Shish Taouk
Shish taouk belongs to the broader family of Ottoman-style skewers that spread across the Levant during the reign of the Ottoman Empire, adapted by each local cuisine with its own distinct flavors. The word taouk simply means chicken in Turkish, and the Lebanese added a region-specific yogurt marinade, which tenderizes the meat and gives it a gentle tartness. What truly sets shish taouk apart from other similar skewers in the region is the toum sauce that almost always accompanies it — a pure emulsion of garlic and oil, with no egg, requiring technique and patience to avoid breaking. Lebanese restaurants strictly guard their toum recipes, some passed down through generations, considered as essential to national culinary identity as the meat itself.
Marinated chicken breast
Chicken cubes marinated for hours in yogurt and garlic.
Grilled skewers
Grilled over high heat until well browned.
Toum sauce
Whipped, creamy Lebanese garlic sauce, extremely intense.
Tangy marinade
Lemon juice, vinegar and tomato paste give intense flavor.
Ingredients 4 servings
- 800g chicken breast, cubed
- 200g thick yogurt
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- Juice of 2 lemons
- 2 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- Salt, pepper
- 300ml vegetable oil (for toum)
- 6 garlic cloves (for toum)
How to make it
- 1MAKE MARINADE: Mix the yogurt, crushed garlic, tomato paste, lemon juice, vinegar, paprika, salt and pepper.
- 2MARINATE CHICKEN: Add the chicken cubes to the marinade, cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight.
- 3SKEWER: Thread the chicken pieces onto metal or water-soaked wooden skewers.
- 4GRILL: Grill the skewers over high heat, turning often, for 10-12 minutes until well browned and cooked through.
- 5MAKE TOUM: Blend the garlic with a little salt in a food processor, then add the oil very slowly in a thin stream, blending continuously until it emulsifies into a thick white sauce.
- 6SERVE: Serve the skewers hot with plenty of toum, flatbread and grilled vegetables.
Nutritional info
per serving (~350 g)
Estimated nutritional values.
Pairs perfectly with
