Souvlaki
Grilled Pork Skewers
Souvlaki means little skewer. Small cubes of pork shoulder are steeped in olive oil, lemon, garlic and oregano and grilled fast over charcoal until the edges char. In Greece they come off the stick with bread, or wrapped in a pita with tomato, onion and tzatziki.
Souvlaki is described as mostly pork, served with pita and tzatziki.
The two recipes compared agree on pork shoulder, olive oil, lemon, garlic and dried oregano. One marinates for ten minutes and grills for 3 to 4 minutes a side; the other adds a little cumin and paprika, marinates for at least an hour and grills for 6 to 8 minutes in all.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 500 g pork shoulder, in 2 cm cubes
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Juice of 1 lemon, plus wedges to serve
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin and 1/2 tsp paprika (optional)
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- Black pepper
To serve
- 4 pita breads
- 2 tomatoes, sliced
- 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
- Tzatziki
Method
- Marinate Mix the oil, lemon juice, oregano, garlic, the spices if using, salt and pepper in a bowl. Add the pork and turn to coat. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
- Skewer Thread the pork on to the skewers, pushing the pieces close together but not squashing them. Heat a barbecue, griddle pan or grill until very hot.
- Grill Grill the skewers for 6 to 8 minutes, turning every couple of minutes, until charred at the edges and cooked through with no pink in the middle of the largest piece.
- Serve Warm the pitas on the grill for a few seconds a side. Serve the skewers with lemon to squeeze over, a pinch of oregano, and the pita, tomato, onion and tzatziki.
Shoulder has enough fat to stay juicy. Lean loin dries out.
Do not marinate in lemon for longer than overnight, or the surface of the meat turns soft.