Quick and easy marinated beef kabobs bursting with flavor and tenderness takes less than an hour. Start with a marinade of a few pantry staples, use the beef of your choice, then add some vegetables for a complete meal.
Introduction
Beef shish kabobs are a standard for any home griller to master but are easy for beginners with some simple instructions. Learn how to grill the perfect summer meal for your whole family to enjoy.
Most recipes have ten plus ingredients and involve overnight timing. Not what I wanted—just not for me. So, I used my previous sirloin steak recipes as inspiration.
My desires:
1) KISS with only a few ingredients. I used three.
2) Quick. I marinated for 30 minutes, but 4 hours would be fine.
3) Great taste and tender. Yep.
My Rating
A solid 4, but on some days, it might be a lower 5—a great home BBQ classic.
🐄Location of Sirloin Steak
The sirloin is located behind the short loin, where most of what we usually call "steak" comes—like strip steaks and t-bones.
I suggest "top sirloin," which is the most tender version. It will definitely be labeled as top to fetch a higher price.
The bottom sirloin is usually labeled as sirloin steak is a bit tougher but is an excellent choice with deep flavor. Also, the tri-tip roast comes from the bottom sirloin. Under that will be the sirloin tip roast.
In other parts of the world, what we call the loin area is called the sirloin, and what we call the sirloin is called the rump.
🥣Ingredients
Beef
While you could use a more expensive steak like a strip steak or even beef tenderloin, this is really a sirloin steak type of recipe so let's concentrate on that.
I suggest top sirloin, which will be slightly more tender than normal sirloin.
Cuts like chuck roast, stew meat, round steak, or eye of round are not good choices.
IMPORTANT TIP: do not use thin cuts of beef and keep the chunks of beef approximately the same size— 1 to 1 ¼ inches.
Marinade
The marinade has simple pantry ingredients: Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, and garlic powder with a bit of water.
Marinate for 30 minutes to 2 hours. Most of the flavor will transfer into the meat in about 30 minutes. But if you can go 2 hours, they will be more tender. Longer is fine but not needed here.
To go fast, start with preparing the meat and marinade, soaking wooden skewers, heat the grill, and prep the veggies/pineapple. Your 30 minutes will be up and proceed with assembly.
👨🍳How To Cook Beef Kabobs
Soak wooden skewers.
Wooden skewers soaked for 30 minutes are best here. Metal skewers will transfer heat more and cook the center faster, which most people don't want.
Prepare vegetables or pineapple.
Most commonly, red or green peppers and red onions are cut into chunks. I find pieces of pineapple especially appealing with the beef. They all will cook at about the same rate as the meat. Be sure to give them a good coat of oil.
Root vegetables like potatoes carrots will not cook in the same time frame and are not good choices.
Prepare the grill.
Like most beef recipes, the grill should be on high heat. For gas grills, that is all the way. On charcoal grills, lots of hot coals.
You can check the grill surface temperature, and it will be 550° plus, but it is not needed to be checked here.
The grill hood should be closed during cooking for better control, but open will work for this recipe but take a bit longer.
Grill over direct heat.
Total cooking time is about 8-10 minutes with a flip every few minutes. Cook to the internal temperature you want—140°-145° for most people.
The tIme will vary a bit by the grill's actual temperature, the size of the pieces of beef, and, of course, your desired final internal temperature.
❓FAQs
Rare - cold red center has an internal temperature of 125°-130° and will probably take only 5-6 minutes. Very hard to get right and may not cook the veggies well. Remember, you can always cook a bit longer later, but you can not uncook meat.
Medium Rare - warm red center has an internal temperature of 130°-135° should take 7-8 minutes usually.
Medium - pink and firm has an internal temperature of 140°-145° and will usually be done in 8-10 minutes. This is good for most people.
Medium Well - minimal pink has an internal temperature of 150°-155° and should be about 10-12 minutes. This is the most you should usually cook these kabobs.
Well Done - firm and brown will have an internal temperature of 160°+ and is not recommended.
Yes, you can use a 425°-450° oven for about the same time as grilled. Put them on a sheet pan and use a rack if you have one. Give everything a good spray of PAM, then add the kabobs. No need to flip.
As always, you are cooking to a final internal temperature and not by time alone. Time varies by the oven, the tray, and the size of beef chunks.
I didn't use any salt and pepper. Why? I felt there was some sodium in the Worcestershire and soy sauces. The pepper can be added later—it didn't need it.
📖Kabob Recipes
Marinated Steak Kabobs Similar but more complicated marinade and longer prep time.
Buttermilk Ranch Chicken Kabobs
This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.
🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
If using wooden skewers, soak in water for 30 minutes. Metal skewers are OK, but wood is preferred due to the heat transfer of the metal.
Trim beef of any fat and cut into about 1 to 1 ¼ inch cubes, keeping the pieces about the same size.
Mix marinade: 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons water, and 1 teaspoon garlic powder.
Pour over meat and mix well. Cover and refrigerate until needed—30 minutes to 2 hours. Most of the taste will transfer in 30 minutes, but longer will be more tender.
Preheat grill on high. Clean and oil.
Prepare any desired fruit and vegetables. Cut into chunks about the same size as the meat.
Prepare kabobs by alternating ingredients. Brush lightly with oil, concentrating on the fruit and veggies.
Grill over direct high heat with the grill lid closed until mild charring on fruits and vegetables and the internal temperature of the beef is to your liking. About 8-10 minutes for 140°-145° usually. Let kabobs rest for about 5 minutes before serving.
📖Recipe
Easy Marinated Beef Kabobs
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs top sirloin - or other beef
- 2 bell peppers
- 1 red onion
- ½ fresh pineapple
Marinade
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- If using wooden skewers, soak in water for 30 minutes. Metal skewers are OK, but wood is preferred due to the heat transfer of the metal.
- Trim beef of any fat and cut into about 1 to 1 ¼ inch cubes, keeping the pieces about the same size.
- Mix marinade 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons water, and 1 teaspoon garlic powder.
- Pour over meat and mix well. Cover and refrigerate until needed—30 minutes to 2 hours. Most of the taste will transfer in 30 minutes, but longer will be more tender.
- Preheat grill on high. Clean and oil.
- Prepare any desired fruit and vegetables. Cut into chunks about the same size as the meat.
- Prepare kabobs by alternating ingredients. Brush lightly with oil, concentrating on the fruit and veggies.
- Grill over direct high heat rotating every few minutes until mild charring on fruits and vegetables and the internal temperature of the beef is to your liking. About 8-10 minutes for 140°-145° usually. Let kabobs rest for about 5 minutes before serving.
My Private Notes
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- I suggest top sirloin steak here but other sirloin or strip steak would be great.
- I prefer wooden skewers here but not too big of a deal. Metal will cook the interior more.
- Try to keep the size of the meat, vegetables, and pineapple about the same size.
- The grill hood can be open or closed. But closed will cook a bit faster and give more control.
- Brush with oil just before going on the grill.
- Cook to the final internal temperature you want. Medium-rare is 130°- 135° and 140° - 145°. The meat temperature will rise a few degrees after removed from heat.
- Be sure to rest the kabobs for 5 minutes before serving.
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Originally Published September 13, 2010. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Cathie
OMG !!! Tried this recipe out and loved it !!!!! 😋 it really is a kabob summer look forward to testing and trying more of your home cooked kabobs . Thank you for posting them . Great job !
Miriam Weston
I am going to try this!
Doug Wheeler
I realize this is an old post, but I noticed a comment regarding the use of accent. Whenever I use a less tender cut of meat, I just add vinegar to my marinade. It works well. Your other option is to use tenderloin which will not need a tenderizer. I also use LOTS of black pepper when I make any type of beef kabob. Adds so much flavor.
DrDan
Thanks for the note Doug. I have decided this a Kabob summer so a revision is on the way. I don't think I can ask people to use a nice beef tenderloin for kabobs. I may give some of your suggestions a try.
Thank again for the comment
DrDan
Dr Dan
I love pineapple on the grill. A sweet and sour would be great if you wanted.
Chris
Those look good, pineapple and green bell pepper go great with beef. I bet these would also be great with a sweet and sour sauce too. Nice job Dan.