Caucasian BBQ
This meal, originated from Caucasus, a region between Europe and Asia, is delicious, simple and relatively fast to make. In this instructable, I will show you how to make it.
Ingidients Needed
For the marinade:
- Pork shoulder (around 3 pounds)
- A bottle of kefir
- 2 onions
- Spices (ussually is just salt and pepper, but BBQ rubs work very well)
For the smoking:
- Wood (cherry or some kind of fruit tree works best)
- Skewers
- Lump charcoal
- Traditionally, a mangal is used to smoke the meat, but I used the Big Green Egg
Cut the Meat
Cut the meat into cubes with sides about 1 - 2 inches (3cm - 5cm)
Add Your Spices
Make sure to add a lot to give it a nice flavor
Cut the Onions
You can cut them into half-rings, but it is better to dice the onions into very small pieces or push it through a meat grinder to get the juices out
Put Your Meat and Onions Together and SMASH IT
You want that onion juice to soak the meat
Add the Kefir
Pour about half to 3 quarters of the bottle into it
Transfer the Meat Into a Gallon Ziploc and Leave It in the Fridge Overnight
Prepare the Fire
- Put the charcoal in the grill
- Light it up ( I used an electrical lighter, which heats it up nicely)
- Wait until the coals heat up and turn red, meanwhile do the next step
If you do not have a green egg, its fine, the only purpose of the grill is to store the coals and have them at a distance such that the meat cooks on the smoke and heat.
Wet the Wood
To make sure it smokes
Put the Meat on Skewers
- Make sure long pieces of meat are not hanging and that they all have uniform weight distribution, so that that you can turn them and cook them uniformly
After Coals Look Like This-ish, Add Wood
Put the Skewers on Top
- The meat should not be too close to coals, but also close enough to be cooking
- After it starts smoking, close the Egg, and open the vents to let air in
- It should be around 250-300 degrees, don't let the fire to start because you want to cook it on smoke