A 15 minute marinade, then threading on skewers takes these summery grilled vegetable skewers with pesto yogurt sauce to a new level of delicious!
Step-by-step photos and instructions are below!
Living in AZ, we grill out A LOT. It’s just such great weather here most of the year, and the rest of the time – I don’t want to cook inside anyway.
We cook all kinds of foods outside, and marinated vegetables do particularly well. While we do them on the grill, you can do cook year round by broiling or baking in the oven if you prefer (see notes for directions).
With just a short marinade time (only 15 minutes), threading on skewers, and grilling you’ll have plenty of time to rustle up the pesto yogurt sauce, orzo. Obviously, you can skip the orzo, but it pair super well with it and tastes amazing.
You can eat the kabobs and orzo and call it dinner, or just grill up some chicken, fish or steak while you have the grill on!
I hope you love this recipe as much as my family does.
Why you’ll love this recipe:
- Maximum flavor in a short amount of time.
- Adaptable. Make this on the grill, or simply bake or broil in oven.
- Family friendly. It’s food on sticks. Who doesn’t like that?
What to serve with Vegetable Kabobs
You could serve it up with the orzo in the recipe, some Garlic Parmesan Risotto, or serve with a salad and Twice Baked Potatoes.
I have included step-by-step photos and instructions, as well as tips and tricks in the post. If you’d rather skip all that, scoot right on down to the full recipe card located at the bottom of the post.
Key Recipe Ingredients
The full list of ingredients and amounts is found in the printable recipe card below.
- Olive oil. This is for the marinade.
- White wine. If you prefer just substitute in some stock and a little lemon juice. Do choose a wine you enjoy – I like Sauvignon Blanc (a dry white wine) for this, but pinot grigio and chardonnay will work well too.
- Italian Seasoning. Make your own, or grab it from the store.
- Zucchini, yellow squash, red onions, bell peppers, and/or cherry tomatoes. Choose your favorite veggies!
- Orzo. A small pasta shape that looks like rice, this is a great base for vegetable kabobs.
- Yogurt. This makes a tart but creamy sauce to drizzle over the top of your grilled veggie kabobs.
- Pesto. We use this in both the orzo and the yogurt sauce. Use my recipe for Homemade Basil Pesto if you are feeling fancy!
- Salt & pepper. Season to taste. I recommend 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper.
How to make this recipe
Scroll for Recipe
This next part is only a photo tutorial of the recipe steps. The full list of ingredients, quantities and instructions can be found in the printable recipe card below.
Get prepped
If using wooden skewers, soak them 30 minutes prior to use (to prevent burning on the grill)
Marinate the Veggies and add to Skewers
Blend the wine, olive oil and seasonings together, in a large bowl.
Cut zucchini, squash, red onion and bell peppers into chunks, and marinate in the bowl, turning every so often, for 15 minutes.
Thread the marinated vegetable on the skewers.
Grill the kabobs
Preheat the grill to medium, and place them on the grill and cook until charred and perfect. Remove kabobs from grill.
Prepare the Orzo and Make the Yogurt Sauce
Cook the orzo, and combine with 2 Tablespoons of prepared pesto.
Combine the yogurt with 1 tablespoon of prepared pesto.
To serve
Divide the orzo between plates, top with kabobs.
Drizzle with pesto yogurt sauce and devour.
Kylee’s Notes
Wash all vegetables and pat dry with paper towels before marinating.
Using metal skewers works particularly well, but if if you’re using wooden skewers, soak them in water for an hour or so before using (so they don’t burn/catch fire on the grill).
Substitutions/Additions
Add button mushrooms, cherry tomatoes or any other small (and fast cooking) vegetable to your skewers.
If you’re not into wine, no worries. Just use some chicken stock or vegetable stock instead with a splash of lemon juice.
A little minced garlic or garlic powder goes great in the marinade too!
I always add a little salt and pepper to the marinade, just to ensure it’s seasoned well.
We use Italian Seasoning in this recipe, but any seasoning you like will work well. Cajun Seasoning is a great substitute if you like things with a huge pop of flavor. Lemon Pepper Seasoning (from Sugar Spice and Glitter) is also really good!
Oven instructions
Broil: Place on a baking sheet and broil, turning regularly until veggie
Bake: Place on
More recipes for the grill to love:
- Grilled Vegetable Salad with Tarragon Dressing. A spectacular, smoky grilled vegetable salad, bursting with flavor, this is an easy side that you can make ahead or make with the family!
- Grilled Chicken Satay Skewers (with Peanut Sauce). Chicken tenders marinated in a homemade satay marinade threaded on skewers and grilled to perfection.
- Roasted Garlic & Black Pepper Grilled Pork Kabobs. Get your grill and thrill the whole family with these Roasted Garlic & Black Pepper Grilled Pork Kabobs – ready super-fast, you’ll be the hero of the grill!
- Grilled Zucchini with Lime. This easy recipe makes a great side dish and is super fast!
- Grilled Teriyaki Chicken. A very easy Teriyaki Marinade that makes chicken, pork, beef, or fish so flavorful. You are going to love making and eating this recipe!
- ALL GRILLING RECIPES
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Marinated Vegetable Kabobs with Pesto Yogurt Sauce
Recommended Equipment
Ingredients
Marinade
- 3/4 cup white wine
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 teaspoons italian seasoning
Vegetables
- 1 green zucchini
- 1 yellow squash
- 1/2 red onion
- 1 bell pepper (any color)
Orzo
- 4 cups cooked orzo pasta
- 2 tablespoons basil pesto
Pesto Yogurt Sauce
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 1 tablespoon prepared pesto
Directions
- If using wooden skewers, soak them 30 minutes prior to use (to prevent burning on the grill)
Marinade
- Blend the wine, olive oil and seasonings together, in a large bowl. Set aside.
Vegetables
- Cut zucchini, squash, red onion and bell peppers into chunks, and marinate in the bowl, turning every so often, for 15 minutes.
- Thread the marinated vegetable on the skewers.
- Preheat the grill to medium, and place them on the grill and cook until charred and perfect. Get yourself another beer.
- Remove kabobs from grill,
Orzo
- Combine the cooked orzo with pesto.
For the pesto yogurt sauce
- Blend the pesto and yogurt together until smooth. Refrigerate until needed.
To Serve
- Divide the orzo between plates, top with kabobs.
- Drizzle with pesto yogurt sauce.
- Devour (preferably with more beer)
Nutrition Facts
Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Update: This recipe was originally published in July of 2016. It was republished with updated photos in August of 2021.
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