Up your summer grilling game with these flavorful hoisin chicken skewers! Tender, marinated chicken is infused with hoisin—a Chinese-style BBQ sauce—then grilled to perfection for a smoky, caramelized finish. Simply marinate the chicken an hour or overnight, thread onto skewers, and cook until beautifully charred. Brush with extra hoisin sauce for an irresistible glaze. Easy, delicious, and always a crowd-pleaser—because who doesn’t love food on a stick?
Hoisin sauce, often called Chinese barbecue sauce, has a sweet-tart, umami-rich flavor that makes it perfect for marinating, basting, or glazing meats, seafood, and vegetables. In this recipe, I use it to create flavorful grilled chicken skewers (or kabobs) with delicious results. While a bottled version works well, try my homemade hoisin sauce—it’s gluten-free and lets you control the ingredients.
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Why You'll Like This Recipe
- Grilling chicken makes an easy and welcome summer dinner.
- Marinate the chicken ahead of time, 1 hour or overnight.
- Use either bottled hoisin sauce or make homemade (gluten-free).
- Using hoisin sauce as the marinade and glaze keeps it simple and delivers bold flavor.
Recipe Ingredients
Hoisin chicken skewers
- Chicken: Boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Buy by weight, not by the pieces.
- Hoisin sauce: Homemade hoisin sauce or bottled.
- Herbs: Use chopped cilantro or chopped parsley for an optional for garnish.
- Ginger: Use either fresh ginger or the ginger puree in a jar or tube is fine.
- Lime: Extra acidity for the marinade.
- Garlic: Fresh cloves provide great flavor, but the tube puree works well.
- Oil: Use toasted sesame or plain sesame oil.
Please see the recipe card for measurements.
Gluten-free hoisin sauce
If you want to make my homemade gluten-free hoisin sauce, here is what you need. Find the measurements on this recipe card. It's easy and delicious!
- Soy Sauce – Use low-sodium soy sauce or tamari for a gluten-free.
- Nut butter - Tahini, cashew butter, or creamy peanut butter.
- Unsulphured molasses - Provides deep color, warm sweetness, and depth.
- Toasted Sesame Oil – Enhances the sauce with nutty, aromatic depth.
- Honey - Adds sweetness; use mild liquid honey or a zero-sugar honey alternative.
- Tamarind - Brings a sweet-sour tang to the sauce. Optional but recommended. Sometimes called tamarind paste.
- Vinegar - A touch of acidity and tang to balance the flavors.
- Spice - I use Chinese five spice. If you are a cinnamon fan, I bet you'll love Five Spice, or substitute cinnamon.
- Garlic - Essential for savory depth and bold umami flavor.
Equipment
- Skewers: Bamboo skewers soaked in water ahead of time or metal. If using bamboo skewers, use the thicker ones, they don't burn as fast.
Chef's tip: Sometimes getting skewered chicken off the stick is not easy. What I do is spray the skewer with non-stick and it helps the meat slide off much easier. My preference is the avocado spray as it handles high heat well.
Substitutions and Variations
- Out of skewers? If you have a grill basket or a grill mat you can make it work. Just don't skewer the pieces.
- Use boneless chicken thighs instead of boneless chicken breasts.
Chef's note: Not sure what else to do with Hoisin sauce? I've slathered it on chicken, baby back ribs, burgers, shrimp, and seared scallops. Make it thick or thin it with a little water for a glaze. It's a favorite in my kitchen.
Recipe Instructions
Step 1: Add the marinade ingredients to a jar and shake well or puree in the blender.
Step 2: When grilling chicken on skewers, cut the pieces into larger chunks, about 1 ½" across. Small pieces cook too fast resulting in dry chicken.
Add the pieces to a zip top bag and pour marinade over the top. Marinate 1 hour on the kitchen counter (yes this is food safe) or overnight in the refrigerator.
Step 3: Drain the marinade and skewer the chicken pieces evenly. Place on a baking tray line with plastic and take the skewers to the grill.
Step 4: Heat up the grill, scrub the grates clean with a grill brush. Oil the grill. Brush the skewers with a little fresh hoisin sauce. Grill until golden and done, firm to the touch but not rock hard. Pull a piece off one end and slice it open. It should be barley pink.
You can brush the skewers with more sauce as you turn the kabobs (with a clean pastry brush, not the one that touched raw chicken). Brush them again at the end, and serve more hoisin sauce on the side.
Timing will depend on how hot your grill is. Overall grilling time was 7-8 minutes for my kabobs. The chicken is done when the meat is firm to the touch but still gives a little. Don't over cook them for tender, moist kabobs.
Grilling Tips
- Be sure your grill grates are clean or chicken can stick.
- For skewers, use bamboo. Go for the thicker ones, not the skinny ones. Soak them in water for 20-30 minutes before using. I also spray mine with non-stick before skewering the chicken. Alternatively use metal skewers but they make cook a little faster due to the metal conductivity.
- For food safety and faster cleanup, cover a rimmed baking sheet with plastic wrap or foil. Place the chicken on the lined sheet to transport to the grill. When the chicken is on the grill, remove the plastic, toss, and you have a clean tray to transport finished chicken back to the kitchen.
- No grill? Use a well seasoned cast iron grill pan pre-heated to hot.
- Don't overcook the chicken to maintain tenderness.
- When you take the skewers off the grill, brush them again with the sauce. That way you will get a good layer of flavor and beautiful color.
Serving Suggestions
Serve hoisin chicken skewers with fresh rice, either brown or white, or quinoa for a no-grain option. It's also good turned into bowls with the chicken, rice, and veggies.
- Steamed jasmine rice or basmati rice – A classic pairing to soak up the extra sauce.
- Asian cabbage salad – Shredded cabbage, carrots, and a light, creamy sesame dressing add a crisp contrast.
- Coconut Rice – Creamy and slightly sweet, pairs beautifully with the savory-sweet hoisin glaze.
- Stir-Fried Vegetables or grilled vegetables – Broccoli, bell peppers, and snow peas for a colorful, nutrient-packed side.
- Quick cucumber salad – A refreshing side with rice vinegar or lemon juice.
Recipe FAQs
Instead of sesame oil you can use avocado oil, a neutral, healthy oil or a liquid coconut oil.
Marinate the chicken 1 hour on the kitchen counter at room temperature, 4-6 hours in the refrigerator covered, or overnight in the refrigerator.
To prevent chicken skewers from sticking to the grill, be sure your grill grates are scrubbed clean, then oiled or sprayed. Also, before you put the skewers on the grill, give them a little spray of the oil (I use avocado oil) to make for easy release. One last tip, be sure your grill is hot before you put the skewers on.
For gluten-free hoisin chicken skewers, be sure to use GF hoisin, make homemade gluten-free hoisin (recipe on this site), and for anything with soy sauce, be sure to use tamari, which is gluten-free soy sauce. For a no-soy options, use soy-free tamari.
More Grilling Recipes
And for a grilled veggie recipe, try this simple grilled zucchini. It's terrific in summer when zucchini is plentiful. And if your grill has a rotisserie attachment, here is how to rotisserie a whole chicken step by step. I do one every week!
⭐️Did You Make This Recipe?
If you make hoisin chicken skewers, please add your comment. I appreciate your feedback and enjoy hearing from you. If you loved it, please give it a 5-star rating! They really help other readers.
📖 Recipe
Hoisin chicken skewers
Equipment
- Bamboo or metal grilling sticks
Ingredients
Chicken Skewers
- 1 ¾ pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
- ¼ cup homemade or bottled Hoisin sauce divided use
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro optional garnish
Marinade
- ½ cup hoisin sauce
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil regular or toasted, or avocado oil
- 1 tablespoon finely grated ginger fresh, jar, or tube
- 2 large garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1 lime juiced
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Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts into large pieces, about 1 ½″ in size. Whisk all of the marinade ingredients together in a medium bowl. Using ½ cup of the marinade, add the chicken pieces and toss to coat well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour at room temperature, or 4-6 hours refrigerated, or overnight.
- 45-60 minutes before dinner, remove the chicken from the refrigerator. Drain off the marinade and discard. Cover a rimmed baking sheet with foil or plastic wrap. Spear the chicken pieces onto the bamboo sticks, placing the chicken pieces snugly together. Lay prepared kabobs on the covered baking sheet.
- Pre-heat the grill (or grill pan) to hot. For outdoor grilling, scrape the grill grates clean and oil or spray them.
- Turn the hot grill down to medium. Place the chicken kabobs on the grill and grill the first side of the kabobs until golden and you get good grill marks, about 3-4 minutes. Turn and brush with a little fresh hoisin.Grill the other side for another 3 minutes, brush with sauce and turn. Do not over cook the chicken. When done it will feel firm to the touch with a little give in the center. Glaze with more sauce upon removing from the grill if desired. Serve with chopped cilantro if desired and extra Hoisin sauce to dip.
Notes
- Soy Sauce – Use low-sodium soy sauce or tamari for a gluten-free option.
- Nut butter - Tahini, cashew butter, or creamy peanut butter.
- Molasses - Provides deep color, warm sweetness, and depth. Use unsulphured molasses for the best flavor.
- Toasted Sesame Oil – Enhances the sauce with nutty, aromatic depth, or plain sesame oil, or avocado oil.
- Honey - Adds sweetness; use mild liquid honey or a zero-sugar honey alternative.
- Tamarind - Brings a sweet-sour tang that elevates the sauce. Optional but recommended. Sometimes called tamarind paste.
- Vinegar - A touch of acidity and tang to balance the flavors.
- Spice: - I use Chinese five spice. If you are a cinnamon fan, I bet you'll love Five Spice, or substitute cinnamon.
- Garlic - Essential for savory depth and bold umami flavor.
Nutrition
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