Pork and Lamb Kebabs with Dried Apricots and Onions |
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Prep Time: 0 Minutes Cook Time: 0 Minutes |
Ready In: 0 Minutes Servings: 6 |
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Travel the world's barbecue trail and youll find meat on a stick almost everywhere. South Africa's version goes by the Afrikaans name sosatie. Like all good Cape Malay meat dishes, fruit and curry are never far offthe former (usually apricots) interspersed with the meat on the skewers, the latter used to flavor the marinade and sauce. Cape Malay, by the way, refers to the descendants of Indonesian and Malaysian slaves and indentured servants brought to Cape Town to work in farming. There is perhaps no other single dish that can be regarded as more genuinely Afrikaans than sosaties, wrote South African poet and food writer C. Louis Leipoldt. Writing in the 1940s, Leipoldt was to Afrikaans food what James Beard was to our own. Like all great food writers, Leipoldt dispensed not only recipes but the wisdom gleaned from considering cooking a manifestation of culture. The following sosaties are based on Leipoldt's. Ingredients:
1 1/4 pounds pork tenderloin, cut into 1-to 1 1/4-inch cubes |
1 1/4 pounds trimmed leg of lamb, cut into 1-to 1 1/4-inch cubes |
3 tablespoons (packed) dark brown sugar, divided |
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon curry powder |
2 teaspoons coriander seeds |
2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns |
2 teaspoons salt |
2 large onions, peeled |
2 cups dried apricots (10 to 11 ounces) |
4 2-to 3-inch-long orange peel strips (orange part only) |
1 1/2 cups dry red wine |
1/2 cup red wine vinegar |
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons whipping cream |
1/4 cup olive oil |
5 bacon slices, cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces |
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter |
2 tablespoons apricot preserves |
olive oil (for brushing grill rack) |
Directions:
1. Arrange pork tenderloin in one 11 x 7 x 2- inch glass baking dish and lamb in another 11 x 7 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Mix 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 tablespoon curry powder, coriander, peppercorns, and salt in small bowl; sprinkle half of mixture over pork and remaining half over lamb and stir. Slice 1 onion and place in medium bowl; add apricots, orange peel, red wine, vinegar, 1/2 cup whipping cream, and oil; stir to blend. Divide onion-apricot marinade between dish with pork and dish with lamb. Cover both dishes; chill at least 4 hours. DO AHEAD: Can be made 8 hours ahead. Keep chilled.
2. Cut remaining onion in half crosswise, then cut each half into quarters. Separate quarters into individual onion layers; set aside. Place large fine-mesh strainer over large saucepan. Add pork mixture to strainer and allow marinade to drain into saucepan. Transfer pork to medium bowl. Repeat with lamb mixture, allowing marinade to drain into same saucepan. Transfer lamb to another medium bowl.
3. Alternate pork cubes, marinated dried apricots, onion pieces, and bacon pieces on metal skewers, beginning and ending with pork. Repeat with lamb cubes, alternating lamb, apricots, onion pieces, and bacon pieces on skewers. DO AHEAD: Can be made 4 hours ahead. Cover and chill marinade and kebabs separately.
4. Boil marinade in saucepan until reduced to generous 1 1/4 cups, about 6 minutes. Whisk in butter, apricot preserves, remaining 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon curry powder, and 2 tablespoons whipping cream. Continue boiling sauce until thickened to sauce consistency, about 2 minutes. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer 1/2 cup sauce to small bowl and reserve for basting kebabs during grilling. Leave remaining sauce in saucepan and set aside for serving.
5. Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Brush grill rack with olive oil. Grill kebabs 4 minutes; baste kebabs with reserved 1/2 cup sauce. Continue grilling kebabs until browned and cooked medium-rare, turning occasionally, about 4 minutes longer for lamb and 5 minutes longer for pork.
6. Meanwhile, place saucepan with remaining sauce on 1 side of grill to rewarm. Transfer kebabs to platter. Brush warm sauce over kebabs and serve.
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