Grilled Pork Kebabs / Shashlik
Servings: 16 skewers
Calories: 115kcal
Grilled pork kebabs (shashlik, in Russian) is the summer staple! Let's learn to make the juiciest and most tender grilled pork skewers together.
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Ingredients
- 4 lbs 2kg pork shoulder (Note 1)
- 4 medium yellow onions
- 1-2 tablespoons spices of your choice I use ½ tablespoon ground black pepper, ½ tablespoon ground cumin, ½ tablespoon garlic powder, and ½ tablespoon smoked paprika
- ½ tablespoon salt
Instructions
- To prepare the meat: cut the meat into bite-size pieces, about 1-inch cubes.
- Grate the onions and then squeeze the juices. Reserve the juices and discard the pulp. (Note 2)
- In a large bowl, combine meat, onion juice, seasonings and salt. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight. (Alternatively, you can slice the onions and combine with the meat. However, onion juice tenderize the meat, so when sliced, they aren't as effective.)
- To grill the meat: preheat the grill over medium high heat. Clean and lightly oil the grates.
- Thread the meat onto metal skewers and arrange them on a baking sheet.
- Once the grill is nice and hot, place the skewers on the grill and grill for about 8 minutes, turning on all sides. You can cover the grill for couple of minutes, but watch for flames. You don't want big flames burn your kebabs.
- To check for doneness: use a meat thermometer. The internal temperature should read 160°F. If you don't have a thermometer, get one asap! But in the meantime, cut into the biggest piece. If the juices are clear, it's ready!!!
- Serve immediately. (These grilled mixed vegetables are perfect side dish!)
Notes
Note 1: For juicy, tender pork kebabs, I recommend pork shoulder, which consists of two parts: Boston butt and picnic roast. You can't go wrong with either cut. Boston butt is more marbled, which means it's fattier and has more flavor. Fatty meat yields more flavorful kebabs, because fat drips down into the fire, releasing amazing smoke flavor back into the meat.
Note 2: Onion juice tenderizes the meat. Mixing grated onion (without juicing) with the meat will still tenderize the meat, but onion pieces burn during grilling. You can use sliced onions too for marinating meat, if you prefer, but as you can imagine onion slices won't produce as much onion juice.
Nutrition
Calories: 115kcal
Carbohydrates: 3g
Protein: 14g
Fat: 5g
Sugar: 1g
Sodium: 272mg