My friend Mark made some very nice chicken with shiso and umeboshi skewers for lunch when I visited him in Adelaide recently. He did this poolside, over charcoal on an authentic looking Japanese grill. I really liked this and decided to prepare it at home, where I used the broiler as the weather here is not suitable for outdoor grilling this time of the year.

Shiso leaves are most often seen as a garnish for sashimi. They have a vibrant, herbaceous, and citrusy flavor. Unfortunately they are EUR 0.35 per leaf here, so I only prepared a small portion. Umeboshi are Japanese salted plums. The combination of juicy and tender chicken thigh meat with shiso and umeboshi is absolutely delicious and this is easy to prepare.

Ingredients

Makes 4 small servings as an appetizer

• about 200 grams (7 oz) boneless skinless chicken thigh, cut into 12 pieces
• 12 shiso leaves
• 16 pieces of scallion of about 5 cm (2″), white and light green part only
• 2 umeboshi (Japanese salted plums)
• 1 Tbsp Japanese soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil

Instructions

Preheat the broiler (or prepare a charcoal grill). Wash the shiso leaves and leave them slightly wet. Cut the white and light green part of the scallions into 5 cm (2″) lengths to get 16 pieces. Cut the chicken thigh into bite size pieces that can be wrapped by a single shiso leaf. Remove the pits from 2 umeboshi and puree them with a tablespoon of soy sauce and a tablespoon of vegetable oil.

Note added on November 10, 2024: the chicken cooks more quickly than the scallions, so the scallions can be a bit too crunchy. To improve this, vacuum seal the prepared scallions, and cook them sous vide for 30 minutes at 85C/185F. Then chill them in cold water.

Wrap each piece of chicken in a shiso leaf. Put the scallions and the shiso-wrapped chicken on skewers, alternating between scallion and chicken, and starting and ending with scallion. Each skewer has 4 pieces of scallion and 3 chicken pieces.

Brush the skewers with the umeboshi mixture on the top.

Grill for a couple of minutes close the the broiler element, turn, and brush the other side with the umeboshi. Repeat until you have brushed and broiled each side twice. The skewers should end up slightly charred and the chicken done but juicy.

Serve at once.

Wine pairing

At wine pairing dinners at my house we tried this dish with the following wines:

• Michel Sarrazin, Rully Sans Nom 2022 (Chardonnay, Burgundy, France): very good pairing, wine a bit too fresh
• Maratray Dubreuil, Ladoix 1er Cru Les Gréchons 2020 (Chardonnay, Burgundy, France): excellent pairing
• Hauner, Carlo Hauner Salina Bianco 2022 (Inzolia, Catarratto, Grillo, aged partly in barrique, from the volcanic island of Salina near Sicily, Italy): outstanding pairing
• Laura Catena, Luca Chardonnay G-Lot 2021 (Chardonnay, Tupungato, Mendoza, Argentina): excellent pairing
• Shaw + Smith Lenswood Chardonnay 2020 (Chardonnay, Adelaide Hills, Australia): excellent pairing, but the wine seems better without the dish
• Terrazas de los Andes Chardonnay 2022 (Chardonnay, Valle de Uco, Argentina): very good pairing