Marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice
Marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice
How the kebab turns out depends almost entirely on how the meat is marinated. If you don’t marinate it at all, then when grilled over coals it will become dry and hard, and it will be impossible to eat it. Only a properly prepared marinade can soften the meat fibers, so the meat is fried without having time to dry out and remains tender and juicy. To soften meat fibers, acidic products are most often included in the marinade, one of them is lemon juice. Almost all gourmets prefer marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice, but in order to properly marinate meat in it, you need to know a few subtleties.
Individual manufacturing
The marinade for barbecue with pomegranate juice can be very different, but the general principles of its production do not depend on the recipe.
- The barbecue marinade with pomegranate juice is suitable for any type of meat, including poultry. The necessary flavoring and aromatic colors are assigned to it by the spices used. Choose those that closely match the type of meat you are using for barbecue.
- The marinade made from pomegranate juice is very mild, so you won’t be able to marinate old meat with veins in it. In general, there is no need to choose this for barbecue, even if you use a marinade that softens the meat in a short time. Preference should be given to the meat of young animals. It is better to have a fat layer. It is also equally important that the meat you take for barbecue is not frozen. When defrosting, it loses some of the water, and you risk cooking dry kebab.
- A barbecue marinade with pomegranate juice is only suitable for you if you are preparing for the event in advance. The fact is that meat should be kept in it for at least 10 hours, but as a standard, it is left in the marinade for a day. Only poultry meat can be marinated more quickly, and it also needs to be marinated in the evening so that it has time to sit in pomegranate juice for at least 6–8 hours.
- To make marinade for barbecue, you can use pomegranate juice, which is sold in stores. But in this case, you need to carefully study the composition, because the juice is needed undiluted. It will be even better if you cook it yourself. To do this, you need to peel the pomegranate, place the grains in gauze folded in several layers and crush them well through it. As a standard, you should only have bones left in the gauze.
- There is no need to salt the meat right away, because salt tends to draw water out of the goods, and you need the meat to retain it. For this reason, you can salt the meat an hour before frying the kebabs - this will be completely enough.
- The kebab will turn out juicier if you add vegetable oil to the marinade. Olive is ideal, but you can use something else, but without the aroma.
- Be careful when choosing the container in which you will marinate the meat. The fact is that aluminum, when in contact with acidic products, which includes pomegranate juice, oxidizes, releasing harmful substances. For this reason, it is better to choose a glass or clay container for pickling. Enamel cookware and stainless steel cookware also work well.
Otherwise, just follow the directions in the recipe, and you will be able to properly prepare meat for shish kebab in pomegranate marinade.
Traditional marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice
- meat – 2 kg;
- pomegranate juice – 0.4 l;
- vegetable oil – 100 ml;
- onions – 0.7 kg;
- seasoning, salt - to taste.
- Prepare the meat. To do this, you need to wash it, dry it with a kitchen towel and cut it into cube-shaped pieces of 4–5 cm.
- Rub the meat with seasonings.
- Peel the onions and cut them into thin half rings. If you want the meat to marinate faster, you can grate part of the onion.
- Add onion to meat. Stir with your hands, distributing the onions sparingly.
- Pour oil into the container with the meat. Stir it with your hands again.
- Pour pomegranate juice over the meat, stir and put in the refrigerator.
You can grill the kebab 10–12 hours after the meat has been placed in the pomegranate marinade. An hour earlier, the meat needs to be salted and mixed.
Marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice and mineral water
- meat – 2 kg;
- pomegranate juice – 0.5 l;
- onions – 0.5 kg;
- mineral water – 0.5 l;
- salt, spices - to taste.
- Wash the meat, dry it, cut into pieces, the size of which should be about 5 cm.
- Place the meat in a bowl or pan, pour in mineral water and leave for an hour. Mineral water must certainly be carbonated, otherwise the expected effect will not be achieved, because the task of mineral water is to soften the meat fibers with bubbles.
- Peel the onion and cut into thin half rings, making sure to release the onion juice.
- Drain the mineral water and dry the meat. Rub it with spices.
- Add the onion to the meat along with the released juice, stir.
- Pour pomegranate juice over the meat and put it in the refrigerator overnight (that is, in the dark) .
Thanks to the use of mineral water, the marinade with pomegranate juice will work better and the meat can be fried after 8–10 hours.
Spicy marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice
- meat – 2 kg;
- pomegranate juice – 0.5 l;
- onions – 0.5 kg;
- mayonnaise – 100 ml;
- spicy adjika – 50 g;
- soy sauce – 100 ml.
- After washing and drying the meat with napkins, cut into pieces of a suitable size.
- Mix adjika with mayonnaise, place this mixture in a bowl with meat. Stir it with your hands so that the sauce covers any piece.
- Cut the onion into thin half rings and add to the meat.
- Mix juice with soy sauce. Pour marinade over meat. Mix everything well and put it in the refrigerator.
It is necessary to marinate the meat in pomegranate juice with the addition of sauces for 10–12 hours; the poultry meat will be ready for grilling over coals after 6 hours.
Marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice allows you to create meat juicy and tender, with a slight sour aftertaste. Any tomato sauce, including tkemali sauce, will go well with this meat.
Shish kebab in pomegranate juice and marinade recipes
Manufacturing
Wash the pork, remove excess water with a napkin, cut into similar-sized rectangular slices 3 x 4 cm.
Remove the skins from the onion and chop into rings.
Transfer the pork to a deep enamel pan, add the onion there, and stir.
Lightly grind the coriander seeds in a mortar, combine with hops-suneli, dark pepper granules, and plenty of salt. Add spices to meat and onions.
Pour pomegranate juice into the pan so that it “washes away” the spices.
Thoroughly mix the products, pour in a couple of tablespoons of sunflower oil, and mix the kebab again.
Turn the lid of the pan or plate over, cover the food, place a press on top so that all the contents are in the juice.
Place the pan in the refrigerator for 2 days, do not forget to stir the kebab from time to time and return it to the press.
Place the marinated pork on skewers and hold over hot coals, turning frequently until the meat is cooked through.
Cut vegetables to taste and your favorite greens, serve with sauce.
The quality of the kebab will depend entirely on the marinating of the pieces. If you skip the marinating step, the fibers will become hard and nasty: only a well-prepared marinade can soften them and prevent the pork from drying out during the frying process. The role of a softener is played by an acidic component - for example, Grante pomegranate juice. This is an option for gourmets, since making a marinade involves knowledge of culinary aspects.
Subtleties of pomegranate marinade
Pork marinated in pomegranate juice can have different flavors depending on the ingredients. The general manufacturing rules are as follows:
· Marinade for shish kebab with undiluted lemon juice mixes perfectly with pork. And other types of meat and poultry will turn out juicy and soft with it. Spices are responsible for the overflow of smell, the selection of varieties of which must be created taking into account the type of meat.
· Softening of meat fibers with marinade from pomegranate juice occurs slowly and gently. It is not recommended to use it on old, hard meat with veins - in general, like any other marinade. Shish kebab is tasty only from young birds and animals, the meat of which has a small layer of fat and has never been frozen. Thawed meat is hard because it loses moisture when it thaws.
· Try to choose a marinade for shish kebab with lemon juice when you literally understand that you will have time to cook the meat in advance. Acid in such a low concentration will work properly if the meat is kept in it for at least 10-14 hours. The bird will become soaked faster, but it is better to pour marinade over it the evening before frying.
· Pomegranate juice in tetra-packs also helps soak meat. But not every manufacturer will produce pomegranate juice undiluted. The solution is to carefully review the ingredients before purchasing. More likely, the juice in the carton will have little in common with pomegranate juice. To prepare the juice yourself, the grains are removed from the fruit, placed in cheesecloth and pressed until only the seeds remain.
· Adding salt to kebab right away is not allowed: it will draw out a lot of water and dry out the meat, and the purpose of making a marinade is to soften and preserve the juice inside. It is better to salt the pieces 1-1.5 hours before threading them onto skewers.
· The softness and juiciness of meat is affected by the addition of sunflower or olive oil. It is recommended to take refined so that it does not impart its own aroma.
· Cook shish kebab in pomegranate marinade only in enamel and clay pans: the alloy releases compounds harmful to health when in contact with acid.
Follow the recipe carefully, and the kebab in pomegranate juice will turn out excellent!
The most common marinade for meat with pomegranate juice
· pork (other meat, poultry) – 2 kg;
· undiluted juice – 400 ml;
· sunflower or olive oil – 100 ml;
· purple or regular onion – 700 g;
· spices and plenty of salt.
1. Wash, wipe with a napkin and cut the meat into cubes with a side length of 4 cm.
2. Sprinkle them with spices and stir.
3. Remove the peel from the onion, chop it into the thinnest rings possible. If you plan to marinate for at least 2 days, grate the onions.
4. Combine the pieces with the onion, stir until the onion is moderately distributed.
5. Add vegetable oil to the meat and onions, stir the products again.
6. Add juice, stir everything again, and place in a cool space.
Wait 12 hours, do not forget to salt the food 1.5 hours before sending it to the grill.
Recipe with lemon juice and mineral water
· pork (other meat, poultry) – 2 kg;
· saturated lemon juice – 500 ml;
· lilac or snow-white onions – 500 g;
· mineral water with gas – 500 ml;
· favorite spices, salt.
1. Rinse the meat, dry it or wait until excess water drains from it, cut into 4 cm cubes.
2. Place the pieces into a deep saucepan, add mineral water, place in a cool space for an hour so that gas bubbles break up the hard fibers.
3. Free the onion from the husk, chop it finely - this will allow the juice to release more quickly.
4. Remove the meat from the mineral water, dry it, sprinkle with spices and stir.
5. Combine the meat with the onion, stir again, pour in the juice, and refrigerate until the morning.
Carbonated mineral water will speed up the marinating process, and you can start cooking after 10 hours of soaking.
Recipe for marinade for meat or poultry with pomegranate juice, soy sauce and adjika
· pork (other meat, poultry) – 2 kg;
· saturated lemon juice – 500 ml;
· purple or regular onion – 500 g;
· traditional mayonnaise – 100 ml;
Ready-made adjika in the form of a paste – 50 g;
· thick soy sauce – 80-100 ml.
1. Create 4 cm cubes from washed meat.
2. Combine mayonnaise and adjika in a bowl, pour into the meat, stir thoroughly until all the pieces are completely covered.
3. Peel and chop the onion, add to the meat.
4. Combine pomegranate juice with soy sauce, add the mixture to the meat, mix and place in a cool space.
If you are cooking pork, wait 10 hours; if you are going to marinate the bird, you can start frying after 6-8 hours.
The introduction of marinade for shish kebab with lemon juice is a method of imparting tenderness to pieces of meat, preserving their juice inside, and imbuing them with a pleasant sourness. It’s best to serve shish kebab with tomato sauce; lovers of Georgian cuisine will love tkemali.
Shish kebab in pomegranate juice
Ingredients
Lamb pulp – 1000 g
Pomegranate juice – 100 ml
Onions – 2 pcs.
Vegetable oil – 2 tbsp.
Salt, pepper - to taste
- 189 kcal
Photo of the finished dish
Step-by-step recipe with photos
Shish kebab in pomegranate juice is one of the usual marinades for those regions where pomegranates grow. The meat is subjected to long, cool marinating - 2-3 days, during which a fairly small amount of juice is consumed. Those. in fact, we are dealing here with almost natural fermentation, with absolutely minimal role of seasoning.
Don't overdo it with onions - if you take too much of it, it will end up being a regular onion marinade, not a pomegranate one.
Requirements for pomegranate juice - it must be natural. Those. Be sure to check the ingredients, if it contains the words “water”, “sugar” and the amount of pomegranate juice is less than 100% - such a liquid is not suitable for you, this is a drink, you need juice specifically.
Adding oil is only done if you are marinating some lean meat (mine is lamb thigh). Don’t overdo it with salt and pepper either - kebab in pomegranate juice has a very piquant taste, with a gentle sweet fruity note, it’s important not to overwhelm it with anything else.
We cut the meat into fairly large pieces.
Peel the onion and cut it thinly.
Mix the meat with pomegranate juice, onion and one tablespoon of vegetable oil.
We place everything in a bag, carefully remove the air from it and tie it tightly. We keep this package in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. I had three, and the meat came out as tender as an aged steak! Several times a day, the bag can be wrinkled and turned from side to side.
The meat must be removed from the refrigerator at least two hours before making the kebab and kept at room temperature so that it is not cool.
We clean the meat from the onions, salt it, pepper it and add another tablespoon of vegetable oil. Mix everything thoroughly.
Thread the kebab tightly.
I cooked in the oven in convection grill mode at a temperature of 250C on the top level. 15 minutes with one turn - the meat is pink inside and very tender, for me this is the best stage of readiness. 18 minutes with 2 turns - fried meat without blood (the internal environment of the human and animal body) , until the juice runs clear, I would not recommend keeping it any longer, there is a risk of drying it out. In the photo - 18 minutes.
If you have the opportunity, then serve the kebab in pomegranate juice on a “pad” of pomegranate seeds. Chewing them with meat juice later is a complete blast! Well, the kebab itself is a pleasure for a gourmet.
Marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice: 3 recipes
Vinegar allows you to marinate meat perfectly, softening the meat fibers, so it quickly has time to fry without having time to dry out. But because of it, the kebab acquires a pronounced sourish taste with not the most pleasant notes. Fortunately, there are products that allow you to marinate meat no worse, and at the same time give the kebab a pleasant aftertaste. These products include pomegranate. Marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice is chosen by true shish kebab connoisseurs, who value the perfection of taste in every aspect.
Culinary secrets
There are several recipes for marinade with pomegranate juice, but no matter which of these recipes you choose, you will need to know several culinary secrets.
- Pomegranate marinade works for all types of meat, but it doesn’t have to be the same for everyone. The spices added to it must be chosen those that are suitable for the meat product being used: some are needed for lamb, others are needed for pork, others are needed for chicken.
- Regardless of which barbecue marinade recipe you prefer, the meat for it should be young and not frozen.
- It is unlikely that you will be able to quickly marinate meat in a lemon marinade; it usually takes from 6 to 12 hours, depending on the type of meat. For this reason, it is necessary to marinate meat for barbecue in pomegranate juice in advance, ideally the evening before the day on which the event is scheduled.
- Do not marinate meat in aluminum dishes, which form harmful substances when in contact with acids.
- If you add vegetable oil to the pomegranate marinade, it will work better, and in this case the kebab will turn out to be the most tender and juicy.
- For barbecue, you must use real pomegranate juice without sugar. Not the one sold in stores. It can be obtained by peeling a pomegranate, collecting the grains in cheesecloth and squeezing the juice through it.
By marinating the meat correctly, you can be sure that your kebab will turn out delicious. At least, if you don’t burn it or overdry it.
Basic marinade with pomegranate juice for barbecue
What is necessary:
- meat – 2 kg;
- pomegranate juice – 0.5 l;
- vegetable oil – 4-5 tbsp. l.;
- onion – 0.6 kg;
- spices, salt - to your own taste.
How to cook:
- Wash the meat, pat it dry with a towel and cut into pieces the size of two matchboxes placed on top of each other.
- Cut the onion into thin half rings, separate with your hands and squeeze until the onion juice begins to release.
- Pour oil into the meat, stir the pieces with your hands so that the oil covers all of them.
- Add spices and onion, stir well.
- Pour pomegranate juice and place a weight on top.
- Refrigerate the meat.
It is enough to marinate chicken for 2-3 hours, pork for 6 hours, lamb and beef for at least 10 hours.
Frisky marinade for barbecue with pomegranate juice and mineral water
What is necessary:
- meat – 2 kg;
- pomegranate juice – 0.5 l;
- onion – 0.5 kg;
- sparkling mineral water – 0.5 l;
- salt, seasonings - to your own taste.
How to cook:
- Prepare the meat by washing it and cutting it into 4-5 cm pieces.
- Pour mineral water over the meat and refrigerate. Meat should remain in mineral water for about an hour. At this time, the bubbles will “bomb” the meat fibers, softening and
- After draining the mineral water, sprinkle the meat with seasonings and stir.
- Peel the onion and grate it on a large grater. Add to meat. Onion juice will speed up the marinating process.
- Pour pomegranate juice and place in the refrigerator.
Chicken can be fried in just an hour, pork in 2-3 hours, for lamb and beef it will take 4 hours. But in any version with this recipe, you can start frying shish kebab much earlier than marinating the meat using the usual method.
Hot marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice
What is necessary:
- meat -2 kg;
- pomegranate juice – 0.5 l;
- onion – 0.5 kg;
- mayonnaise – 100 ml;
- Caucasian adjika – 2 tbsp. l.;
- soy sauce – 100 ml.
How to cook:
- Wash the meat. After drying it with napkins, cut it into pieces for barbecue.
- Stir spicy Caucasian adjika with mayonnaise and soy sauce
- Cut the onion into thin halves of rings.
- Add onion and seasonings to the meat, and pour in a mixture of mayonnaise, adjika and soy sauce. Toss the meat with your hands, distributing the sauce and seasonings sparingly.
- Pour in the juice squeezed from the lemon and leave to marinate in a cool place for 6-10 hours, depending on what kind of meat you are using. The exception is poultry, which can be marinated for an hour.
Shish kebab marinated with pomegranate juice, soy sauce and mayonnaise turns out tender and juicy. This marinade is especially good for beef and poultry.
Marinade for shish kebab with pomegranate juice is not without reason popular among gourmets. Meat marinated in it comes out tender and tasty and has a pleasant aftertaste.