Steak Kabob Recipe Video
Steak: use quality top sirloin steak. It is less expensive than many cuts of beef but emerges juicy and tender due to cubing and marinating. Select thick cuts of sirloin and try to cut your steak into uniform size pieces. Potatoes: nothing goes better with steak than potatoes! Choose a buttery, starchy potato such as baby red potatoes or Yukon gold potatoes. To prepare my potatoes, I slice them in half, then slice the remaining halves into 2-3 rows. We will give them a head start by first steaming in the microwave. Bell peppers: you can select any two colors but I avoid green because it isn’t as sweet and we already have green zucchini. Zucchini: you can use one large zucchini or two smaller zucchini. Slice the zucchini on the thick side -you’ll be surprised how much it shrinks on the grill! Go for 1/4-1/2-inch thick. Onions: I highly suggest red onions over yellow onions for this steak kabob recipe. They become both sweet and tangy as they caramelize on the grill. If you only have yellow onions on hand you may use them, but next time go for red.
Metal skewers: I LOVE my stainless steel skewers! They allow you to grill any time without soaking your wooden skewers (AKA no fires!), are reusable, dishwasher safe with an easy-to-use top ring handle. They are definitely worth the $20 for a lifetime of use. Grill brush: is essential for keeping your grill clean! This grill brush with scrapers cleans stubborn stains deeply and efficiently. Instant-read thermometer: you need an instant-read thermometer for the juiciest steak kabobs, chicken, pork AND for perfectly fried everything! It allows you to cook any protein to the perfect temperature every time. Quality Knives: a chef’s knife will be your most used kitchen tool by far! Quality knives make prep time much quicker for this Steak Kabob recipe and are important for safety as well. If you’re concerned about moola, please remember that your best chef knives, depending on how hard you use them and how well you take care of them, can easily last 25 years or more. I love my Wusthof but there are hundreds of less expensive knives with great reviews such as this one.
FAT: The extra virgin olive oil dissolves fat-soluble flavor compounds from the seasonings and evenly disperses them onto the surface off the beef and helps them stick. ACID: Balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and lemon juice help tenderize the top sirloin by breaking down the lean muscle fibers. The acid trio also boast layers of rich and tangy flavor instead of just one note flavor. SALT: Soy sauce acts as a brine, which increases the moisture capacity of the meat, helping it become juicer and more flavorful. First, the salt hydrates the muscle tissues via osmosis; second, it changes the cells’ structure so that they can no longer contract when cooking. This means less water will be squeezed out and lost, resulting in juicier steak. Finally, the brine draws the rich umami soy flavor further down below the surface into the beef. SWEETENER: Brown sugar balances both the salt and the acid. It also promotes caramelization, quicker browning and beautiful grill marks. FLAVOR ENHANCERS: I use aromatic onion powder, garlic powder and paprika, dried herbs such as basil, oregano and rosemary, red pepper and black pepper for a kick as well as seasonings commonly found in Montreal steak seasoning such as ground coriander and dried dill weed. All the ingredients come together to create an epic steak marinade you will LOVE.
PRO TIP: Use reduced sodium soy sauce or your marinade will be too salty!
Step 1: Chop beef into cubes. Chop your beef into 1 1/2-inch cubes in order to keep them juicy. Avoid cutting the beef too small or it can overcook. Try and chop the beef roughly the same size so they cook evenly. Step 2: Chop veggies into large uniform pieces. I’ve used bell peppers, potatoes, zucchini and red onions but you can substitute with your favorite vegetables. Chop the veggies into about 1 ½-inch pieces and zucchini 1/4-1/2-inch thick. Step 3: Par-boil potatoes. Next, we make grilling potatoes not only possible but perfect with a little shortcut. Microwave your chopped potatoes for 4-5 minutes, just until tender. This allows them to grill alongside your steak and everything to be cooked through at the same time. The only real trick is to not overcook your potatoes in the microwave or they will fall off the skewers. Step 4: Marinate steak and veggies. Whisk together the olive oil, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce and handpicked seasonings.
VEGGIES: Add a few tablespoons of marinade to the vegetables along with additional olive oil, salt and pepper and refrigerate until you’re ready to grill. STEAK: Add the rest of the marinade to the steak, cover, refrigerate and let it bathe in the tenderizing/flavor infusing marinade for 2-6 hours.
Step 5: Soak wooden skewers. You can use metal or wood skewers but just take care you soak your wood skewers for at least 30 minutes otherwise they can catch fire! I recommend soaking your skewers when you start marinating your beef. Step 6: Assemble kabobs. Thread the beef and vegetables onto the skewers in alternating fashion being sure to keep a little space between them so that the food grills versus steams. If you don’t want to worry about alternating the ingredients, you can make all beef skewers or all vegetable skewers.
How to make Kabobs
Swap protein. Literally ANY protein can be used kabobs! You can swap the steak for chicken breasts or thighs, pork tenderloin, shrimp and even salmon. Mix up the veggies. You’re welcome to mix and match the veggies or add more or less of your favorites. Mushrooms, tomatoes, and squash would all be delicious. Swap seasonings. You can mix up the flavor profile by swapping the seasonings for Cajun seasonings, fajita seasonings, or your favorite spice rub. Make them spicy. Add additional red pepper flakes or swap the red pepper flakes for some cayenne or chipotle chile powder. Add fruit. You won’t want to marinate the fruit, but you can make separate fruit kabobs with pineapple, peaches, nectarines, plums, watermelon, pears and/or grapes.
Here are some of our favorite sides to serve with steak kabobs:
Potluck Favorites. Million Dollar Baked Mac and Cheese, Potato Salad, Baked Beans, Corn Casserole, Elote (Mexican Street Corn), Grilled Corn on the Cob. Salad. Wedge Salad, Strawberry Avocado Broccoli Salad, Strawberry Salad, Spinach Berry Salad, Cucumber Tomato Salad, Mexican Salad and Corn Salad. Pasta Salad. Italian Tortellini Salad, Greek Pasta Salad, BLT Pasta Salad, Cowboy Pasta Salad, Bacon and Pea Pasta Salad and Greek Orzo Pasta Salad. Fruit. Grilled Pineapple, Creamy Grape Salad, Summer Fruit Salad, Perfect Fruit Salad, Tropical Fruit Salad or Berry Salad in Honey Mascarpone. Bread. Corn Bread, Garlic Bread, Breadsticks, Dinner Rolls or Hawaiian Rolls.
Beef Kabobs are pretty straight forward, but there are a few tips and tricks to make the best kabobs every time. Here are answers to commonly asked questions: Carlsbad Cravings© Original Tag @CarlsbadCravings and Use #CarlsbadCravngs Leave a Review, I Always Love Hearing From You!
