The Rural Voice, 2019-08, Page 60pound of ground lamb, ground pork
and ground beef to use in the freezer.
After I had them all thawed out I
realized it was just supposed to be
beef and lamb but I used all three and
it was great so I continued to do the
same the next time. I loved the idea
of ground lentils to pack in a little
extra protein and fibre (although
there is some concern that lentils may
be processed in facilities with other
gluten-containing grains).
These took a little time to make
but the recipes produces around 40
kebabs which will serve 10 - 12
people as a main dish. They also
freeze well and make an easy dinner
served with some fresh tomatoes and
a few cobs of corn grilled alongside.
Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground lamb
1 lb ground pork or any combination
of above meats to equal 3 lbs total
1 cup split green lentils, ground (you
may substitute bread crumbs)
2 cups green onions, finely chopped
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 - 3 tsp cayenne pepper, ground
3 Tbsp crushed garlic (about 9 med
cloves)
2 Tbsp finely chopped ginger
2 Tbsp dried mint*
1 Tbsp paprika, ground
1 Tbsp oil (to form the kebabs)
Directions:
Grind lentils in a coffee grinder or
use bread crumbs if you prefer
(gluten-free if needed) .
Whisk together egg, salt, pepper,
garlic, ginger, mint and paprika.
Mix meat, lentils, green onions
and egg mixture together with your
hands until spices and lentils are
uniformly distributed.
Measure about 2 Tbsp (I used an
1/8 cup measure) of mixture and
form into a log about an inch in
diameter using your clean hands
dipped in canola oil. I stuck each
kebab on small bamboo skewer or
toothpick (about 4 inches) for ease of
handling on the BBQ and to eat.
Grill on high heat for 5 to 10
minutes until there is no pink in the
middle, turning often so they do not
get charred. Test with a knife to
ensure they are completely cooked.
Serve with your favourite chutney
or condiments.
Makes about 40
*Remember to bring in some fresh
mint to dry this summer while it is
plentiful
Veggie Skewers
You can throw on a few plain
vegetable skewers any time you are
grilling using one of your favourite
vinaigrettes and a little extra honey
or maple syrup if it is not already
sweetened.
I served Vij’s Kebabs with
Michael Smith’s “Strawberry
Arugula Salad” from Food Network
Canada https://www.foodnetwork.
ca/recipe/strawberry-arugula-
salad/10379/ and used some of the
dressing to brush on some veggie
skewers to go with dinner. If you are
going to serve more than two, double
the recipe in order to have enough for
both the salad and vegetables.
Vinaigrette :
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
Whisk together and brush on
vegetables up to a half hour before
grilling.
Yakitori
It was difficult to choose which of
three types of chicken kebabs to do
for this article. I have an old tried and
true, kid friendly recipe that can be
done in the microwave that would be
great except it is BBQ season. Then I
considered a brined chicken souvlaki
but we will save that for another
time! I decided on the Japanese
version, Yakitori, because it added
more contrast with the two other
recipes shared... and it made use of
the abundance of green onions in the
garden (notice Vij’s Kebabs also
used some green onions). Yakitori is
often served as a snack with drinks
rather than a complete meal.
Although deboned thighs are the
preferred cut of chicken for this
recipe, you may make these skewers
with the boneless breast also.
Traditionally the skewer is dipped in
the sauce just before grilling but I did
not want to contaminate the entire
batch of sauce so I took about a ¼
cup and placed the cubed meat in the
marinade while I was threading the
skewers then poured what remained
in that dish over the grill-ready
kebabs, leaving me with a good
amount of fresh sauce for basting and
dipping later.
Ingredients:
1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
9 green onions
canola oil for coating
Tare Sauce:
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup mirin or white wine with 2
Tbsp sugar
1/4 cup sake or white wine
1/4 cup water
2 tsp brown sugar (or reduce water to
2 Tbsp and use 2 Tbsp maple syrup)
Directions:
Soak wooden skewers in water
while preparing other ingredients.
In a small saucepan combine soy
sauce, mirin, sake, water and sugar or
maple syrup and bring to a boil.
Simmer for 15 - 20 minutes until
reduced by half. Do not overdo this
or it may become too thick and
sticky... I hate to admit this is the
voice of experience talking! Let
sauce cool while preparing skewers.
Cut chicken into 1 inch pieces. If
you have deboned the thighs yourself
you will not have the prettiest, most
even pieces but that will not matter
once you manage to get them on the
skewers. I used 1/4 cup of the sauce
to soak the chicken in while I was
completing this step.
Cut white and light green parts of
green onion into 1 inch pieces.
Fold chicken pieces in half and
thread on skewers, alternating with
green onions. I only put on a piece of
onion after 2 or 3 pieces of chicken.
Pour marinade left from soaking
chicken over prepared kebabs using
extra reserved sauce if needed. Be
sure to move more of the sauce into a
separate bowl before using brush that
has come in contact with raw meat.
Brush your grill or the chicken with a
bit of canola oil before placing on hot
BBQ .
Grill, turning often to prevent
burning. After about 5 minutes brush
with more sauce and continue
cooking several more minutes until
chicken is completely cooked and
sauce is caramelized.
Serve with reserved sauce for
dipping.
Serves 2-3 - If you want to serve
more increase the chicken but you
will probably not need more sauce. ◊
August 2018 57
Recipes