Food on a stick is fun with one of our favorites being kabobs (or shish kebob). Kabobs are marinated morsels of meat, tofu, vegetables and/or fruit threaded on skewers and grilled to perfection.
Kabob-ing Tips
Prevent Skewer Fires: Submerge bamboo/wood skewers in water for 10 to 12 minutes. This will keep them from burning when grilled.
For Best flavor and texture: Marinate meats overnight for maximum flavor. Toss veggies and fruits with marinade less than 10 minutes prior to grilling.
Skewering Techniques: Keep veggies and Fruits on separate skewers from meats. Meats take longer to cook and making separate skewers of veggies/fruits allows you to cook both type of food to perfection!
List of Kabob-friendly fruits and veggies:
- Pineapple Chunks
- Sweet Onions – cut in wedges
- Grape or Cherry Tomatoes – whole
- Red, Yellow and Green Bell Peppers – cut into chunks
- Mushrooms – whole
- Baby Potatoes – boiled until cooked through
- Zucchini – thick sliced in rounds
Shrimp on the Barbie: Grilled shrimp could not be easier or quicker to prepare. Threading shrimp on bamboo skewers makes them easy to turn over. Peel, devein, and rinse the shrimp, Sprinkle with salt and pepper, thread on skewers and cook about 2 minutes on each side. Remove from the grill and baste the shrimp with a sauce such as:
- Teriyaki Glaze
- Italian Salad Dressing
- Thai Peanut Sauce
- Garlic Butter
Serve with an assortment of grilled vegetable and fruit skewers that have been basted with the same sauce. Vegetable & Fruit skewers will grill up in 5-7 minutes.
Pomegranate marinated lamb kabobs
- 1/2 cup pomegranate juice
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
- 1 tsp dried rosemary or 1 Tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 pounds boneless lamb shoulder or leg, cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
- Assorted fruits and vegetable pieces
In a large bowl, whisk together pomegranate juice, oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, rosemary and garlic. Reserve ¼ cup of marinade with fruits and vegetable skewers. Add lamb cubes and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Thread lamb equally onto bamboo skewers. Toss fruit and vegetable pieces in marinade and thread them on skewers. Place skewers on medium hot BBQ or a lightly greased Grill Pan on medium heat. Cook, turning often until meat is well browned outside, but pink in the center, about 10-15 minutes. Vegetables will need 5-7 minutes on the grill.
Great Grilled shitakes: Shitakes mushrooms are popular in Asian cooking. They have a terrific smoky taste and are great grilled. Simply run a skewer through a few of them, brush them with Olive Oil and grill them 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from the grill and baste them with hoisin sauce. Delish!