? Maybe without the breaded crumbs?
Hi Marcia! I would suggest using my other recipe for Grilled Garlic Chicken Skewers.
I saw Sharkey twice, Once he looked rather deflated to have to be laying on the counter. And secondly he was wrapped around the skewer that Natasha was trying to handle.
Good eye, Sylvia!
Hi Natasha. I love your recipes. Question, can I substitute Kosher salt for the sea salt?
Hi Patti! Yes, that would be fine. I hope you love this recipe!
This reminds me of city chicken (made with pork), hubby cannot have mayo, would yogurt work in its place?
Thank you for all you do and create, I have cooked so many of your recipes! I love your videos too, they really help with technique and they give me a good laugh too.
You are very welcome. I hope you’ll love all the recipes that you can try! I haven’t tested that to advise.
What kind of bread crumbs do you use for the chicken skewer recipe?
I used Italian-style breadcrumbs. You can see the image with the container/brand in the blog post above.
Thank you for all your great recipes. You are making our meals really great. Can’t wait to try the chicken skewers.
Aww, thanks, Neil! That’s such a kind comment! I’m so happy to hear you’re enjoying my recipes.
Can you cook theses skewers in the oven instead of in the frying pan?
Hi Shelley! I have not tested it. I think you could but they will not be as crisp. If you have an air fryer, here is what one of my readers said: ” The one change I made is cooking the chicken in an air fryer. 10 minutes at 400°, don’t even need to turn. I tried with skewers and without, worked perfectly both ways.” I hope that helps.
This recipe can be made with pork or a pork and veal combination for City Chicken. Excellent!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Nancy!
Have you ever made chrusciki cookies. They are called angle wings or bow ties. They are Ukrainian and Polish but the recipes I have tried they just do not turn out. My Mother and Dad both made them but I never had a recipe. Now when I try to make from someone else it doesn’t turn out. I love your recipes . thank you Linda
Hi Linda, I have not tried them but thank you for your suggestion.
Can thighs be substituted? My family only likes dark chicken meat?
Hi Janina! Yes, see my note above: “substitute with chicken thigh meat that has been trimmed of fat.” Hope you family enjoys this recipe!
Made these for New Year’s Eve Party. My 12 yo grandson said the chicken was the best!! Easy recipe, tender and flavorful chicken! Recipe is a keeper! Thank you!
You’re welcome, it’s my pleasure!
The chicken was easy to make and tasted really good. Great recipe! But, oh my, doesn’t this site have like one commercial per second! And it is on DuckDuckGo which is practically advertisement free. Hard even to read the recipe. Other then that the chicken was very tasty.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Zory! Thank you for sharing your concerns and feedback. The only way we can continue providing free recipes is by having ads on our site, so we are not able to remove those at this time. We find that most people would rather see the ads than pay to see the recipes. But we will definitely take note of your feedback and use it to improve our website.
I appreciate your feedback, and I hope you love every recipe you try.
This chicken was moist, tender and delicious! I followed the recipe exactly and the flavor was good. My husband loved it and I will make this again. Thank you for a great go-to recipe!!!
So great to hear that, Sandra. Thank you for your excellent comments and feedback!