Four-spice pork kebabs recipe
The smell of cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger, combined with the marinated pork in its caramelised sticky soy and honey glaze, never fails to draw in crowds of people. Once the kebabs are cooked, they are great to grab and eat straight off the barbecue or grill, or skewered into a mound of rice.
You will also need 12 wooden skewers, soaked in water for 30 minutes.
Tip: the pork should be marinated for at least two hours but preferably overnight.
Ingredients
For the marinade- 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 2 cm (0.7in) piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and finely chopped
- 3 tbsp light soy sauce
- 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon
- 0.5 tsp ground cloves
- 0.5 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp runny honey
- 500 g pork loin (shoulder or neck), cut into 4cm (1.5in) chunks
- 1 large red pepper, cut into chunks
- 3 tomatoes, deseeded and cut into chunks
- 1 large red onion, cut into chunks
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 pinch sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Details
- Cuisine: Mauritian
- Recipe Type: Pork
- Difficulty: Easy
- Preparation Time: 30 mins
- Cooking Time: 15 mins
- Serves: 4
Step-by-step
- First make the marinade. Using a pestle and mortar, pound the garlic and ginger to a paste, then add in the soy sauce, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cayenne pepper and honey. Combine using a spoon.
- Place the pork in a mixing bowl with the marinade and rub well into the meat. Cover and refrigerate to marinate for at least 2 hours or ideally overnight.
- Place the pepper, tomato and red onion in a bowl and drizzle with the olive oil to coat the vegetables.
- Start to assemble the skewers. First take a piece of pork, pierce in the middle and push down to the end of the skewer, then alternate the tomato, peppers, onion and pork until all the skewers are full.
- Season with salt and pepper, and brush with the remaining marinade juices.
- Place the skewers on a preheated grill or barbecue for around 5 minutes on each side, until the pork is cooked throughout but still juicy and tender. Serve over steamed white rice.
This recipe is from The Island Kitchen: Recipes from Mauritius and the Indian Ocean by Selina Periampillai. Published by Bloomsbury, £26.00, available now.
You might also like:
Porchetta-stye pork kebabs with white beans
Beef kebabs in spicy tomato sauce