Marinated Beef or Chicken Brochettes

Served with grilled vegetables, smoky grilled garlic bread and a glass of proseco.  Summer ♥

I recently came back from a quick trip to Montreal to help my daughter move out of her residence after her first year at University.   As her summer job, she has decided to go participate in a reforestation project in Northern Ontario, A & M Reforestation, which will involve a lot of demanding and hard work.   She likes to challenge herself that way.  Go Kat!



When I got back to Luzern, I found that this beautiful city has now become quite spectacular!  The trees and flowers are in bloom and on a nice day the lake is crowded with sail boats, pedal boats, cruisers and swans - yes lots of swans.  

Given that spring is now here, it is time to pull out the barbecue.  This marinade recipe for chicken and beef has been in our family for years.  We never seem to get tired of it.  Beef should marinate for 12 hours and chicken for about 3 or 4.  I keep a little marinade aside to sweeten and thicken and then use as a glaze once the meat is on grill.  It's an easy, delicious weekday meal that can be prepped and frozen ahead of time.  I usually buy a lot of meat and chicken and prepare a big batch of marinade.  I separate the meat in portions in a Ziploc bag and pour in enough marinade to cover.  This can be kept in the freezer until you are ready to cook it.   The night before I want to eat it, I let it thaw in the fridge.  It comes out perfectly marinaded and ready to cook.  Remember to freeze a little marinade on the side that will be used as a glaze.

Beef or Chicken Brochettes

You will need:  for 4 chicken or beef brochettes

• 500 g of boneless chicken breasts cut in strips or beef (I use sirloin) cut in 1 inch (2.5 cm) cubes
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) of vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) of soy sauce (low sodium is better if you have)
• 1/4 cup (60 ml)  of lemon juice
• 2 tbsp of prepared mustard (in Europe, you can use Savoura)
• 2 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
• 1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1 tsp of freshly ground black pepper

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1. Place the soy sauce, lemon juice, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and pepper in a blender and mix well slowly adding the oil;
2. Reserve 1/4 cup (60 ml) of the marinade for later to use as a glaze;
3. Pour the marinade over the chicken or beef and let sit for 12 hours (meat) and 4 hours (chicken), turning occasionally;
4. When you are ready to cook, place the meat on barbecue skewers and prepare the glaze;
5. Preheat the barbecue to medium high;
6. Place the 1/4 cup (60 ml) of reserved marinade in a small saucepan;
7. Add 1 tbsp of honey and bring to a low boil;
8. Dilute 1 tsp of cornstarch in 1 tbsp of water and slowly add to the simmering sauce to thicken (add a little at a time to avoid it becoming too thick.  If this happens, add a little water);
9. Place the brochettes on the grill moving them from direct to indirect heat as needed; 
10. Turn and brush with glaze;
11. Check one piece of the meat to ensure it is cooked properly and to your liking;
12. Serve with grilled vegetables and smoky grilled garlic bread.

Grilled Vegetables

You will need:  4 for people

• 1 medium zucchini cut in long strips using a mandolin or vegetable peeler
• 1 large red pepper, cut in 1 inch wide (2.5cm) strips (when you grill peppers, cut off the ends to make the strips as flat as possible to ensure even cooking)
• 1 large yellow or orange pepper, cut in 1 inch wide (2.5 cm) strips
• 8 medium button mushrooms cut in half
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• Salt and pepper

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1. Just before grilling, place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well;
2. Grill over medium high heat until vegetables begin to soften and set aside.

Note:  You can prepare the vegetables ahead of time and just gently reheat in the oven before serving.

Smoky, Grilled Garlic Bread

Smoked salt adds a lot of interest to this garlic bread.  It can be found in many specialty stores, but don't worry if you don't have any, regular salt will do.

You will need:  for 4 slices of bread

• 4 thick slices of country bread 
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) of softened unsalted butter
• 1 medium garlic clove, finely diced
• 1 tbsp of chopped parsley
• 1.5 tsp of smoked or regular salt

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• Combine the butter, garlic, salt and parsley together and mix well;
• Slather a good amount of butter on both sides of the bread and grill over a medium high heat.

Note:  If you want to get perfect grill marks on your food, place it first as if it was pointing to 10 o'clock.  After a few minutes, move it to point to 2 o'clock.   Repeat on both sides.