Shish kebab can be very tasty

Some kids don’t like meat. And some adults get immensely upset about it, like my mom used to do. But her wise grandmother liked to say: “there is no adult who would not love kebab”, and she was right: I not only love kebab, but I also gather the most delicious recipes.

Shashlik – is, garnish – rests!

Perhaps the only dish that does not require a side dish – is shashlik. By happy coincidence, it is also the most delicious. Few people will refuse a juicy, well-cooked piece of meat except for true vegetarians, but even for them you can find an appetizing analog prepared on the same “shashlyk” principle.

Even the proverbial sausage and the famous “three crusts of bread” cooked on an open fire, it seems like a miracle of culinary art! And it’s not just clean air and the right attitude, but more precisely the peculiarities of cooking on an open fire.

“Shish kebab is a meat dish common to almost all mountain and pastoral peoples,” reads V. v. Pokhlebkin. It is “pieces of meat, mostly sirloin or loin kidney , strung on a spit and roasted over charcoal or in grills for 10-15 minutes”. Shashlik has many faces and names in Georgia – mtsvadi, in Armenia – khorovats, in Azerbaijan – kebab, and in America earlier – roasted , but the main principle of cooking remains the same: the meat is cooked on hot coals.

“The rules of shish kebab

To cook juicy and tasty kebab you will need: fresh meat, a chargrill or grill, and hot coals. It is coals, not fire. Otherwise it’s another story.

For a classic barbecue, you want the meat of a well-fed young lamb. But it is not so easy to cook and, the main thing, to get it, especially in a megalopolis , though the specific taste is worth it: a lamb is not even pickled, this meat is fragrant and tender.

In modern conditions it is better to take a pork neck or loin with a bone, the dish will be soft and juicy. Besides, it is hard to spoil pork! Often beef is used for barbecue, but it is tougher and may not be as juicy.

It is best to cook pork shashlyk on skewers. We recommend the grill-grill for non-standard solutions – kebabs of chicken, fish or vegetables. Do not forget to grease the skewers with half of a raw onion, so that the meat does not stick. Grease the grill grate with vegetable oil for the same purpose.

There is nothing difficult about putting meat on a skewer. You can even trust the women to do it. But remember, the pieces of meat should be no larger than 2-2,5 cm, large pieces of meat are not likely to brown. You should string the meat along the grain, piercing it in two places only. Do not let the meat hang off the skewer. Place small pieces around the edges, and place larger pieces in the middle.

Put the skewers tightly next to each other, about 10-15 cm over the coals. While cooking, turn the skewers, the first five minutes almost continuously. Later, when coals cool down a little, it is necessary to turn them less often. Make sure that the meat does not dry out.

The readiness of this tasty thing is easy to determine: make a neat cut. If the juice does not flow – alas, the kebab is too dry. If the juice is pink, the meat is not ready yet, but if it is clear, you should bravely serve the shashlik.

Tastier, softer, juicier!

According to experts, the best choice for kebab is a cast-iron brazier.

It is better to pour fat or a mixture of water and lemon or water and marinade in the “fifty-fifty” ratio over the meat while cooking.

A piece of butter put on the warm shashlik will make it more juicy.

Pay attention to the fact that the excess fat from the pork kebab should be removed. Otherwise it will melt and burn and give the meat an unpleasant taste.

If you decide to cook shashlyk on your own coals, then you will not find anything better than dried fruit trees. You can use apricots – the meat will acquire a sweetish taste. The apple tree will give you a terrific flavor, and the plum, with its excellent combustibility, will give you stubborn coals. But nothing compares to a cherry! All it takes is a couple of cherry wood – and the meat acquires an unforgettable flavor.

Kebab does not tolerate failure

I think it is necessary to warn you against some mistakes. There are not many of them, but it is better to take them into account.

• Do not cook kebab on the fire from coniferous trees, as well as maple, mountain ash, alder, poplar, aspen, elm, acacia and willow. When burning they release carcinogenic substances, which, at a minimum, will lead to a kebab that will turn out unpalatable. It is better to use logs of oak, birch or fruit trees.

• be careful with “accidental” firewood: for example, using planks from a wooden box you found somewhere for kindling, you can seriously reduce the flavor of the dish, providing it with extraneous impurities, and even harm your health.

• If you use Kebab liquid for kindling, do not forget to warm the coals a bit longer. Foreign smells give the meat an unpleasant aftertaste. Normal cooking oil burns well – chefs prefer to use it for kindling.

• Meat for shashlik never salted: neither before, nor in the process of cooking. Salt increases the flow of juice and makes the kebab tough.

• Do not marinate and do not transport the meat for shashlik in wooden or aluminum cookware. The wood seems to sap the meat, and aluminum oxide strongly affects the taste of the food you are cooking and spoils it. Use glass, clay or enamel saucepans for marinating.

• Do not add vinegar to the marinade. It may make the meat softer although you can doubt that, too , but it will overpower the flavor for sure.

• Do not put onions and tomato pieces on the skewers together with the meat. They have different cooking times, the vegetables will inevitably burn and will only spoil your enjoyment. Do something different: use fresh onions in the marinade or in the sauce, and serve the tomatoes separately.

• Don’t take your eyes off the barbecue you’re cooking for too long!