Pesto Chicken Skewers

Today’s recipe is the last one we photographed last year - as we ended our fall camping at the Kiosk Campground in Algonquin Provincial Park.

It’s also one of the first recipes we turned to when planning our camping menus for the current camping season!

Neither one of us had tried pesto before we got together. We both still remember the day it happened - we were wandering a local farmer’s market, and picked up a jar because it sounded interesting.

We go home, tried a little sample to figure out how we wanted to use it... and immediately plowed through that whole jar with a spoon!

Since then, we’ve taken to making our own Homemade Pesto, and using it in things like my Homemade Pesto Chicken Panini and Keto Pesto Chicken Lasagna... as well as just having a go at it with a spoon. Obviously!

This Pesto Chicken Skewers recipe can be made with either store bought or homemade pesto - I definitely recommend homemade, though.

I do add some dried basil to bump that flavour up a bit, but you want to start with the best pesto you can.

Beyond that, it’s just a really simple, tasty recipe - whatever time of year you want to make it!

... but maybe aim for making it on a day that was less drizzly than then one we photographed this batch on, if you’re going to be cooking outside. North Algonquin on a rainy late October day was... an experience!

Ingredients

This recipe uses really basic ingredients... we’ve never had any trouble finding what we need, even in relatively rural grocery stores.

As always, I have some ingredient notes for you:

Pesto

If you can make your own pesto, you’ll have better results than using a grocery store pesto... but I might be a bit of a pesto snob.

If you haven’t made basil pesto before, let me recommend my Homemade Pesto Recipe. Making pesto is SUPER easy, and always tastes so much better than store bought!

If you do buy your pesto, I recommend holding off on the salt at first, then seasoning the marinade to taste. Some brands are INCREDIBLY salty!

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

I like to use boneless, skinless chicken breast, for the sake of ease. It’s easy to find, doesn’t involve a lot of fuss to work with, and easily cuts into chunks.

That said, feel free to use boneless, skinless chicken thighs if you prefer. I’m personally not a fan of fussing with trimming then, but they DO make for juicier skewers.

Aim for about 2 lbs of boneless skinless thighs, before trimming.

Fresh Produce

This recipe uses whole crimini mushrooms (AKA Baby Bella Mushrooms), as well as fresh zuchinni. Regular white / button mushrooms can be swapped out for the crimini mushrooms.

If you aren’t a fan of mushrooms - or zuchinni - substitute more of the other.

Alternatively, you can skip the vegetables entirely, and you’ll have enough marinade to double the chicken!

Balsamic Vinegar

Aim to use a relatively neutral flavoured balsamic vinegar.

While I’m a big fan of things like passion fruit or white peach balsamic vinegars... they won’t necessarily taste the best in this recipe!

You want to accentuate the basil, not overwhelm it!

Everything Else

Rounding out this recipe, you will need:

Olive Oil (Or Avocado Oil)
Ground Black Pepper
Fresh Lemon Juice
Garlic Powder
Grilling Spray
Dried Basil
Salt

... I just don’t have anything else to add, as far as these last few ingredients go. Pretty simple stuff!

How to Make Garlic Pesto Chicken Skewers

The full recipe is in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post, here is the pictorial walk through:

Garlic Pesto Marinade

Measure the pesto marinade ingredients into a small bowl or measuring glass, whisk to combine.

Taste, season with salt and pepper if desired, and set aside.

Marinated Kebabs

Wash and trim the mushrooms, place in a large Ziplock baggie.

Wash the zucchinis, cut into ¾" thick slices, and add to the bag of mushrooms. Set aside.

Trim chicken breasts, cut into 1" cubes or long strips. Place in a second Ziplock baggie - I’ll usually use medium one, unless I’m making a double batch.

Pour about ⅔ of the marinade into the baggie of vegetables, and the rest into the baggie of chicken. Push most of the air out of each bag, seal.

Gently shake the veggie bag to coat everything in the marinade, and gently massage the chicken bag to coat the chicken pieces.

Chill both baggies for at least 2 hours, but no more than 12.

Assembly

Get a medium fire going. You can cook your pesto skewers on a camp stove, over hot coals, or even over the open flame of a fire pit.

Thread the veggies onto skewers - mixed together, or separately - and thread the chicken onto separate skewers. Spray everything - including the grill grate - with nonstick cooking spray.

Arrange the skewers in a single layer, leaving some room between each skewer. Depending on the size of your grill, you may need to work in batches.

If your grill is big enough to cook everything at once, start grilling the chicken skewers to give them a bit of a head start. After a few minutes, add the vegetable skewers to the grill top.

If, like us, your grill is too small for everything... I’ll usually do the veggies first, get them almost finished, then swap them out for the chicken. Once the chicken is done, you can re-warm the veggies for a minute or two.

Cook until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 F when an instant read thermometer is inserted, and the vegetables are as done as you like. We like the mushrooms soft, and the zucchini a bit charred - your mileage may vary.

Remove pesto chicken skewers from heat. Serve hot, with a side salad or rice, if desired.

Leftovers

Once cooled to almost room temperature, leftover skewers can be transferred to an airtight container and kept in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Gently reheat before serving.

More Grilling Recipes for Camping

Looking for some great meals to cook on a campfire or grill? Here's a few of my favourites!

Bacon Venison Burgers with Whiskey Onions
Bannock Burgers
Bison Burgers with Bacon and Caramelized Onions
Campfire Pizza
Elk Burgers with Bacon & Sauteed Mushrooms
Fajita Chicken Kebabs
French Onion Soup Burgers
Greek Chicken Souvlaki
Grilled Chicken Fajitas
Lemon-Dill Fresh Salmon Burgers
Easy Grilled Shrimp Tacos
Grilled Tuna Tacos
Mediterranean Chicken Kebabs
Thanksgiving Turkey Burgers

Be sure to check out our other Camping Recipes, including Camping Desserts, Camping Snacks, Make-Ahead Camping Mix Recipes, and a ton of delicious Camping Main Dish Recipes.

Also, we had SO much fun designing gourmet jerky recipes for our camping trips, we started a whole new blog for them! Check out Dried & Tasty for all kinds of fun recipes to make in your food dehydrator!