Recipes

Easy, delicious, and loaded with flavor, these Mojo Marinated Pork Kebabs are begging you to make the most of grilling season. The punchy garlic- and citrus-flavored marinade is traditionally used in Hispanic dishes and pairs beautifully with grilled pineapple!

Take mojo marinated pork outdoors this summer with these flavor-packed kebabs. Using a variety of veggies and (surprise!) fruit means you never have to make the same kebab twice.
Mojo has a zippy bite because of the grapefruit and lime juice that it’s made with. Copious amounts of garlic add nothing but Latin flavor to the kebabs. As a result, this might become your go-to marinade for all your grilled proteins.

Childhood Memories of Kebabs
My childhood memories are filled with kebab fundraisers to support my mom’s or dad’s Air Force units. We stayed up all night impaling chunks of pork on sticks to grill the following day.
My entire Saturday was consumed by fake-smiling at adults while trying to hawk kebabs. I hated it. The only ray of hope came in the hourly breaks I was given (child labor laws being what they are) where I was able to eat a kebab. Two kebabs, if I was sly enough to sneak one.
So, while being a kebab salesperson wasn’t the highlight of my youth, the memories I have of making and eating them were. Our fundraising kebabs were bare-bones, though: Meat on a stick is all they were. As an adult, I’ve taken advantage of my ability to add veggies to my kebabs, and now you can’t tell me nothing!
WHAT’S THE BEST PORK FOR KEBABS?
The best cut of pork to use for kebabs is tender and lean like pork neck meat or tenderloin.
Because the meat won’t cook long on the grill, you want a tender cut that won’t dry out. I find that pork neck meat (in your meat section it may be labeled pork collar or pork top round) meets that requirement because it has ribbons of fat throughout the meat, but the meat is still very tender (since a pig doesn’t shake its neck as much as I do).
Tenderloin is my backup. It’s leaner than neck meat, which means it tends to dry out faster when grilling so just keep an eye on it. Tenderloin is a great fallback if you can’t find neck meat, though.
When all else fails, grab a pack of boneless, thick-cut pork chops and cut them to size.

WHAT IS MOJO MARINADE?
Mojo (pronounced mo-HO) is a garlic- and citrus-flavored sauce that’s moderately acidic and plentiful on flavor. If you’ve ever had a Cubano sandwich, chances are it was made with mojo marinated pork roast.
In Hispanic cooking, it’s used as a marinade for all sorts of proteins. Pork is among the most common, but poultry and seafood tend to be runners-up.
If you’re looking to go the super authentic route, try to get your hands on bitter orange and use that in place of the grapefruit and orange juices. No worries if you’re not in the mood for a scavenger hunt though. The recipe is written to mimic the flavors you would get from bitter orange.
HOW LONG SHOULD YOU MARINATE PORK KEBABS?
At the very least, your pork kebabs should sit in the mojo marinade for two hours. I’ve rushed the marinade before and felt the pain of disappointment. The flavors just weren’t what I wanted them to be. Don’t get me wrong, I still ate them, but that two-hour marinade makes a world of difference.
If you’re looking to get the most out of the marinade, leave the pork to soak it up for eight hours. Any more and you’re dabbling in meat that will end up too tough (the acid in the marinade slowly “cooks” the protein). When in doubt, shoot for four hours and you’ll hit the sweet spot.

HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN KEBABS ARE FINISHED COOKING?
One of the things I love most about grilling these pork kebabs is how fast they cook. Because pork only needs to be cooked to an internal temperature of 145°F, these skewers will only take 10 minutes to cook on the grill.
As a result of the short cooking time, it’s important to cut your fruits and veggies to uniform sizes. This way, they’ll be pleasantly charred and cooked through at the same time as the pork.
MIX UP YOUR FRUITS AND VEGGIES FOR TASTY KEBABS
When it comes to the best fruits and veggies to use on your kebabs almost anything goes.
Try to avoid dense or thick-fleshed veggies like carrots, potatoes, or gourds (butternut squash)—they’re not going to be soft enough to enjoy by the time the pork is grilled.
I highly recommend summer squash though. When in doubt, the old kebab regulars are a surefire choice: mild bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes are the quintessential kebab cohorts.
I gave mine a tropical/spicy bent by impaling pineapple chunks and thick slices of jalapeño peppers on a few of my skewers. Spice yours up likewise, but I recommend keeping it at jalapeño peppers and nothing spicier.

SWAPS AND SUBSTITUTIONS FOR PORK KEBABS
If you want to swap out the pork for a different protein, I’d recommend anything from chicken thighs (which are juicier than breasts, but those will still work), shrimp, swordfish, or even firm tofu.
When it comes to marinating proteins like seafood, you’ll need to reduce the time to no longer than 20 minutes. Any longer and you’ll be grilling ceviche.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH PORK KEBABS
I nestle my pork kebabs in a bed of steamed rice on a large serving platter. When it’s time to serve, my family scoops up a spoonful of rice and grabs their kebabs. It’s a balanced meal on a platter.
If you’re serving a crowd or just like options, you can also serve the kebabs with dishes like Black Bean Salad, Quinoa Pilaf, or Jicama, Avocado and Orange Salad.

CAN YOU MAKE KEBABS AHEAD OF TIME?
You can most certainly assemble your kebabs ahead of time! Ask my ten-year-old self.
Marinate the meat for a couple of hours
Remove it from the marinade
Assemble the kebabs
Wrap them in plastic
Store them in the fridge
Remove from the fridge 20 minutes before grilling to take the chill off
MORE GREAT KEBAB RECIPES

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A classic gimlet doesn’t require much: gin (or vodka, if you must), lime, and simple syrup. That’s it! It’s a perfectly balanced gin sour that’s equally appropriate for a dinner party or a casual night at home.

A simple, classic cocktail—just gin (or vodka), lime, and sugar—the gimlet is one of the gems among classic cocktails, with a long history stretching from the high seas to Madison Avenue. Light green, lime-forward, and exquisite when well-balanced, this gin sour is equal parts refreshing and scurvy-preventing—who doesn’t require both?

WHAT’S THE HISTORY OF THE GIMLET?
Like every other classic cocktail, the gimlet comes with a handful of competing origin stories. The most credible is its creation, in the 1880s, at the hands of Royal Navy surgeon Sir Thomas Gimlette, who encouraged his mates to take their gin rations with a healthy dash of scurvy-preventing lime juice. Lauchlin Rose’s lime juice cordial, invented just a decade earlier, helped make that possible, at the same time sweetening the drink and preserving the citrus.
As for its origins, you can think of the gimlet as a sweet gin rickey (without the soda water), or another in a long line of descendants of the sour, one of the main cocktail families. Originally a 50-50 mix of gin and lime cordial, modern preferences for drier (better balanced) drinks have seen the proportion of lime cordial track ever downward.

GIN GIMLET OR VODKA GIMLET?
This is going to be a question that only you can answer, as opinions are many and they are strong.
Unless you specifically request vodka, most bartenders will likely serve this with gin, for good reason. It is the gin that makes this a balanced, more soulful drink with a soupçon of complexity, elegance, and even strength. A great gimlet depends on the balance between juniper (from the gin) and fresh citrus: Too much of the former, and it is overly stiff; too much of the latter, and it is too tart. To a gin purist, vodka would be like signing yourself up for a boring blind date.
To the vodka camp, gin talks a bit too much, dominates the conversation; preferable are the more subtle airs of a good, clean, ice-cold vodka.
WHAT’S THE BEST GIN FOR A GIMLET?
Your old-school gimlets were all made with Plymouth gin, a unique style of gin so special it was called for by name in 20+ recipes in the Savoy Cocktail Book, and so beloved by the British Royal Navy that they commissioned a higher proof version known now as “Navy Strength.”
Plymouth is drier than London Dry gins, but more citrusy and even botanical than most. It has enough character to guarantee some personality to even a sour.
But a crisp, dry London-style gin like Tanqueray, Beefeater, or Gordon’s also make for good choices. Save your more delicate or aromatic gins, like Hendrick’s, for spare cocktails like a Martini, where those subtleties can be appreciated.
What’s the Best Vodka (if you go that route)?
The same thinking holds true here, too: Save your Grey Goose for another occasion. Smirnoff is a perfectly fine choice. That said, feel free to venture off toward Ketel One, with its hints of honey and subtle cracked black pepper, or even Tito’s with its clean minerality and grain character.

FRESH LIME JUICE OR ROSE’S?
After deciding between gin or vodka (though there is only one proper answer to the above, and it rhymes with “win”), your choice of how to sour and sweeten this drink is most critical.
Historically, the gimlet is made only with Lauchlin Rose’s original formula for a lime cordial—commonly available as Rose’s Lime Juice. But while original recipes and those of the many gimlet originalists all call for Rose’s Lime Cordial, the Rose’s of today is much changed from Lauchlin’s original, with high-fructose corn syrup and additives that wouldn’t make it through the door of most craft cocktail bars.
The recipe below substitutes Rose’s for a “quick lime cordial” hack, combining fresh lime juice with a simple syrup and fresh lime zest. If you’re set on using Rose’s, mix one ounce of Rose’s sweetened lime juice with a half ounce of fresh lime juice.
ANY FUN VARIATIONS ON THE GIMLET?
The Richmond Gimlet, a creation of Jeffrey Morgenthaler’s, simply includes mint shaken with the same ingredients mentioned below.
A Basil Gimlet, muddling the basil leaves with either a simple syrup or agave nectar, will be slightly herbal and more than a little refreshing.
Vodka Gimlet: The default for some, this should still count as a variation, and one not without its own great qualities.
Ancho Gimlet: This slightly spicy version would incorporate Ancho Reyes Verde, a peppery Mexican liqueur.
MORE BELOVED CLASSIC COCKTAILS LEGGI TUTTO