This post is a collaboration with Beef. It’s What’s for Dinner. On behalf of the Beef Checkoff. I received compensation, but all opinions are my own.
We are in the middle of grilling season and beef skewers are always delicious. These Teriyaki Beef Skewers are marinated in a homemade teriyaki sauce and grilled with fruit and vegetables.
The skewers get nicely charred thanks to the sugars in the sauce and the beef is tender and juicy!
I serve these teriyaki beef skewers over rice but you can serve them in a many different ways.
Light the grills this week and make some skewers!
What Cuts work best for skewers?
Many beef cuts work well for skewers, but there’s no need to break to the bank here. You can cube up a nice sirloin steak, marinate it, and be in really good shape.
You’ll see some posts that call for more expensive cuts (I even see filet mignon occasionally). To me this is a bit wasted since we are marinating and chopping up these cuts. I would save those expensive cuts for their original intention and go with something more economical for skewers.
Homemade vs. Storebought Teriyaki
The marinade and the sauce for these skewers is teriyaki sauce. The best shortcut for this recipe is to use a good store-bought teriyaki sauce instead of making your own.
If you have the time though, homemade teriyaki sauce is an easy sauce to make and is nice because you can completely customize the flavor and consistency to your liking.
For my teriyaki sauce, I cook down a mixture of soy sauce, garlic, ginger, water, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and sesame seeds. Simmer this for about ten minutes, stirring occasionally, and then let it cool before using it.
The recipe makes enough to use some as a marinade and also have some leftover for serving with the skewers.
How to make good skewers
Here are a few tips for making the best skewers at home.
- Same-sized ingredients. I use a mix of pineapple, red pepper, and onion to go with my beef skewers and the most important thing is that all of these ingredients are chopped to roughly the same size.
- Grill over high heat. You want direct heat grilling for skewers so you get a really nice char on the vegetables and the meats.
- Use metal skewers or soak bamboo skewers before using them so they don’t burn up on the grill and fall apart.
Assembling and Grilling the Teriyaki Beef Skewers
Once you have your beef marinated for at least 30 minutes in some teriyaki sauce, make an assembly line with skewers, beef, red peppers, red onions, and pineapple.
For each skewer, I like to shoot for 3-4 pieces of beef, alternating with vegetables and fruit. You can pack the skewers pretty full. Don’t leave a lot of space between the pieces.
Preheat the grill to medium-high heat and clean the grates of your grill well. I also like to rub my grill grates with some oil to prevent sticking.
Grill the skewers for 5-6 minutes per side so they get nice char marks, and the beef reaches your desired temperature, make sure to always check your steak with a meat thermometer, the USDA states that medium-rare is 145˚F. After you flip the skewers, brush them with some extra sauce!
When the skewers are done, you can let them rest for a few minutes and serve them right away.
What to serve with these skewers
These are very flexible, but I like to keep the serving options minimal to really show off the beautiful grilled skewers. You can serve them over rice with extra sauce on the side and garnished with scallions.
The other option is to serve these as flatbread or wrapped in a pita. If you are going to go that route, you might want to serve them with a light yogurt sauce and maybe some fresh lettuce.
Leftovers
These teriyaki beef skewers keep perfectly for 4-5 days, and you can reheat them in the microwave with pretty good results.
Alternatively, you can toss them back on a medium-heat grill for a few minutes to re-warm them.
Teriyaki Beef Skewers
Ingredients
Homemade Teriyaki Sauce:
- ¾ cup soy sauce
- ½ cup rice vinegar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup water
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 1 tablespoon grated ginger
- 1 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds, optional
Skewer Ingredients:
- 2 pounds sirloin or chuck steak, cubed
- ½ large pineapple, cored and cubed
- 2 large red peppers, chopped
- 1 large red onion, chopped
- White rice or Flatbread, for serving
- Fresh scallions, garnish
Instructions
- If you are using the homemade teriyaki sauce, add all the ingredients to a small pot over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes to allow the sauce to thicken. Cool completely before using sauce.
- Once the sauce has cooled, cut beef into about 1-inch chunks and add to a bowl. Add enough sauce to coat the beef, but no need to cover the beef, about ¾-1 cup of sauce. Let marinate for a few minutes. (You can also use storebought teriyaki sauce if you would like).
- Once you are ready to make skewers, soak bamboo skewers in water or use metal skewers.
- Assemble skewers with 3-4 beef pieces per skewer, alternating with pineapple and vegetables.
- Grill skewers for 5-6 minutes over direct heat (medium-high heat on a gas grill). Turn and grill for the same amount of time on the second side. Brush skewers with extra teriyaki sauce as they grill.
- Remove skewers when the beef reaches your desired doneness temperature, the USDA states that medium-rare is 145˚F and the vegetables and pineapple are charred.
- Serve the skewers with rice or flatbreads and garnished with scallions and extra teriyaki sauce on the side.
