To skewer, or not to skewer

[chef k-dude]

I thought I would toss this out to see if anyone has opinions, interest, advice, etc..

I was browsing Amazon which can be a real rabbit hole time-suck of course; and I stumbled across double tine skewers. I really liked the idea because as we know, the biggest problem with skewers is the food spinning/rotating around a regular round skewer. But I ran across a few reviews (you have to read many to get a few worthwhile) that said it was hard to keep the two tines spaced evenly as you skewer certain foods, meaning they could get spread out or inward.

Then it hit me that I have been thinking about replacing these flat tine metal skewers I have. Mainly because the finish is flaking off the handles and the handles stay hot for a while once off the grill.

Then I found some new flat tined ones that caught my interest because it looked like the handles would cool faster.

Then the biggest issue came to mind. Other than the hassle of loading the skewers with food, the problem I have, as with many grills, is uneven heat; so when I grill skewers, as with other foods like sausage, I have to move them around the heat zones of the grill to get even cooking. The skewers I have work well with a pair of pliers and a welder’s glove to pick them up, but sometimes they pivot in the pliers, end up pointing down and a bit of food might fall off the end. I can’t just conveniently lay the skewers with the handles hanging off the front edge like all the perfect pictures show. (this is not my grill)

The other problem is my gas grill. Like most, it’s only accessible from the front as opposed to a kettle style that you can remove the lid and work around all edges.

I don’t skewer a lot because it’s a pain, but I like to make Souvlaki which is marinated pork chunks (I also tenderize the chunks) skewered with onion layer petals in between each meat chunk for added flavor and moisture protection. Grilling them is delicious of course.

Then it hit me that I have this grilling basket I forgot about.

It’s pretty nice, but I can’t remember why I forgot about it. I can’t remember if the food stuck, too hard to turn chunks of stuff? I can’t remember. But it sure seems like an option. I’m a few weeks away from any more souvlaki for now, so I’m noodling around for ideas.

Many people here have spent a lot of time at the grill, and I’ve seen some beautiful skewers here. So, I wonder who might have some sage advice, experience to share, products to suggest or even want to joke or give me a hard time on this subject!

 

[BigW.]

I have the flat metal version but I do not use very often. There was a good discussion awhile back about a version of these:

 

[chopsaw]

My opinion ,,, but the trick to the double tine , is to put the first piece on and move it all the way to the handle .
Then get the second piece on and parallel to the first , but only push it half way .
That helps keep the open end close , so as you put the rest on , slide some down but also leave the " gauge " piece to keep them even until filled . That's how I did it anyway .
Now I just use the tray , but have been looking at baskets for the spinner .

 

[zwiller]

Skewer for us. Kabobs are a big deal here. We rock them nearly weekly. I have have been thru 3-4 sets of skewers over the years and have the same grill basket. Never used basket for protein. Basket works decent but skewer is much better. Better sear. Basket is WAY easier tho. Wife loads/I cook so factor that in. Flat SS skewers for sure and forget doubles for me. Mine fit inside the grill with lid closed. We've come to the conclusion it's better to run skewers of protein and veggies alone instead of mixed. Less picturesque but better results.

 

[Fueling Around]

I skewer now and then. Protein only on a skewer. Veggies either go in a tray or basket or a separate skewer.
Flat skewers only and get rid of that clumsy flat iron to push the items onto the plate.
I rotate the skewers often with tongs. When done I pull them onto a platter with the tongs.

 

[normanaj]

Armenians skewer everything.As a kid it was wood skewers and we were tasked with loading them up and we used two for the purpose of eliminating "spinning",the first item to go on would be a nice chunk of lamb to keep the skewers stable and then just have at it making sure all the food items went on in order or Aunt Mary would get on your case.

These days I just use the basket because I'm all about easy.

 

[gmc2003]

I don't use skewers enough to warrant buying any of the metal versions. I double skewer with two wooden ones, and flip with my tongs.

Chris

 

[chopsaw]

Then it hit me that I have this grilling basket I forgot about.

I have a Weber grill tray . It's roughly the size of a half sheet pan .
easy to flip food around and you get a lot of surface contact .

 

[chef k-dude]

I have the flat metal version but I do not use very often. There was a good discussion awhile back about a version of these:
View attachment 703009

Thanks, what are those? Or what are they called?

My opinion ,,, but the trick to the double tine , is to put the first piece on and move it all the way to the handle .
Then get the second piece on and parallel to the first , but only push it half way .
That helps keep the open end close , so as you put the rest on , slide some down but also leave the " gauge " piece to keep them even until filled . That's how I did it anyway .
Now I just use the tray , but have been looking at baskets for the spinner .

Seems like an intelligent strategy!

Skewer for us. Kabobs are a big deal here. We rock them nearly weekly. I have have been thru 3-4 sets of skewers over the years and have the same grill basket. Never used basket for protein. Basket works decent but skewer is much better. Better sear. Basket is WAY easier tho. Wife loads/I cook so factor that in. Flat SS skewers for sure and forget doubles for me. Mine fit inside the grill with lid closed. We've come to the conclusion it's better to run skewers of protein and veggies alone instead of mixed. Less picturesque but better results.

When I've done other skewers than Souvlaki, I also went to skewering the protien and veg separately. Skewering fell out of favor for me because it was just such a pain, mostly because of the vegetables. So I went to larger pieces of meat that can be handled on the grill individually and If I want that charred veg flavor I would use a flat iron, cast iron or even just a real hot skillet in general.

Thing with souvlaki is, the interleaving with the onion petals really makes a difference. Maybe I need to think outside the box on that recipe or just deal with it and keep that almost the only thing I skewer.

For some reason I never thought of asking my wife to skewer! She would do it and tells me all the time to let her know when I want help. I guess I just feel our deal is, "I cook, she cleans". but she doesn't mind helping. I love the ability to just "drop the knife" after eating and head out to the back deck with a bourbon and a smoke...and by the time I'm done, she's usually done cleaning! I WILL call her to the kitchen when I'm doing a bunch of cooking that uses a lot of pans, etc. to do a clean part-way through the job and I will get off my feet for a few.

I skewer now and then. Protein only on a skewer. Veggies either go in a tray or basket or a separate skewer.
Flat skewers only and get rid of that clumsy flat iron to push the items onto the plate.
I rotate the skewers often with tongs. When done I pull them onto a platter with the tongs.

I'll have to see how the tongs work again. I'm sure I put them down for a reason with skewers. I have a few types to try. "Flip with tongs" seems so easy, but it seems I found it difficult in the past. This is why I asked the community. Maybe some of your responses will trigger my memory and or give me food for thought and ideas!

Armenians skewer everything.As a kid it was wood skewers and we were tasked with loading them up and we used two for the purpose of eliminating "spinning",the first item to go on would be a nice chunk of lamb to keep the skewers stable and then just have at it making sure all the food items went on in order or Aunt Mary would get on your case.

These days I just use the basket because I'm all about easy.

Ha, ha! Yea, I need to put a few brain cells toward something innovative to make the skewer thing an easier adventure. If someone else did the skewering, that would certainly make them more attractive to want to grill.

I don't use skewers enough to warrant buying any of the metal versions. I double skewer with two wooden ones, and flip with my tongs.

Chris

There's that "tongs" thing again. Seems so easy. Wonder how I made it hard?

I started, like many people with wooden skewers. Now I recall the problem I had with those was no matter how long I soaked them, the ends would burn away and when I tried to turn with tongs, only half the skewer would cooperate! With no ends to grab, that was aggravating. Not sure if I ever tried two wooden skewers, I think thats when I got the flat stainless ones.

I have a Weber grill tray . It's roughly the size of a half sheet pan .
easy to flip food around and you get a lot of surface contact .

View attachment 703040
View attachment 703039

I like that larger, flatter tray. I see veggies on there. Ever use it for proteins?


Thanks for the replies, all. Now I'm thinking some high heat grill gloves might be the ticket. That might allow me to reach over and pickup the stainless skewers I have by each end to reposition them. I have a pair of silicone surface type heat gloves that work great for pulling a hot butt, turning meat in the smoker, etc.. I also use a welding gauntlet glove for reaching in with pliers to grab the ends of the skewers. A pair of those would work for grabbing the skewers but keeping them clean would be impossible.

Anybody got a great seat of grilling gloves to recommend? Reviews on many of them are mixed. A crazy world in reviewland out there..."These are terrible and burned my hands the first time I used them"..."these are great, my husband uses them all the time on the grill and loves them"..."these would be better if the weren't so huge"..."they are too tight, I cant get my hands in them"!

 

[chopsaw]

Ever use it for proteins?

I did some sirloin strips once . For jerky though .

I always think it would be great for chicken or pork chunks . Especially if you heat it up first .

 

[Winterrider]

When do skewers I usually put about a 2" piece of corn on the cob on each end, can kinda roll them around.

 

[Fueling Around]

When do skewers I usually put about a 2" piece of corn on the cob on each end, can kinda roll them around.

Killer concept. Never thought of that to get the meal off the grate.
Wife and I are not in cob corn mode these days. Need to get a couple of past prime cobs and drop in the freezer.

 

[tallbm]

I just rock the wooden/bamboo ones. They also work well as my brisket and pork butt tender probes. I can get a ton for cheap.

I don't skewer much except giant shrimp when they are on sale but I have a technique where I only use 1 skewer on them but it pushes through 2 points on the shrimp and if those points are properly selected the shrimp wont rotate.

On things like cored out stuffed jalapenos, I just use 2 wooden skewers.
A key to not having the ends burnt off is to just have the ends barely sticking out or complete covered by the meat/food at both ends and the wood won't burn up in the flame... if that is something someone cares about. Often the burnt up ends just knock right off and don't really cause many problems pulling food off the skewer once the burnt ends are knocked off.

Mostly my wooden skewers are just tenderness checking tools though :D

 

[Chris_in_SoCal]

I prefer wooden skewers, the longer flat ones. I have metal ones but end up using the wood ones most of the time. No need to clean them after use.

The ones on top. They are cheap and with the flat surface the food will not rotate on them most of the time. The bottom ones get used as well but not for BBQ. More for dipping like fondu.

 

[mike243]

Flat skewers here, had some double but big pain in the rear loading them, stainless and dishwasher cleans them fine, no splinters from wood to worry about, basket for veggies most of the time.

 

[Gonna Smoke]

I skewer sometimes and I use 2 of the bamboo ones to prevent spinning, but when I'm doing vegetables such as tomatoes which become soft, I use a basket such as this. The one I have has smaller mesh size so the veggies won't fall through...

Been thinking about getting a rolling basket such as this, but not sold on it just yet due to stuff being mixed and maybe falling apart in the basket. There are several different ones out there...

 

[chef k-dude]

Great feedback everybody

I did some sirloin strips once . For jerky though .
View attachment 703042
I always think it would be great for chicken or pork chunks . Especially if you heat it up first .

I kind of like the raised edges on that, but not too raised as to make the food hard to approach like the deep basket I have. I have a cast iron griddle but while that will allow the food to catch some of the grill vapors when closing the lid, it blocks that flare-up grill flavor.

When do skewers I usually put about a 2" piece of corn on the cob on each end, can kinda roll them around.

That's one of those brilliant but simple hacks and depending on whatever else you're cooking, the corn might be edible too! The corn doesn't fall off as it gets softer? Wonder if using just the cob would work, saving the cobs after eating them. Maybe pre-cutting the disks and freezing for future use?

I prefer wooden skewers, the longer flat ones. I have metal ones but end up using the wood ones most of the time. No need to clean them after use.

View attachment 703092

The ones on top. They are cheap and with the flat surface the food will not rotate on them most of the time. The bottom ones get used as well but not for BBQ. More for dipping like fondu.

No clean up is a good thing. Do you soak them so the ends dont burn up?...or still burn up anyway?

I skewer sometimes and I use 2 of the bamboo ones to prevent spinning, but when I'm doing vegetables such as tomatoes which become soft, I use a basket such as this. The one I have has smaller mesh size so the veggies won't fall through...
View attachment 703095

Been thinking about getting a rolling basket such as this, but not sold on it just yet due to stuff being mixed and maybe falling apart in the basket. There are several different ones out there...
View attachment 703096

I need to go dig around my garage kitchen stuff and see if I can find a basket. Could swear I have one. It was probably hard to clean or something so I steered away from using it.

The rolling basket is interesting and that dude is wearing one of the grill gloves I was eyeballing. I could see that bieng helpful for something like asparagus. My wife loves asparagus, I can dig it, but not my favorite probably because I'm so meticulous cooking it, so its a pain. I use my flat cast iron griddle over 2 burners on my cook-top in the garage and lay them so the tips are hanging off the edge at first, then slowly work them fully on the griddle, moving them around the griddle working around the hotter zones.

Thing is, the pain in the A way I do them, I can pluck the smaller ones off or to a cooler zone while bigger ones are finishing up. The roller basket would make that harder but I know the front edge of my grill is the coldest zone so I could point the fatter ends to the hotter zone leaving the tips in the cooler zone and just roll the basket left and right.

Hmm...might be worth a try just for fun. Maybe one of the cheaper sets.

Amazon has a cheap set that I'm sure is not the best quality but an inexpensive opportunity to at least try the concept. My guess is chunks or strips of meat are going to stick, even if its sprayed with oil, but vegetables that release moisture wold probably fare well. Also shell-on shrimp...but my wife hates peeling cooked shrimp for some reason.

 

[Winterrider]

chef k-dude Nope we like corn done on there also. Just keep rotating it around, turns out great.

 

[Chris_in_SoCal]

Do you soak them so the ends dont burn up?...or still burn up anyway?

I don't soak them. They don't usually burn but if they do, they do.

 

[Chris_in_SoCal]

Been thinking about getting a rolling basket such as this, but not sold on it just yet due to stuff being mixed and maybe falling apart in the basket. There are several different ones out there...
View attachment 703096

A pair of these works great on vegies.