Mediterranean Chicken Kebabs

[mb]

Has anyone made these yet? I just bought some fennel, since I plan to make this recipe this week. I never bought fennel before! How the heck am I supposed to get it to look like what they have on the skewers in the picture?!?

See, Kim is adventurous and tries octopus, etc. My big adventure is buying arugula and fennel...:o maybe one day i'll be as brave as she is...

marisa :)

[KathrynY]

Hi Marisa - I made these last week, and thought they needed a little something else in the marinade to zip up the flavor (we found them to be very mild). The grilled fennel was neat - I'd never prepared fennel before either but it was tasty, and of course grilled zucchini is always good. I did not include the grilled garlic on the skewers, so that may give it a bit more flavor too. It was over 90 degrees here that day, and there was NO WAY I was turning on the stove in my un-airconditioned house to boil those garlic cloves before grilling! I probably should have just added garlic to the marinade. Oh, well. Hope it turns out well for you. :)

P.S. I don't think I'll ever be adventurous enough to try octopus at home! :eek:

[Wendy w]

Thanks for the advice, Kathryn! I am hosting my dinner club next month and want to do these and the Jamaican jerk kebobs. Will have to add a little something to perk it up and maybe keep it in the marinade longer.

[munchies]

I have never been able to find fennel in my grocery store. Am I just looking in the wrong place (produce)? If not, any ideas as to what I could substitute in these kabobs? I'm thinking onions maybe, but what do you think?

TIA -- Heather

[KathrynY]

Heather - check out the recent herb/spice of the week thread on fennel here:
http://www.cookinglight.com/vbb/showthread.php?threadid=11505&highlight=fennel
There's a picture of fresh fennel on that thread that should help. I usually find it in the produce section next to the bok choy, kale etc. Good luck! :)

Oh - and sometimes it's labelled "anise" instead of "fennel".

[kwormann]

Marisa

Just wanted to tell you its nice to see you back:

[mb]

thanks, kim :)

[keeganm]

I would definitely say you could substitute onions for the fennel if you can't find it anywhere...it has a very unique taste and if you aren't familiar with it, you may not love it. It has a licorice-y taste and it very good but if you are making the meal for your dinner club, you may want to try it out first. It looks like a giant flat onion bulb with big, feathery leaves coming out from it. The leaves almost look like dill weed. Good luck!