Memorial Day. The sixth as a military family member (counting from Dad). The fourth as a wife. Ryan at the ceremony. Me and Caleb in the crowd.
Caleb is old enough now to ask questions. 'Why soldiers, Mama?' he said, pointing at the formation.
'They're Marines, baby. Like Daddy.'
'Daddy there?'
'Daddy's there.'
He waved. At the formation. At his father, standing at attention in dress blues, in the Mojave sun, remembering people he's served with. Caleb waved and Ryan didn't move (Marines don't move during formation) but I know he saw. I know.
After the ceremony: barbecue. Ryan grilled. I made sides. The usual. But this year, Maria came. Her first military holiday. Her first Memorial Day as a wife. She brought store-bought coleslaw and looked embarrassed about it, and I said, 'Store-bought is FINE. Donna Abernathy uses tube rolls at Thanksgiving. We all have our shortcuts.'
(Mom would kill me for revealing the tube rolls. But Maria needed to hear it.)
The blog this week: 'Memorial Day in the Kitchen: What Military Wives Cook When They Remember.' About the specific food of Memorial Day — the barbecue that's not just barbecue, the potato salad that carries memories, the fact that every military family has a Memorial Day recipe that means more than the ingredients suggest.
Dad called. The annual call. 'Happy Memorial Day, kiddo.'
'Happy Memorial Day, Dad. How are you?'
'I'm in the garden.'
Of course he's in the garden. On Memorial Day. In the place where he goes to remember and to grow. The garden is his ceremony.
The tomatoes at my apartment are getting bigger. Still green. But bigger. Dad says two more weeks until they turn. 'Patience,' he says. 'Tomatoes teach patience.'
Tomatoes teach patience. Deployments teach patience. The desert teaches patience. Everything in this life is a patience lesson disguised as something else.
Made Dad's ribs tonight. His Memorial Day ribs. The rub, the slow grill, the baste. In the Mojave Desert, at 100 degrees, standing at a grill that shouldn't need charcoal because the air temperature could cook the ribs without it.
The ribs were perfect. Dad's recipe. My grill. Ryan's sons to eat them someday.
Memorial Day. Ribs. A toddler who waved at the formation.
We remember. We grill. We wave.
Dad’s ribs are sacred — I know that, and I’d never try to replace them — but this year Maria was at the table, and I wanted something I could walk her through step by step, something forgiving enough for a first Memorial Day and festive enough to feel like a celebration. These grilled chicken kabobs have that same quality as a good long afternoon at the grill: they reward patience, they fill the yard with the right kind of smoke, and they’re the sort of thing you can hand someone a skewer of and say, welcome, you belong here now. The Mojave heat is going to do half the work anyway — might as well make something worth standing over the coals for.
The Juiciest Grilled Chicken Kabobs
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes (plus 30 minutes marinating) | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 large yellow bell pepper, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 medium zucchini, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
- 1 medium red onion, cut into wedges
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
- Salt to taste
- Fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish
- Metal or soaked wooden skewers
Instructions
- Make the marinade. In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, garlic, smoked paprika, oregano, cumin, black pepper, and red pepper flakes until fully combined.
- Marinate the chicken. Add the chicken cubes to the marinade and toss to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to 4 hours for maximum flavor. Do not marinate longer than 4 hours or the lemon juice will begin to break down the texture.
- Prep the grill. Preheat your grill to medium-high heat (about 400°F). Lightly oil the grates with a folded paper towel dipped in oil, using tongs to apply.
- Thread the skewers. Alternate pieces of marinated chicken with bell peppers, zucchini, and red onion on each skewer. Leave a small gap between pieces so heat can circulate evenly and everything cooks through.
- Grill the kabobs. Place skewers on the grill and cook for 12–15 minutes total, turning every 3–4 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through (internal temperature of 165°F) and the vegetables have light char marks.
- Rest and serve. Remove from the grill and let rest for 3 minutes. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve immediately, with warm pita, rice, or your favorite Memorial Day sides.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 310 | Protein: 38g | Fat: 12g | Carbs: 11g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 520mg
About the cook who shared this
Rachel Abernathy
Week 269 of Rachel’s 30-year story
· San Diego, California
Rachel is a twenty-eight-year-old Marine wife and mom of two who has moved five times in six years and learned to cook a Thanksgiving dinner with half her cookware still in boxes. She married young, survived postpartum depression, and feeds her family of four on a junior Marine's salary with a freezer full of pre-made meals and a crockpot that has never let her down. She writes for the military spouses who are cooking dinner alone in base housing and wondering if they're enough. You are.
