Tuesday, July 7, 2009

A Simple Summer Meal

Kebabs, they're what's for dinner! Spicy Asian pork kebabs to be exact and they were outstanding!

In my quest to deliver a simple, healthy, summer meal to the table last night, I settled on kebabs. They're easy, delicious and oh so festive.

Spicy Asian Pork Kebabs:
  • 2 large, lean, boneless center cut pork chops
  • 4 tbsp. low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp. dark Asian sesame oil
  • 1 tsp. Sriracha sauce
  • juice of 1/2 lime
  • 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tsp. unseasoned rice wine vinegar
  • 1 large clove of garlic, peeled and minced
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 large red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1 inch squares
  • some fresh pineapple, cut into 1 inch chunks
Trim any visible fat from the outside of the pork chops, then cut the pork into one and a half inch cubes. Reserve.

In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, sesame oil, Sriracha sauce, lime juice, lemon juice, rice wine vinegar, garlic and a generous grating of fresh black pepper. Whisk well to combine. Remove 2 tablespoons of the marinade to a small bowl and reserve. Add the pork cubes to the rest of the marinade and toss well to coat, pressing down to ensure that all of meat is submerged. Cover and chill in the fridge for one hour.

Meanwhile, if you're using bamboo skewers, place them in a large pan filled with water and allow them to soak for 1/2 hour.

Just before you're ready to grill, assemble the skewers. Thread the red bell peppers and pineapple chunks, alternating each, onto the skewers, place them on a plate and drizzle with the reserved 2 tablespoons of marinade to coat. Remove the pork from the fridge, and thread the cubes onto separate skewers in equal measure.

Heat a grill pan over high heat and brush it with a bit of oil, allow the pan to become very hot. Add the pork and veggie skewers to the pan and grill, turning as necessary until the meat is well browned and cooked throughout and the fruit/peppers are nicely browned and tender. Total cooking time will be approximately 8 minutes, but cooking times may vary, so be attentive.

To serve, remove the pork and fruit/veg from skewers to plate and combine.

As written, this recipe will serve two and it can easily be doubled as needed. I served mine with steamed zucchini and some amazing quinoa tabbouleh ... and I'll tell you all about that ... tomorrow!

The marinade would work well with beef or chicken, so feel free to substitute if that is your heart's desire. This is a quick, easy and satisfying meal - just perfect for a warm summer evening. I hope you'll try it.

Bon appetit!

11 comments:

Unknown said...

Oh god, i LOVE BBQ! Hubby bought a barbeque but its been raining every day for a week. Cant wait to have some kebabs of my own!

Lyndsay Wells said...

Do these ever look good! I'm always looking for new recipes for the grill and I know we'll love these. Yumm!

stephchows said...

Sounds like you had a fabulous weekend!! And this meal looks like a good way to say welcome home. YUM!

Daniel said...

If you end up scaling this meal up to a double or triple batch, you could probably use a pork butt or pork shoulder and save even more money on the meat.

And I love this recipe: really simple, with just a few ingredients. Thanks for sharing, Diva!

Dan
Casual Kitchen

The Diva on a Diet said...

HH - Ugh, its been raining here forever too it seems. A grill pan comes in handy for such weather ... but they'd be so much better on a real grill. Here's hoping the sun will shine on you soon! :)

Maven - Thanks! They were quite yummy if I do say so myself. I usually opt for chicken kebabs, but the pork was a really nice change.

Steph - We did and it was! I really needed a healthy meal after the weekend's celebratory events! LOL

Dan - what a great idea to up the amounts and use the pork butt. Its also a great solution for feeding a crowd and really just as easy. Thank you!!

Peanut Butter Swirl said...

oh goodness i just love asian food :)
sounds delicious!

nick said...

"and they were outstanding"

they certainly look that way!

I always seem to set my skewers on fire (on the real grill), no matter how long I soak them before hand. I've actually been contemplating buying the metal ones, I think they are pretty cheap.

The Diva on a Diet said...

Peanut Butter Swirl - hello and welcome to Beach Eats! Love your name ... it puts me in mind of ice cream! LOL

Nick - I've been thinking about getting some of the metal skewers too ... because the bamboo does tend to burn even with the soaking. They're a little easier to manage in a grill pan, but on a real grill they do tend to burn more quickly.

The Duo Dishes said...

That pineapple and pork combo is always good. Wish we could grill everyday. Such good flavor.

The Food Addicts said...

I just had kabobs yesterday for a BBQ, which we skewered shrimp, vegetables, and tofu. Your kabobs look great - I should've done pineapple too, but didn't have any on hand. Great idea!

Tangled Noodle said...

Spicy pork kebabs sounds perfect! We've been grillin' fools these past few weeks but haven't strayed too far from the steak, chop and burger mode. These would be a nice change!