Main Dishes
Easy Chicken Kofta with Pepperoncini Hummus
Prep
30 minutes
Cook
1 hour 30 minutes
Yield
16 kofta skewers
These easy Chicken Kofta are paired with a spicy pepperoncini hummus. This recipe is a great appetizer for your summer get together.
Get ready for a flavor explosion with this delicious Chicken Kofta recipe. I’ve paired tender, spiced chicken kofta with a zesty hummus infused with pepperoncini. This dish is a great appy to serve at your next dinner party, or can even make a protein-packed lunch.
❤️ Why You’ll Love Chicken Kofta
- Easy: This recipe takes a little bit of time to make, but that’s only because it’s best to let the meat marinate for a few hours. You can easily prep this in the morning and then cook it up for dinner.
- Healthy: This dish is protein-packed with lean protein and creamy chickpea hummus.
- Versatile: Serve this at a dinner party for an appetizer or serve it as a main course with some other delicious side dishes.
🍲 Ingredients
Chickpeas – For this recipe, I used dried chickpeas. Using dried chickpeas requires you to soak them in water for 12-24 hours. If you don’t have this time, you can use canned but dried beans can be a great budget-friendly option with less sodium and superior flavor and texture.
Walnuts – Part of what makes these Chicken Kofta magical is that the chicken is made with all sorts of seasonings that make them perfectly flavorful and crunchy. One of the ingredients that packs healthy nutritional benefits and a crunch is walnuts. Walnuts are a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants, and compounds that support heart health, brain function, and gut health.
Sesame Seeds – I also added sesame seeds to the kofta. Sesame seeds are tiny powerhouses of nutrition, packed with healthy fats, protein, fiber, and essential minerals like calcium, magnesium, and zinc. They’re so easy to sprinkle on just about anything!
👩🍳 How to Make Chicken Kofta
Soak & cook the chickpeas
- Important: Soak the dried chickpeas in a large bowl covered with water for 12-24 hours.
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas and add to a large pot with 1 tsp baking soda. Add enough water to cover the chickpeas. Place the pot on the stove and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Once the water is boiling, simmer the chickpeas over medium heat for 1-2 hours or until they reach your desired softness.
- Once this chickpeas are fully cooked, drain and rinse the chickpeas and then place on a kitchen towel or on paper towels and rub them until the skins come off (this is optional).
- Make the hummus by adding the chickpeas to a food processor with the tahini, garlic cloves, lemon juice, salt, pepper and olive oil. Blend on high until almost completely smooth. Scrape the sides down as needed.
- Next, slowly stream in the juice from the pepperoncini jar and then add in the ice cubes. Blend on high until very smooth.
- Finally, add in the chopped pepperoncini and pulse until you reach the desired texture (pulse longer for smoother hummus).
- Transfer the hummus to a serving dish and use a spoon to spread around evenly. Set aside.
Make the chicken
- Soak the wooden skewers in water and set aside.
- Make the chicken mixture by mixing together the ground chicken, chopped mint, crumbled feta cheese, garlic, egg, breadcrumbs, ground walnuts, sesame seeds, lemon zest, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and olive oil. Place the mixture into the fridge for 15 minutes.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Place chicken mixture in a piping. Insert skewer into bottom of the piping bag and cover skewer with meat, squeezing from the top of the piping bag and slowly pulling the piping bag in an upward motion to cover the skewer with chicken. Approximately 2 tablespoons of meat per skewer.
- Place the skewers in the fridge for 15 minutes while you heat the grill to medium-high heat, about 400-425F.
- Once the grill is hot and the chicken skewers have been in the fridge for 15 minutes, oil the grill with olive oil or cooking spray and give the skewers a little drizzle of olive oil as well.
- Cook the skewers on the grill, turning every 3-4 minutes, for a total of 10-15 minutes or until cooked through to 165F.
- Remove the skewers from the grill when done and let rest for 5 minutes.
Assemble the final dish –
- Place the cooked skewers on top of the pepperoncini hummus and then garnish with lemon peel, walnuts, sesame seeds, fresh mint and extra pepperoncini peppers (chopped if desired).
- Serve with pita and enjoy!
🪄 Tips and Tricks
- Don’t Overcook: Chicken cooks quickly. Overcooking is the quickest way to dry out your kofta. Aim for an internal temperature of 165°F (74°C). Use a meat thermometer to check accurately.
- Finely Mince Aromatics: Any garlic and herbs you add should be very finely minced or even grated. Large chunks can create weak points in the kofta, making them prone to crumbling.
- Chill the Mixture: After mixing, cover the kofta mixture and chill it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. This allows the flavors to meld and the fat to firm up, making the mixture easier to handle and less likely to fall apart when cooking.
🗒 Variations
If you like these Chicken Koftas, try one of these other kofta recipes:
🗒 Best served with
👝 How to Store Leftovers
Store the leftover hummus and kofta separately in airtight containers in the fridge. The hummus will last up to 5 days, and the kofta should be consumed within 3 days.
🤔 Common Questions
Always dampen your hands with cold water before shaping. This prevents sticking and helps you form smooth, compact shapes without overworking the meat. Aim for uniform thickness for even cooking.
You can bake, grill, or pan-fry kofta. Do whatever is easiest for you!
Yes, you can! When freezing raw, shape the kofta, flash freeze them on a baking sheet until solid, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag for 2-3 months. Cook directly from frozen, adding extra time.
When freezing cooked kofta, freeze fully cooked and cooled kofta in an airtight container for 3-4 months. Thaw in the fridge and reheat.
Easy Chicken Kofta with Pepperoncini Hummus
Ingredients
For the pepperoncini hummus
- 3/4 cup Yupik dried chickpeas *Soak the chickpeas in a large bowl covered with water for 12-24 hours.*
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 6 tbsp tahini
- 2 large garlic cloves
- 1 lemon, juice of
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp ground pepper
- 1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 5 tbsp juice from the pepperoncini jar
- 2 large ice cubes
- ¼ cup chopped pepperoncini (stems & seeds removed)
For the chicken
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1/4 cup fresh chopped mint
- 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 3 garlic cloves pressed
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup Yupik ground walnuts
- 2 tbsp Yupik sesame seeds
- zest of one lemon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 2 tbsp olive oil
To serve
- Serve with fluffy pita
- Toppings: lemon peel slices, walnuts, sesame seeds, fresh mint, pepperoncini on top
Instructions
Soak & cook the chickpeas
- Important: Soak the dried chickpeas in a large bowl covered with water for 12-24 hours.
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas and add to a large pot with 1 tsp baking soda. Add enough water to cover the chickpeas. Place the pot on the stove and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Once the water is boiling, simmer the chickpeas over medium heat for 1-2 hours or until they reach your desired softness.
- Once this chickpeas are fully cooked, drain and rinse the chickpeas and then place on a kitchen towel or on paper towels and rub them until the skins come off (this is optional).
- Make the hummus by adding the chickpeas to a food processor with the tahini, garlic cloves, lemon juice, salt, pepper and olive oil. Blend on high until almost completely smooth. Scrape the sides down as needed.
- Next, slowly stream in the juice from the pepperoncini jar and then add in the ice cubes. Blend on high until very smooth.
- Finally, add in the chopped pepperoncini and pulse until you reach the desired texture (pulse longer for smoother hummus).
Make the chicken
- Soak the wooden skewers in water and set aside.
- Make the chicken mixture by mixing together the ground chicken, chopped mint, crumbled feta cheese, garlic, egg, breadcrumbs, ground walnuts, sesame seeds, lemon zest, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and olive oil. Place the mixture into the fridge for 15 minutes.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Place chicken mixture in a piping. Insert skewer into bottom of the piping bag and cover skewer with meat, squeezing from the top of the piping bag and slowly pulling the piping bag in an upward motion to cover the skewer with chicken. Approximately 2 tablespoons of meat per skewer.
- Place the skewers in the fridge for 15 minutes while you heat the grill to medium-high heat, about 400-425F.
- Once the grill is hot and the chicken skewers have been in the fridge for 15 minutes, oil the grill with olive oil or cooking spray and give the skewers a little drizzle of olive oil as well.
- Cook the skewers on the grill, turning every 3-4 minutes, for a total of 10-15 minutes or until cooked through to 165F.
- Remove the skewers from the grill when done and let rest for 5 minutes.
Assemble the final dish –
- Transfer the hummus to a serving dish and use a spoon to spread around evenly. Set aside.
- Place the cooked skewers on top of the pepperoncini hummus and then garnish with lemon peel, walnuts, sesame seeds, fresh mint and extra pepperoncini peppers (chopped if desired).
- Serve with pita and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- If you want to use canned chickpeas to make the hummus, you’ll need about 2 1/4 cups drained and rinsed canned chickpeas.
- If you love this recipe try our Mess-Free Grilled Kofta
- To save time when serving to a crowd, make the hummus one day ahead and store in an airtight container in the fridge. Then make the kofta the day your guests come over.
