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Grilled Turkey Skewers with Asian Pesto

Make these Grilled Turkey Skewers all summer long with a zesty Asian pesto on top! You’ll love this simple recipe filled with flavour that’s so easy to make for a weeknight dinner.

Side shot of cubed turkey on a skewer topped with bright green pesto over white rice
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Butterball. The opinions in the post are entirely my own.

Grilled Turkey Skewers with Asian Pesto Recipe

Summer is here, and warm weather is all about grilling! I have the perfect recipe for the BBQ season — grilled turkey skewers paired with a delicious pesto! This dish is light, healthy and popping with summer citrus flavours.

Both the turkey and the pesto are Asian inspired, with ingredients often seen in Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese cuisine. The succulent turkey breast is marinated in coriander, garlic, soy and lemon. This may be the juiciest turkey you’ve ever had! 

The pesto has lots of depth with a strong punch of garlic, nuttiness from the cashews, and a pop of bright flavour from the fresh herbs and citrus juices that work perfectly with turkey!

Want to make this even easier? Make the marinade and pesto ahead of time! That way, you can have dinner on the table in 10 minutes flat.

Marinated turkey breast bites on metal skewers on the grill

Where to Buy Turkey Breasts

Butterball has a line called Easy Fresh that provides pre-cut pieces so you don’t need to buy a whole bird when you want to enjoy a quick turkey meal. The line is available all year at select Canadian grocery stores (store locator here). I’ve been making my family a countless number of dishes using the Easy Fresh line including Chinese-Style Turkey Sheet Pan Dinner and Chinese Turkey Lettuce Wraps.

I love that the Butterball Easy Fresh products have convenient, vacuum-sealed packaging that’s easy to open and keeps the turkey fresh longer in the fridge while keeping it tender and juicy.

For this recipe, I used the Butterball ‘Easy Fresh Boneless Turkey Breast’ as it was easy for me to cut into even sized cubes to skewer.

Overhead shot of raw turkey breast, coriander leaves, lemon juice, soy sauce, honey, garlic, salt, and pepper

How to Make It

  1. First, chop up the turkey into evenly sized pieces.
  2. Then, add the crushed coriander seeds, garlic cloves, and coriander to the food processor. Pulse on low, then scrape it into a bowl with the soy sauce, lemon juice, black pepper, honey, and avocado.
  3. Rub the homemade marinade all over the turkey and let it marinate at least 4 hours — or up to overnight!
  4. When it’s time to cook, skewer the turkey. For grilling, I like to use metal skewers that evenly transfer heat when cooking. As a bonus, they are reusable which means less waste!
  5. To make the Asian pesto sauce, add the garlic and cashews to the food processor and pulse for a few seconds. Then, add the coriander, Thai basil, and kaffir lime leaves, and pulse again until the leaves are chopped.
  6. Now, add the soy sauce, lemon juice, lime juice, salt, and pepper to the processor and blend again.Add the oil while blending and mix until you get a paste.
  7. To grill the skewers, set them on the grill grates and flip them every few minutes. Once they’re 165 degrees F internally, it’s time to eat! Pour a little pesto on the turkey bites, and done.
Overhead shot of a red and blue bowl filled with Asian pesto

What’s the Best Pesto Secret Ingredient?

My secret ingredient? Kaffir lime leaves!

These fragrant leaves provide an intense citrus flavour and aroma, which gives the pesto an extra brightness. You can easily find kaffir leaves at Chinese and Vietnamese grocery stores across Canada.

Once you make this pesto, you will want to put it on everything, and it perfectly pairs with juicy turkey skewers.

More Easy Turkey Recipes You’ll Love

Never miss a post — follow me on Facebook and Instagram @maryshappybelly! Plus, check out more yummy recipes on my YouTube channel!

Close-up shot of grilled turkey breast bites smothered with creamy Asian pesto
5 from 1 vote
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Grilled Turkey Skewers with Asian Pesto

These healthy grilled skewers are cooked to perfection and smothered with a creamy pesto with an Asian twist! Perfect for summer cookouts and pool parties.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Asian
Keyword grilled turkey kabobs, grilled turkey skewers, homemade Asian pesto
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 42 minutes
Servings 4 people
Author Mary Tang

Ingredients

  • 1 package 1 turkey breast cut into even sized 1 x 1-inch cubes

Marinade Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp coriander seeds crushed
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 cup coriander, leaves and stems about 1 stalk
  • ⅛ cup (30 ml) soy sauce
  • ¼ cup (60 ml) lemon juice
  • ½ tsp fresh cracked pepper
  • ¼ cup (60 ml) avocado oil
  • 1 tsp honey

Asian Pesto Ingredients

  • 3 cloves garlic
  • ⅓ cup cashews roasted and salted
  • 4 cups coriander leaves and stems about 4 stalks
  • ½ cup Thai basil leaves
  • 8 kaffir lime leaves
  • ⅛ cup (30 ml) soy sauce
  • ⅛ cup (30 ml) lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp (15 ml) of lime juice
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • ½ cup (125 ml) of avocado oil reserve more as needed

Instructions

  1. Cut the turkey into even sized pieces and add to a non-reactive container or bowl.

  2. In a food processor, add crushed coriander seeds, garlic cloves and coriander. Pulse on low for a few seconds. Scrape the mixed ingredients into a bowl. Add soy sauce, lemon juice, black pepper, honey and avocado oil into the bowl. Mix.

  3. Add the marinade to the turkey and mix until all the turkey pieces are fully coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.

  4. Take the turkey out of the fridge 30 minutes before grilling to bring it up to room temperature.

  5. Skewer the meat for grilling.

  6. In a food processor, add the garlic and cashews. Pulse for a few seconds. Add the coriander, Thai basil, and kaffir lime leaves. Pulse until the leaves are finely chopped.

  7. Add the soy sauce, lime and lemon juice, salt and pepper, and pulse again.

  8. Using the chute in the food processor, pour the oil until the desired consistency is achieved. The pesto should be a paste.

  9. Using a spatula, scrape the pesto into a bowl. Drizzle with avocado oil before serving.

  10. Preheat the grill to medium-high heat (400 degrees F).

  11. Add the skewers, close the lid, then open every 3 minutes to turn the skewers. Cook until the internal temperature of the turkey reaches 165 degrees F (74 degrees C). About 12 minutes.

  12. Plate the skewers and top with the pesto.

Recipe Notes

  • Cooking time may vary depending on your grill make and model.
  • Feel free to use unsalted cashews and oil of your choice.

Follow Butterball on Social Media 

Website: www.Butterball.ca,  Easy Fresh info
Instagram: @Butterball_CA
Facebook: Butterball Canada
Twitter: @Butterball_CA
Hashtag: #ButterballEasy

Mary Tang
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1 Comment

  • Reply
    Anonymous
    June 8, 2021 at 2:38 pm

    5 stars
    Bring this pesto to any bbq and it will be the star of the show!
    Pairs perfectly with the turkey but also with anything on the grill. Even the vegetarians love it a dip for crudités.

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