Ok, guys, here it is, after the post on the Instant Pot Brown Rice to go in the Greek Brown Rice Salad & then the Greek Brown Rice Salad, to enjoy with the Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers, finally, the Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers are here! Yeah, baby. It’s like the house that Jack built! Luckily, it’s worth it and all the components of this meal are pretty quick and easy.
Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers with Greek Brown Rice Salad (made with Instant Pot Brown Rice)
Seriously, these Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers are the bomb. They stole the show, that’s for sure. Not only have I eaten way too many, I just want them all the time, now, so I think you’ll like them, too! Bonus: they are super quick (and easy like I said) to make – four ingredients!
About Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers:
So right off the bat, I want to let you know I pretty much copied this recipe for Spicy Lamb & Feta Skewers from BBC Good Food and adapted it only very slightly. And that means that their spicy really isn’t all that spicy. No offense, Britain! So don’t be afraid of the spice in these little koftas or kebabs. I wouldn’t even hesitate to serve these to littles, especially if you have some of my Tzatziki sauce on the side. If you’re like me and like a little heat, just up the spice level a bit.
Actually, these probably aren’t even Greek, as suggested by the recipe. And by that, I’m referring to the Harissa in the recipe. Whadda I know – maybe there’s a Greek version of Harissa? Anyway, if you can’t get ahold of Harissa, there are a couple of options. You can substitute Chili Garlic Paste (I did this the second time I made them) or make your own Harissa. It just so happens my friend, Elaine, makes lots of Harissa and has a couple of recipes at her site, Foodbod. I’d suggest this one from her post, More Harissa Fun. I’ve made it before and it’s super delish. Much better than MY old recipe! You can use just about any kind of hot peppers you have available. Using common sense, of course!
And my third confession? My Beef & Feta Skewers aren’t made with lamb as per the original recipe. If you have ground or minced lamb, go for it. I not only don’t know where I’d get any (except for mincing it up myself in my food processor) but lamb is pricey where I live! And hard to find, as in it’s not always available at a regular old grocery store. Which is a little strange because here in the Midwest I’m always driving by pastoral farm settings with all the little lambies grazing & frolicking in green fields. Guys, there’s a first – I don’t think I’ve ever used the work frolicking on my blog before. And rarely in real life, lol! No worries about the lamb, though – these Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers are scrumptious.
Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers with Greek Brown Rice Salad (made with Instant Pot Brown Rice)
Making Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers:
I have one more confession just to clear the air. I had a heck of a time getting my little kebabs to stay on my skewers. I found a few things that I think will help, but these are so delish, even if you have the same issue, you can just do what I did and roll the little kebabs around on the grill sans skewers.
It’s said a larger mince, what we call in the States a chili grind is supposed to work better than the finer grind on the beef. I also found that the little kebabs stuck better to my soaked wooded sticks than to my metal skewers and that they stayed on even better after I refrigerated them for about an hour before cooking. A very thin metal spatula to slip under the kebabs as they’re being turned also seemed to help.
The onion is grated, too, in this recipe which means there is a lot of moisture. I think if the onions were wrung briefly in a clean kitchen towel or paper towel to take a little of the excess moisture before being combined with the beef it would make for a stickier mix. Of course, the onion could be very finely minced, but I’d rather not, lol! If anyone has any more hints or helps in the sticking department, please speak up! I keep seeing gorgeous pics of kofta and am a bit flummoxed – but I know it can be done and has been done for centuries.
Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers with Greek Brown Rice Salad (made with Instant Po
Saving Money on Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers:
The biggest savings on the Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers is subbing out the lamb for the ground beef. And since that’s basically all that’s in the recipe except the Feta, I’m done! Seriously, do look for ground beef on sale and pick it up at a low. If the beef is in large “family” packs, just break it down into portions your family will use before freezing.
Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten the Feta – it’s that I just covered Feta quite extensively in my Horiatiki Greek Salad I made last week and even more extensively on my post What to Know About Feta Cheese.
And while this isn’t a cost-saving hint (it’s exactly the opposite!) you might want to increase the recipe and make more of the Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers. They’re a little addictive.
Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers with Greek Brown Rice Salad (made with Instant Pot Brown Rice)
Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers
- Total Time: 20 minutes + chill
- Yield: 12 kebabs 4 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 pounds ground beef
- 1/4 red onion, grated
- 2 ounces Feta cheese, preferably from a block, crumbled
- 1 tablespoon harissa or chili garlic sauce (or more)
Instructions
Mix together all ingredients. Form into 12 cylinders and place on skewers, pressing evenly around the skewer. Grill over medium-high heat until browned with some distinct grill marks, 6 to 8 minutes.
Notes:
- Chilling for an hour seems to help the beef hold to the skewers.
- If using wooden skewers, soak for 30 minutes, then rinse before using.
- Divide the beef mixture in half, then divide each half into half again (4 portions) then divide each of the four portions into 3 parts.
Keywords: Appetizer, Beef, Chili Garlic Paste, Greek, Ground Beef, Harissa, kebabs, Red onion
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I’ll be sharing Spicy Beef & Feta Skewers at Fiesta Friday #237, hosted this week by Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook and Diann @ Of Goats and Greens. I’m also linking to the Lazy Gastronome’s What’s for Dinner Sunday Link up party.
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