 I'm not a fan of shish kebabs (or kabobs or kebobs for that matter). I like red meat rare to medium rare inside. It is most tender and juicy when pink to red. I like meat crisp and dark on the outside when the maillard effect has had a chance to work its magic and enhance its flavor (see my article on meat science).
Kebabs are usually an inch or so square, and it is near impossible to get crisp and red/pink meat that small, especially when you have a hot metal poker running through the center conducting heat and cooking it from the inside. If I've got cubes of meat, I'd rather get a perforated grill topper or cast iron griddle, get it blazing hot, spray it with a little oil, and roll the meat around on it like a frying pan. Ditto for the veggies.
In Upstate New York they are called spiedies (pronounced SPEE-dees). Spiedies were probably created by Augustine Iacovelli, who, in 1929, immigrated from Civitella in Abruzzi, Italy, and settled near Binghamton, New York. A local specialty in Abruzzi is Arrosticini, lamb chunks grilled on a skewer and served on bread soaked in olive oil (for more on arrosticini and foods of Abruzzi, click here).
In Binghamton Iacovelli opened a restaurant, named it Augies', and introduced spiedinis, which got their name from spiedo, the Italian word for a spit for roasting. It is believed he marinated and heavily seasoned lamb chunks on wooden skewers and served them on Italian bread to hungry laborers. They sandwich became so popular that there is even an annual Spiedie Fest in Binghamton in August. It's been around since 1984, draws more than 100,000, and there is even a cookoff and hot air balloon rally.
Today, spiedies are cubes of meat, typically lamb, but they can be beef, even a mix of lamb, beef, and pork cubes. I've even seen chicken added. The meat is marinated for many hours, often overnight, in oil and vinegar with lots of garlic and green herbs. Speedie marinade can be bought in bottles, even 1 gallon jugs, in groceries in Upstate.
Nowadays my favorite spiedies are not cooked on skewers, but grilled over an open flame with onions and peppers. When grilled, the olive oil drips and flares a lot so the meat gets really crunchy on the outside. Served rare to medium, the marinade flavor is almost as strong as the meat flavor. In Binghamton and at the State Fair in Syracuse, they are served on soft crust Italian style bread or pitas. Spiedies are popular backyard and tailgate food in Upstate, and for the life of me, I cannot understand why they have not spread beyond. If you like shish kebabs, you've gotta try spiedies.
Makes. 4 large sandwiches
Preparation time. 20 minutes to make the marinade, 24 hours to marinate, 20-30 minutes to cook
Ingredients
3/4 cup LT Italian Dressing or any Italian dressing with lots of herbs (you can add more, especially oregano)
1/4 cup lemon juice
4 cloves of crushed garlic
2 pounds of leg of lamb cut into 1.5" or 2" cubes
2 large onions peeled and sliced into 1/2" disks and separated into rings
2 bell peppers, any color, cored and cut in quarters
A 2 foot long loaf of Italian bread cut into 4 sandwich lengths and split lengthwise
Note. You can use pork loin, beef sirloin, or even chicken breast in the recipe, or a mix of them all if you wish.
Do this
1) Dump everything except the bread, onions, and peppers in a large zipper bag or a bowl and mix thoroughly, refrigerate at least overnight, but 24 hours or more is better.
2) Fire up the grill and toast the bread on the cut side with the lid open. Watch it carefully so it doesn't burn. If it does blacken a bit, scrape off the char and the bread will be fine. Set aside on a serving platter at room temp.
3) Grill the peppers on both sides until they are softening but not limp. Set aside in a serving bowl at room temp.
4) Put the onion rings into a bowl with about two ounces of the marinade and toss them together until the rings are well coated. Grill the rings with the lid open until they are slightly soft. I like them a bit crunchy, but if you don't, cook them longer. Set aside in a serving bowl at room temp.
5) Put a colander or strainer in the sink and dump the meat and marinade into it. Let the meat drain for a few minutes so it will not drip marinade onto the fire when you cook the meat. Then move the meat to the fire and separate the chunks so they are not touching. Grill on one side with the lid up until brown and until there are dark grill marks. We don't wan the lid down because then the meat will be in an oven and it is too easy to overcook the meat. Turn the meat over with tongs and grill some more until the exterior turns brown. That should do it. That should get you crispy exteriors and rare to medium rare interiors. But to be sure, if you have a good thermometer, check the temp. Pull it off at about 135F for rare meat or 145F for medium rare. Or cut into a chunk and decide if it is the color you like.
6) Assemble the sandwiches by putting the meat on the bread first and topping it with the pepper and onions. Serve with The World's Easiest Potato Salad, Thai Cucumber Salad, and a big red wine like a Shiraz or Syrah.
This page revised 10/10/08
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