How to Use Bamboo Skewers
Bamboo skewers are fun to use when cooking. First used in Japan to cook eel, chicken and beef over an open flame, bamboo skewers gained popularity in the U.S. following World War II. Try your hand at Japanese-style cooking with bamboo skewers by using the following steps.
- Difficulty:
- Moderately Easy
Instructions
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1
Select the easiest-to-use skewer available in your market. Find the flat, wider skewers for your first cooking experience. The wider skewers reduce the spinning of the meat or vegetables while on the skewers and they catch on fire less easily as well.
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2
Soak bamboo skewers in water for 20 to 30 minutes prior to barbecuing, completely immersing the skewers in the water. Leave the smaller, thinner skewers in the water for 20 minutes, the larger skewers for 30 minutes. Weight them down with a pot or pan for maximum effect to make sure they stay immersed the entire time.
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3
Skewer each piece of marinated meat or vegetable. Place one piece of food on the skewers at a time. Move the food to the center of the skewers and continue until you reach one inch from the end. Flip the skewer around and skewer the other side until you reach an inch from that end.
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4
Pile the skewers on a plate while the barbecue is warming to the correct temperature. Once the grill is hot, barbecue the skewered meats and vegetables for the required time.
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5
Arrange the cooked Japanese-style bamboo skewers on a fresh plate or display them on the dinner table jutting out of a halved pineapple.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Step 3 reduces the possibility of breaking the skewer or getting a splinter. However, you may skewer any way you like, however you find it works best for you.
Separate the meats a fraction of an inch for quicker, more thorough cooking.
While it might seem that wooden skewers might catch fire and drop the meat, those used correctly work wonders over an open flame.
