How To Cook Shish Kabobs On A Gas Grill?- A Detailed Guide

Meat on a stick is always a favorite during barbecues in your backyard. Today, we will be talking about how to cook shish kabobs on a gas grill like Weber so you can cook it when the time comes for a party.

This is a relatively easy recipe that you can cook to get you started with grilling. However, there are some common mistakes that most people make when cooking this recipe.

Whether it is from the preparation, cooking in the oven, griddle, or when grilling it, you can easily ruin this food. So be careful from the process all the way to the serving process to get the best out of the meat.

Shish Kabob is originally a Turkish dish but people from all over the world have fallen in love with this delicious and easy food that there are now many variations of it.

Usually, it involves marinated meat and vegetables. So it really is a mix of the right amount of protein and healthy greens that keep you eating more of this recipe while grilling.

Some people even put fruits on their shish kabobs so it really does not matter what you want. Just make sure that you mix the right ingredients so that it tastes good all the time.

Depending on the diet that you are in, you can put as many vegetables or as much meat on the stick as you want. Just keep it healthy and of course, palatable for everybody.

Stick around as we get into the details of making the perfect shish kabobs for your next gathering. We will also show you some tips to help you improve your barbecue cooking.

Get ready for shopping and fire up your grill as we take on this very simple recipe to help you get a nice appetizer or even a meal out of this delicious food on your grill.

Choose The Right Cut Of Meat

The meat for shish kabobs needs to be cut into small pieces whether you grill or cook them in the oven or griddle. That is why not all cuts of meat are suitable for this recipe and so you need to select the right cut of meat for it.

It is all about the part because any type of meat can be skewered. Whether it is beef, pork, or chicken, you can use it for making the best shish kabobs for your barbecue.

When you buy meat, make sure that the butcher cuts the meat into the right size or if not, you can request a 1-inch thickness on the meat that you have ordered.

From there, you can easily dice up the meat so that you can prepare the other ingredients without spending too much time on cutting the meat that you have ordered.

You should also keep in mind that fresh meat is always the best option. So if you have a butcher shop nearby, order from there, or if there is no other choice, buy frozen meat from your local supermarket.

Selecting Beef

While this is not the most popular option for this recipe, you can still opt for beef to make the flavor of your shish kabob a little different than the common pork in barbecues.

The best cut of beef for shish kabobs is the sirloin or the sirloin tip. One thing you should consider is to get a little bit of fat to come along with the lean meat.

The fat will help keep the meat juicy when grilled. Since you are going to cut them into smaller pieces, it gets risky that they are going to dry out so get a little bit of fat to go with the meat.

Selecting Pork

The most recommended cut of pork to use in your shish kebob is the chops. This is the tender part of the pork that has a lot of muscles while also containing some fats that will melt in the oven, griddle, or on the grill.

Trim the pork meat to remove the connective tissues that might affect the tenderness of the meat. You can do this by simply cutting off the white parts of the meat.

Marinating is also going to help tenderize the meat. So before you put them in the skewers, you can let them sit on a marinade to soak in the flavor and tenderize the meat initially.

Selecting Chicken

The thighs are the best option for the chicken. The chicken thighs contain enough lean meat to shape the meat and cut them in small pieces plus enough fats to hold the meat together.

It is also more flavorful than the breast part. Since it has enough fats and skin in between, you can cook them without drying them out on the grill.

If you have no other choice, you can go for the breast part but always remember to marinate it before putting them inside the grill to make them more tender.

These are the common types and cuts of meat that are used in shish kabobs but you can also go for lambs or fish as long as you think that they will combine well with the other foods.

Preparation (Cutting)

Since the shish kabobs are going to be cooked with vegetables, you need to make up for the fast cooking period that the vegetables need so cut the meat thinly, that goes with cooking in the oven, griddle, or on the grill.

1-inch cubes will be enough for the meat to cook evenly with the vegetables. You can also go for about 1.5 inches but any thicker than that, you risk burning the vegetables or getting the meat raw.

The Marinade

If you think that the flavor of the meat is not enough or if the cut of meat is still tough, you can always opt for marinating it to add flavor and tenderness when they are cooked.

Varying the ingredients that you use when making the marinade is also a good option. It gives you more versatility and a chance to create new flavors that you might love.

There are also some standard marinade options that you can choose from. Such are Chinese, that includes soy sauce, a little bit of honey, five-spice powder, sesame oil, and garlic.

You can also go for a Thai marinade with the famous fish sauce, lime juice, garlic, and brown sugar combination that gives you so much flavor when the shish kabobs are done.

Then there is the original Turskish marinade which has Aleppo pepper, whole milk Greek yogurt, red wine vinegar, tomato sauce, Kosher salt, olive oil, garlic, and pepper for a varied flavor.

You can also make your own marinade. Soaking the meat in the marinade for long will not necessarily add more flavor but it helps in keeping the meat tender and juicier.

If you use a lot of vinegar or other acidic ingredients in the marinade, do not soak the meat for long in it. It will start the cooking process which can burn the meat when grilled.

So keep the ingredients of the marinade in mind and time the soaking of the meat. If there are fewer acids in it, you can go overnight and if not, 30 minutes to an hour of marinating will be enough.

Skewer The Meat

Now with the most important part of the process. You need to keep the meat and vegetables balanced when it comes to the grilling process to avoid burning or undercooking them.

You can also put the meat in a skewer separate from the vegetables. This way, you can keep track of the cooking time of both ingredients to prevent burning the other.

Combining the vegetables and the meat in one skewer will also add more flavor to both the vegetables and meat. But it is a bit trickier to cook this type of skewer.

It is a matter of preference but if you choose to combine the vegetables and meat in one skewer, make sure to select the ingredients that cook at roughly the same time.

How do you grill kabobs without burning Wooden SKEWERS?

Many people love using Bamboo Skewers but there can be a problem as the Bamboo Skewers can catch fire while on the grill. So soak the wooden skewers for about 30 minutes to an hour in water and then use them for making Kabobs.

This way they are not going to catch fire and you can easily cook Kabobs on the grill.

How long To grill shish kabobs on a gas grill?

Once you have arranged the meat and vegetables on the skewer, get your grill fired up and see how long to grill the kabobs. Turn up the heat and preheat the grill for 15 minutes until it reaches medium heat.

The temperature should reach a certain amount of heat to slightly sear the shish kabobs on the grates. 350 degrees Fahrenheit is good but you can go higher if you want.

Place the kabobs on the grill grates and watch them while they cook. The entire grilling process should take about 15 minutes but you need to turn the shish kabobs every 2 to 3 minutes.

Close the grill while cooking to even out the heat inside. This will also cook the kabobs faster so do not leave them unattended once you put them in the grill.

Check one skewer if it has already been cooked and then prepare a plate with a paper towel over it. Place the cooked kebabs on the plate and drain the excess grease.

It does not take long to grill the kabobs but you just have to kepp an eye on them. Since it does not take long to grill them, make sure not to leave them too long as they might burn.

You can also just let them drip so that the marinade will not be wiped off when you place them on the paper towels. Plate the shish kabobs with rice or potatoes and serve!

How do you keep kabobs from sticking to the grill?

Brush the grill grates with some olive oil before so start cooking so that the Kabobs do not stick to the grill. This is one of the most effective tips that has helped me avoid a lot of mess while making kabobs.

You should definitely do this before you cook a batch in order to avoid the Kabobs from sticking to the grill.

Conclusion

Shish kabobs are very easy recipes to make. They are also very delicious and are surprisingly light in the stomach so you can eat a lot of it.

However, they are easy to mess up so you are going to need some practice in cooking them. Make sure to use the freshest ingredients in the meat, vegetables, and the marinade.

This recipe also allows you to be creative in using any ingredient that you want. This will keep you discovering new flavors that you can add with the meat and vegetable skewers.

Using a gas grill like Weber is also great since it gives off even and consistent heat. However, if you want more flavors, you can add wood to the fuel to give off smoke for the kabobs.

You can do that in a Weber grill as Weber grills are really versatile. There is also a line of charcoal grills from the brand that can cook grilled veggie skewers, grilled chicken kabobs, grilled vegetable kabobs, veggie kabobs, and more.

So start shopping for the best ingredients and get your grill ready. This recipe is sure to impress any guest that you will be inviting in your next backyard barbecue!

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