How to Grill Kebab

Choose a kebab recipe or pick your own ingredients. Kebabs typically consist of meat and/or vegetables, but you can also experiment with seafood, fruits, and other ingredients. Select the ingredients that suit you best – there's no 'right or wrong' in this step. Popular choices for kebab ingredients include chicken, beef, pork, sausages, veal, shrimp, and fish; while vegetables like onions, mushrooms, green or red bell peppers, zucchini, and tomatoes work wonderfully; fruits like pineapple, peaches, or apples are great additions as well.

• While the above ingredients can be mixed and matched effectively, you might also want to try making kebabs with a specific recipe. Many traditional kebab recipes use veal as the main ingredient. Here are a few traditional kebab recipes and key ingredients:
• Kofta Kebab – veal pieces marinated with a variety of spices
• Chelow Kebab – boneless veal served with saffron rice
• Sheekh Kebab – minced veal marinated with coriander and mint, grilled in a tandoor (a traditional Indian oven)

If your recipe includes meat, marinating the meat is a good idea. If you are skewering meat for grilling, you might want to prepare a marinade, though this step isn’t strictly necessary. Marinating the meat before grilling allows the flavors of the marinade ingredients to seep in, creating a new flavor combination that wouldn't be as noticeable without marinating. Typically, for marinating meat, you would place the meat in a sealed container (such as a ziplock bag) with two basic ingredients: oil and an acidic ingredient (for example, vegetable oil mixed with lemon juice). You can also add spices and herbs to this liquid base to create a unique flavor profile.

• For example, here’s a versatile teriyaki marinade suitable for marinating beef, chicken, and other meats:
  • Vegetable oil
  • Soy sauce
  • Lemon juice
  • Garlic
  • Pepper
  • Worcestershire sauce

Soak your skewers in a bowl of water. When grilling kebabs, you usually have two options for skewers – metal skewers or wooden ones. Metal skewers are sturdier and more durable but cost more, while wooden skewers are cheaper and more convenient. If you choose wooden or bamboo skewers, soak them in water for at least 30 minutes before grilling. This helps to retain moisture in the ingredients while cooking and prevents the skewers from catching fire or burning.

Cut the ingredients into small pieces. Place your ingredients on a cutting board and use a knife to cut them into square chunks about 2.5 cm thick. Of course, this size may not work for some ingredients – for example, bell peppers should be cut into smaller square pieces instead of large chunks. The important thing is to cut the ingredients into pieces of a similar size so that they cook evenly.

• If using meat without marinating it, you can try applying dry seasoning at this stage by mixing powdered spices and rubbing them onto the meat’s surface. To dry season, simply combine the spices and rub them onto the meat. Here is a spice mix for a bell pepper seasoning suitable for beef:
• Paprika
• Salt
• Onion powder
• Garlic powder
• Black pepper
• Thyme
• Oregano

Skewer the ingredients onto the sticks. Once your ingredients are prepared to your liking, the next step is to skewer them! Use sharp skewers to pierce each piece of meat or vegetables and slide them down to create a “stack” of ingredients packed together. When making kebabs, it's common to alternate pieces of meat with fruits or vegetables to create a wonderful flavor contrast. Of course, this method also works for vegetarian kebabs. Once your ingredients are skewered, you can move on to the grilling step!

• Be sure to leave a small gap between each piece of ingredient to allow for even cooking on all sides.

Preheat the grill to medium heat. To achieve that delicious "charred" flavor on the outside of the kebab, it's essential to preheat your grill to the right temperature before placing the kebabs on it. If you're using a gas grill, it's simple – just set the heat to medium, close the lid, and wait for the temperature to rise. With a charcoal grill, it's a bit trickier – you'll need to light the charcoal and let it burn until the flames subside, the coals are covered with ash, and they glow red. This process takes about 30 minutes or longer.

• Generally, for about 450g of meat, you'll need approximately 30 pieces of charcoal.

Place the kebab skewers on the grill surface. When the grill is hot, you'll hear a sizzle as you lay the skewers down. Be sure to leave some space between the skewers to ensure the ingredients cook evenly.

• To prevent the skewers from sticking to the grill, it’s a good idea to brush the grill with a little vegetable oil or olive oil before you start grilling. Using a brush is safer – don’t try to apply the oil with a paper towel or any makeshift tools on the hot grill.

Turn the skewers while grilling to ensure even cooking on all sides. Make sure each side of the kebab touches the grill – this not only ensures the ingredients are cooked but also gives the meat (if you're using it) a crispy exterior. As a general rule, most kebabs need to be grilled for around 10-15 minutes, meaning it takes about 2.5-3.75 minutes to grill each side.

• For vegetarian kebabs, you don’t need to worry about the meat; just rotate the skewers as you like to make sure the vegetables and fruits achieve a nice golden or blackened exterior and soften on the inside.

Check the doneness of the meat. Take one of the kebab skewers off the grill. If using meat, cut a small piece from the meat to check if it's cooked through. Look for familiar signs that the meat is done – clear juices, no pink inside, and the meat should be tender and easy to cut. If the meat is still pink inside, leaking red juices, or tough to cut, you’ll need to grill it for a bit longer.

Remove the kebabs from the grill once they’re fully cooked. When the ingredients are cooked, take the skewers off the grill and place them on a clean plate or tray. Don’t use the same plate that held the uncooked kebabs, especially if you’ve grilled meat – bacteria from undercooked meat can transfer to the cooked food, leading to serious illnesses.

Enjoy the kebabs immediately or serve with appropriate sides. Congratulations, your kebabs are ready! You can either eat the skewers directly or remove the ingredients onto a plate. Kebabs are delicious on their own, but for a complete meal, consider preparing side dishes that complement the flavors of the kebab.

• The traditional kebab is often served with seasoned rice and/or flatbread (such as pita, naan, or chapati). Side dishes can vary by region. For instance, Chelo kebab is typically served with rice mixed with raw egg yolk.
• Grilled kebabs are also featured in other dishes. For example, Turkish Doner kebab is usually placed in pita bread with some vegetables, much like a Vietnamese sandwich.