What to Serve with Kabobs – 15 Skewer Enhancing Choices

The moment you decide kabobs are what’s for dinner is the moment all is suddenly right with the world.

Whether its steak kabobs marinated in Italian salad dressing, lemon chicken alternating between bell peppers on a skewer or some grilled shrimp cooked to perfection – you’re in for a good time. 

Of course, kabobs can take some extra effort to do properly – cut everything uniformly for even cooking. 

But the payoff – gorgeously seared meat bursting with fresh-from-the-flame flavor – is absolutely worth it.

So, because you’ve put a little time into your kabobs, you’re going to want stellar sides to go with them. 

And when you’re wondering what to serve with kabobs, we’ve got you covered – from traditional salads to fun and funky grain salads, or a lemony tzatziki to a flavor-bomb of grilled guacamole. 

So, get that grill heating and that meat skewered. 

Dinner is going to be a really good time tonight. 

1. Coconut Rice

While you’re whipping up a batch of chicken kabobs for some backyard grilling, spend a couple of minutes at the kitchen stove with some rice and coconut milk. 

Oh, yes. 

Coconut rice is a savory side with a titch of sweetness, and if you really want to take it to new stratospheric heights, add some sliced chili peppers to the mix. 

Heat and sweet never tasted so good. 

2. Tzatziki 

We’re big fans of tzaziki around these parts. (And by “around these parts,” what we mean is “planet Earth.”)

This cooling, yogurt-based sauce is loaded with grated cucumber, dill, garlic, and maybe a kiss of grated onion too. 

Chicken kabobs have never met a tzatziki that they didn’t adore. 

3. Corn on the Cob with Herb Butter 

Loving corn on the cob is what brings us together as corn on the cob loving people. 

But, the one thing we don’t celebrate enough is compound butter. 

Herbs. Room temperature butter. A fork. 

And in seconds, butter has been transformed from just “butter” to “I have no words for this amazingness that’s dripping down my corn on the cob onto my arm.” 

Yes, you want this with your beef or chicken kabobs. 

4. Greek Salad

If time is money, you don’t get more bang for your buck than a Greek salad. It takes minutes to pull together, and you’re rewarded with flavors for miles and miles. 

A red wine vinaigrette is the key to pulling together the salty feta, sweet tomatoes, briny olives, thinly sliced onion, and crisp cucumber. 

Hello, gorgeous! 

5. Teriyaki Grilled Pineapple

If you’ve ever had seared pineapple fresh off the grill, you know that it’s amazing. 

But, pineapple that’s been slathered with teriyaki makes it both charred and sticky – which makes it the perfect pairing for your favorite kababs. 

Heck you could even dice them up and slide them on your skewers and go fruit kabob style.

Sweet. 

Savory. 

Sticky. 

Perfection. 

Now, what kabob wouldn’t love to share a plate with that? 

Get out your bottle of Kikkoman teriyaki sauce for this recipe and enjoy!

6. Foil Packet Vegetables

Multitasking on the grill is never a bad way to get food on the dinner table. (Or picnic table. Or picnic blanket.) And do you know what’s great for that? 

Foil wrapped veggies. 

They can handle any flavors that you throw at them with aplomb, and they cook in about 30 minutes. 

So, when you’re wondering “what goes with kabobs?” look no further than your produce drawer and pantry. These veggie packets really, really round out a platter of beef kabobs. 

7. Barley Salad with Herbs

Barley is the unsung hero of the grain world. 

It’s nutty. 

It loves veggies. 

And it really, really loves lemon. 

It kind of sounds like a meat kabob, doesn’t it? 

So, when you’re thinking about kabob sides, whisk together that vinaigrette, and get those veggies chopped. 

Barley is ready to take its place on the main stage.  

8. German Potato Salad

Some say that a platter full of kabobs isn’t complete without a little potato salad on the table too. 

And we like our potato salads with big, bold flavors and a soupçon of bacon. 

A little mustard, a little apple cider vinegar – and you’ve got a bright tart potato salad that will hold its own against any kabob. 

9. Grilled Garlic Bread

Brush your bread with some garlic butter, and lay it on that hot grill grate. You’ll thank yourself.

Lightly charred garlic bread is the perfect companion to chicken, beef, or veggie kabobs giving you a complimentary texture to sink your teeth into.

Nagi over at Recipe Tin Eats has a great recipe for grilled garlic bread that will knock your socks off. 

10. Grilled Watermelon Salad

Everyone loves a really good salad with a dinner of kabobs. 

But a grilled watermelon salad is just the thing to take your dinner to a whole new level. 

*raises hand and gestures toward the sky*

Seriously. 

Grilled watermelon salad takes kabob side dish to a whole new level. 

11. Homemade Potato Chips

When we think of kabobs, we think of summer. 

When we think of summer, we think of picnics. 

When we think of picnics, we think of potato chips. 

I think you see where we’re going with this. 

Kathy over at Beyond the Chicken Coop has a great recipe for homemade fried potato chips that will be perfect for “Kabob Night.” 

12. Grilled Guacamole

Grilled avocado. 

‘Nuff said. 

Oh, wait. Actually, there’s a lot more to be said than that. 

Think, blackened jalapenos, seared onions, and limes that are bursting with juice. 

Then you put all that deliciousness together, and you’ve got the grilled guacamole of your dreams. 

13. Caesar Salad

Caesar salad is that side dish you turn to because it’s joy in a bowl. 

Creamy dressing. 

Tangy parmesan slices. 

Lemon. 

Crunchy croutons. 

And it pairs perfectly with every kind of grilled kabob under the sun. 

Also, to make it insanely delicious, doctor up some bread with a compound butter, grill it, and crumble it into your salad instead of store-bought croutons. 

You’ll love yourself for it. 

14. Spicy Corn Salsa

Get your corn on the grill, and then get it off the cob. 

Toss it with jalapenos, tomatoes, cilantro, onion, and lime. 

The sweet, the savory, and the spice of the salsa will pair perfectly with almost any type of skewered food. 

Now, what chicken or beef kabob would argue with that? 

Answer? None. 

No flavorful kabob would argue with that. 

15. Grilled Artichokes

You can boil artichokes as a side dish and stop there. 

Or, you can boil artichokes, slather them with a garlic oil, season them up with good sea salt, and get them on the grill. 

Oh, the smoky flavor. 

Oh, the addictive char. 

Also, they’re more than just delicious. There’s a wow factor that happens with these beauties on a plate. 

Seriously. 

You’ll say, “Wow.”