Thai Grilled Coconut Chicken Skewers -- One Last Saturday Before the Schedule Takes Over

School starts next week. Summer's dying. The light is changing — still hot, still brutal, but the angle is different. Houston doesn't really get fall, not the way New England does with the leaves and the apple cider. We get a slight decrease in the desire to die every time we walk outside. That's our fall. Spent this week getting the kids ready. School supplies, new shoes, the whole production. Tyler needs a graphing calculator for geometry that costs eighty dollars. Eighty dollars. For a calculator. I told him when I was in school we used our brains. He said, "How'd that work out for your GPA?" The kid is funny. I'll give him that. Emma needs new everything because she grew three inches over the summer and nothing fits. Twelve going on thirteen, long legs, looks like her mother. I took her to Target and she picked out her own clothes for the first time without asking for my opinion, which means I'm officially irrelevant in the fashion department. Good. I never belonged there. Lily needs a new backpack because her old one has a broken zipper and she wants one with a cat on it. We found one. It has a cat on it. She's happy. Parenting a ten-year-old is blessedly simple compared to parenting teenagers. I've been thinking about what the school year means for my cooking schedule. During summer, I cook whenever I want, long projects, experiments, no time pressure. During the school year, the kids need dinner at 6:30, homework help at 7:30, bedtime at 9 (Tyler at 10, or whenever he actually stops staring at his phone). Weeknight cooking has to be fast. Thirty to forty-five minutes max. So I made a list. Weeknight meals I can do in my sleep, that taste good, that the kids will eat, that aren't garbage. Here's the rotation: Monday is pho (I make the broth on weekends and reheat), Tuesday is stir-fry (whatever protein and vegetables I've got), Wednesday is tacos (because this is Texas), Thursday is rice and grilled meat (pick a marinade, any marinade), Friday is pizza (homemade dough, I'm not an animal). That's the backbone. I vary the specifics each week so nobody gets bored. The pho broth is always the same but the garnishes change. The stir-fry is never the same twice. Taco night is a free-for-all where everybody builds their own. Tonight, last Saturday of summer freedom, I smoked a whole chicken. Beer-can style except without the beer — I used a can of coconut water because I'm Bobby Tran and I put Vietnamese ingredients in everything. The coconut water steams inside the cavity and keeps the meat ridiculous moist. The skin gets crispy from the smoke. It's a beautiful thing. School starts Monday. The routine returns. I'm ready.

That last Saturday before the school bell rings again is sacred in this house, and I wasn’t going to spend it on something I could make on a Tuesday. The coconut water trick I used on the whole bird — steaming it from the inside out on the smoker — pulled me straight toward these Thai grilled coconut chicken skewers, because the same flavor logic is at work: coconut, a little heat, char from the fire, meat that stays impossibly moist. It’s the kind of cook that belongs to a slow afternoon, not a 6:30 weeknight deadline. Monday the routine returns — but Saturday was mine.

Thai Grilled Coconut Chicken Skewers

Prep Time: 20 min (plus 2 hrs marinating) | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 2 hrs 35 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 cup full-fat coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemongrass, finely minced (tender inner stalk only)
• 1 teaspoon Thai red curry paste
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil (for grill)
• Fresh cilantro and lime wedges, for serving
• 8–10 wooden or metal skewers (if wooden, soak 30 min in water)

Instructions

1. Make the marinade. In a large bowl, whisk together coconut milk, fish sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, red curry paste, turmeric, coriander, and white pepper until the sugar dissolves and everything is combined.
2. Marinate the chicken. Add the chicken pieces to the marinade, toss to coat thoroughly, cover, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours — overnight if you have the time. The coconut milk tenderizes the meat significantly.
3. Prep the grill. Heat an outdoor grill or grill pan to medium-high heat (around 400°F). Brush grates with neutral oil to prevent sticking.
4. Thread the skewers. Remove chicken from the marinade, letting excess drip off. Thread 4–5 pieces onto each skewer, leaving a small gap between pieces so the heat can circulate.
5. Grill. Place skewers on the grill and cook for 5–6 minutes per side, turning once, until the chicken is cooked through (internal temp 165°F) and the exterior is nicely charred in spots. Do not rush the flip — the chicken will release naturally when it’s ready.
6. Rest and serve. Transfer skewers to a platter and rest for 3 minutes. Serve with fresh cilantro scattered over the top and lime wedges on the side. A simple cucumber salad or steamed jasmine rice rounds it out.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 390 | Protein: 38g | Fat: 22g | Carbs: 9g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 820mg