Barbecue Chicken Heart Kabobs

I will agree, not everyone is a fan. When it comes to giblets (the parts inside the chicken), it’s either take it or leave it. Well, for those of you sitting on the fence, give it a try, you’ll be glad you did. This recipe was introduced to me by a good friend, and I felt I had to share. Chicken hearts, marinated in mojo and cilantro, a few minutes on the barbecue, and you have a healthy, sustainable delicious dinner. This post is barbecue chicken heart kabobs, read on, it’s good.

I have spoken many times about peasant food. Utilizing the cheaper cuts of meat, not wasting any part of the animal. This is a good example of this idea. Also eating chicken hearts improves eco-sustainability, producing less food waste. There is a philosophy called “Nose-to-tail eating”. It’s the idea of utilizing the entire animal. It’s really nothing new, for thousands of years we practiced this. An entire chicken can be used, the feathers, the meat, the carcass, and, in this case, the giblets.

Chicken hearts are packed with nutrients. A 3.5 oz serving contains more than 50% DV of the following: B12, Zinc, Riboflavin, Copper and Iron. There is a downside, cholesterol. Controlling your cholesterol intake is important, but, lately some studies have shown that some high cholesterol foods that we had avoided in the past are actually good for us. This is because of all the other nutrients they bring to the table. Eggs, shellfish and sardines are good examples. When it comes to nutrition health, knowledge is key, and, there’s a wealth of information available online to help with this.

So, back to the chicken hearts. I live in South Florida, there is a tremendous Hispanic and South American cultural influence here. Some Hispanic markets sell the chicken hearts already marinating. That makes life easy, however, if you don’t have that luxury, put them in a baggie with some Mojo sauce and chopped fresh cilantro, stick them in the fridge overnight and they’re ready to cook. For the kabobs, I usually just use the bamboo sticks, in this particular application they are fine. Don’t overload the kabob, give enough grabbing room at each end. Should end up with about 4 skewers per pound. But that’s not an exact science. Remember to wash up after making the barbecue skewers, please read my post on safe food prep

Now on to the barbecue. I only cook on charcoal, if you’re using gas, that’s fine, but either way I would say to use medium heat. Chicken hearts are not that thick. With charcoal, there’s few ways to do this, but, the easiest way is to let the coals settle a bit before cooking. No flames, just that nice orange glow. They need about 3-5 mins per side. This part is very difficult to gauge, there are so many variables. You’re looking for a little char on each side. Also, you’re looking for 165 degrees, but that’s very difficult to check. So 3-5 mins is a rough approximation. You can also slice one of the hearts to make sure there is no pink inside.

That’s it, barbecue chicken heart kabobs. Plate and serve as you like. I usually leave on the skewers, and serve with rice. Enjoy them, and thank you for reading