Try this Alabama-Style Chicken Kebabs recipe, or contribute your own.
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
- the sauce
- 1 tablespoon sambal oelek (or more if you can handle it..i used
- 1 clove garlic mashed or put through a press
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (6 to 8 ounces each
- four 12-inch skewers (if using wood soak them in water for at least 30 minutes to prevent burning)
- salt pepper and olive oil
- Carbohydrate 8.27544584003454 g
- Cholesterol 37.1062500266285 mg
- Fat 31.7390423166975 g
- Fiber 0.105458334750519 g
- Protein 0.769559375456489 g
- Saturated Fat 5.74117010797074 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (132g)
- Sodium 727.440667274296 mg
- Sugar 8.16998750528403 g
- Trans Fat 25.3596676253934 g
- Calories 328 calories
Step-by-step
- Whisk all ingredients together. Cover and refrigerate. (Sauce can be made well ahead of time.)
- Cut the breast halves into 1 1/2 inch cubes and thread them on the skewers. Season the kebabs with a little salt and pepper and drizzle with a little olive oil. Light your grill to medium heat and oil the grates well.
- Reserve 1/2 to 3/4 cup of the sauce for dipping.
- Place your kebabs on the grill and start lightly basting and turning until the chicken is done. (Be careful not to burn!) Serve them up with a little of the reserved sauce on the side.
Swapping apple cider vinegar for fresh lemon juice alters the emulsion stability, shifting the sauce from a sharp, acetic tang to a softer citrus profile that scorches faster over direct flames. Alabama barbecue traditions rely on a mayonnaise and vinegar foundation rather than a tomato base, utilizing high fat content to insulate poultry against dry heat.
The Chemistry of Basting and Browning
Mayonnaise functions as a stable oil-in-water emulsion containing dispersed egg proteins. Brushing this mixture onto the chicken during grilling introduces lipids and amino acids that undergo the Maillard reaction more rapidly at medium heat. Reserve a clean portion of the sauce before touching raw meat to prevent cross-contamination. Wooden skewers must submerge in water for 30 minutes to prevent ignition on a grate heated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Turn the poultry every two minutes, basting sparingly until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Sauce separation occurs if vinegar is added too quickly to the mayonnaise base; whisk continuously while streaming the acid to maintain emulsion integrity.
- Chicken cubes cut larger than two inches will cook unevenly, leaving the exterior charred before the center reaches safe temperatures.
- Oiling the grill grates thoroughly prevents the delicate mayonnaise solids from sticking and tearing the protein fibers during turning.
