Ruth Smith's Shish-ka-bob Marinade, not exclusively for shish-ka-b

[Smithy]

Ruth Smith's Shish-ka-bob Marinade, not exclusively for shish-ka-bob

Serves 4 as Main Dish.

I never liked venison when I was small. Dad would bring home the deer from his hunting trip, lovingly and carefully tended; over the winter he'd go to the locker plant, bringing back meat that had been carefully stored. Venison chops and steaks were invariably floured and pan-fried into dry nothingness, and I wondered why we bothered.

Sometime in my early adolescence, shish-ka-bob mania struck our little community, and Mom came home with a recipe for shish-ka-bobs. Marinate the meat, thread it on skewers with slices of onion and bell pepper, grill, serve over pilaf with a side vegetable, and you have a meal.

Well. What a difference! Suddenly, I loved venison. Antelope was even better. Soon we learned that this marinade lends itself to many kinds of meat, and that they do just as well in large pieces like steaks and chops as they do in small chunks threaded on a skewer. I've used this marinade on chicken, lamb, and beef in addition to the aforementioned venison and antelope. A correspondent reports that it's just dandy on pork loin.

The beauty of this marinade, aside from its simplicity, is that it takes the gamey flavor out of just about any meat without killing the basic good flavor. If you're cooking for someone leery of lamb or venison, this is a good way to start out.

I don't know whose recipe this is in the first place, but I write it as Mom gave it to me from her friend - and then, as always, add my own notes.

For 2 pounds of boneless meat (cubed if you're planning kebabs)

• Marinade:
  
• 1/2 c olive oil, or 'salad' oil ('vegetable' oil now - hey, this is a 1970's recipe)
  
• 1/4 c lemon juice
  
• 1 tsp salt
  
• 1 tsp margarine, melted (I usually omit this, haven't a clue what it's supposed to do)
  
• 1/4 tsp ground thyme
  
• 1/2 tsp ground pepper (I prefer white)
  
• 1 cloves garlic, minced, to taste
  
• 1/2 c chopped onion
  
• 1/4 c snipped parsley
  

Mix the ingredients. Marinate the meat several hours at room temperature, or overnight in the refrigerator.

The original recipe calls for alternating the cubes of marinated meat with slices of onion and bell pepper, then threading it all on skewers and barbecuing until the meat is done. Serve over pilaf.

I've learned that it works better to thread the ingredients separately: meat on one skewer, peppers on another, onions on another. Sometimes I marinate mushrooms or cherry tomatoes in this mix and grill them too. The thing is, all these items cook at different rates, so you're better off cooking them separately and mixing at the end.

I've also learned that this marinade works well on whole pieces of meat. I frequently marinate lamb chops or steaks, or chicken thighs or breasts then pan fry them. When they're pleasantly browned but not entirely cooked, then I throw rice into the fat, let it cook slightly, then add broth and let the whole thing cook into a pilaf with meat in it. Lovely stuff. This marinade also works well to flavor something larger like a tri-tip steak prior to grilling.

This freezes well. I often mix the marinade and pour it into a Zip-Loc™ bag or other freezer container with the meat, then freeze the whole thing. Later, I can thaw and grill the meat at my convenience, and I've saved some steps.

There was probably an original instruction to shake the loose marinade off the meat before grilling. I find that I enjoy the flareups and extra flavor from having the oil drip onto the hot fire below. Yum.

Keywords: Main Dish, Game, Pork, Easy, Lamb, Dinner, Chicken, Marinade, Beef

( RG1437 )