Marinated Steak Kabobs are the perfect summer meal idea for grilling season, and extra delicious when the meat is marinated for hours in the best Beef Kabob Marinade, then skewered with potatoes, onions, peppers, and other colorful veggies! This fantastic shish kabob marinade helps makes this an easy summer meal the whole family will love!
Kabobs are a meal all on their own, but if you are having a cookout, consider serving them with our favorite Broccoli Salad or a cool & classic Macaroni Salad.
Best Beef Kabob Marinade
Whether you spell it kebab or kabob, there is nothing like savory chunks of tender meat and veggies grilled over a flame for an easy outdoor meal that always satisfies.
Marinating the meat not only imparts loads of flavor, but it also tenderizes it so every bite is juicy and delicious. And since beef kabobs cook quickly on the grill, they are great for summer entertaining! You may also want to try out my Greek Marinade for a more Mediterranean flavor on your kabobs!
During the summer, we grill several times a week, whether we are making hamburgers, BBQ chicken, grilling whole fish, or making these easy, healthy marinated steak kabobs.
It takes very little time to throw together the easy beef shish kabob marinade that works great even if you opt not to skewer your meat and just marinate a flank steak for dinner instead.
Plus, you likely already have everything you need for the marinade in your pantry and fridge already.
To make the beef kabob marinade, just combine the Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, olive oil, mustard, garlic, brown sugar, lemon juice, basil, parsley and pepper in a bowl and whisk well.
When it comes to adding things besides meat onto the skewers, I like to pick anywhere from 3-5 options from the following list:
- red, green, yellow, or orange bell peppers
- red or yellow onions
- crimini or white button mushrooms
- zucchini sliced into discs
- baby red or yukon gold potatoes that have been boiled just until tender
- cherry tomatoes
- yellow squash
- pineapple chunks
A good sirloin steak is my of choice of meat for beef kabobs. It's actually a tougher cut of meat that is a little less expensive that other cuts, but by cubing it into 1" cubes, marinating it in this super flavorful beef kabob marinade, and then grilling over high heat, it actually comes out juicy and tender, despite being fairly lean to begin with. Just try to be sure your cubes of steak are all about the same size so that they cook evenly on the grill.
You will want to marinate the cubed meat for anywhere from 1 to 6 hours. And it's a good idea to stick your wooden skewers in a shallow pan of water at the same time you set your meat in the fridge to marinate so they won't burn up on the grill.
They really only need about 30 minutes, but I always forget unless I do this step while I'm prepping the meat.
How to Make the Best Marinated Steak Kabobs on the Grill
- Start by making sure the grill is clean and preheated to high heat. You can reduce the heat to medium-high once you put the kabobs on, but starting them on a super hot grill will help get a nice char on the kabobs, which is what adds that great barbecue flavor.
- Skewer the meat alternating with vegetables, aiming for about 4-5 pieces of steak per skewer.
- Use tongs to turn the skewers every 2-3 minutes until all sides have a nice char. Grill times can vary based on the temperature of the grill, temperature of the meat, the size of your chunks of steak, etc. so just keep an eye on how quickly the kabobs are cooking, but I typically grill my marinated steak kabobs for 8-10 minutes total.
- Don't overcook the meat. In my opinion, beef kabobs are best when the meat is cooked medium-rare to medium. I like to see a little pink inside!
What cut of beef is best for kabobs?
Sirloin is typically the best choice for using when making beef kabobs. It is tender but holds together well on the skewer, and has great flavor and is less expensive than other meats.
How long do you marinate beef?
If you plan ahead, it would be great to marinate beef for anywhere from 6 hours to 24 hours. But I've also found that even marinating in the fridge for 2 to 5 hours works well too.
Looking for More Grilling Inspiration? Try These Great Grilling Recipes!
- Grilled Chicken Shawarma
- Greek Marinade
- Grilled Mexican Street Corn
- Grilled Summer Vegetable Quesadillas
- Grilled Cajun Chicken Salad with Creamy Cajun Dressing
- Hawaiian Teriyaki Chicken Skewers
- Perfect Grilled Pork Chops with Sweet BBQ Pork Rub
- Sriracha Mayo Marinated Grilled Lamb Chops
- Grilled Cilantro Lime Chicken Thighs
- Grilled Santa Maria Tri-Tip
- Grilled Soy Brown Sugar Salmon in Foil
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Best Beef Kabob Marinade
Ingredients
Marinade
- ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
Kabobs
- 1 ½ pounds sirloin steak or sirloin tips cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 pound baby Yukon gold potatoes
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons dijon or whole-grain mustard
- 1 Tablespoon dried rosemary
- 8 ounces crimini mushrooms
- 1 red onion cut into 1-inch cubes (about 3 onion layers each)
- 2 green bell peppers cut into 1-inch pieces
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, mix the marinade ingredients together. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the marinade.
- Place the cubed meat into a large plastic zip-tight bag and pour all but the reserved marinade over it, then seal and squish to coat well. Place in the refrigerator for 1-6 hours to marinate. This is also a good time to place wooden skewers in water to soak.
- Meanwhile, boil the potatoes in a large pot of salted water until just tender enough to pierce with a fork, about 6-8 minutes. Drain well, then toss with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, rosemary, and mustard. Set aside.
- Preheat grill to high heat while preparing the kabobs. Chop all vegetables into chunks that are roughly the same size as the cubed steak, keeping 3 layers of onion together in each chunk. Drizzle vegetables with the reserved marinade.
- Thread alternating pieces of meat, vegetables, and potatoes until the skewers are filled, aiming for 4-5 pieces of steak on each skewer.
- Place kabobs on the grill directly over the heat and reduce heat to medium-high. Grill for 8-10 minutes, flipping every 2-3 minutes, until the meat is cooked medium-rare to medium and the vegetables start to char just around the edges.
- Remove from the grill and rest for 5 minutes before serving.
your site is awesome! I have learned so much!!! Thanks u so much
Guys, Thanks For sharing this Great Recipe. My Family Loved it. I am definitely sharing this recipe and this website with my friend. Hope they also love it. Thank you again for sharing such a great recipe.
Great post.
Followed this kabob recipe as written and it was simply delicious! Such a hit with my group. This will be my new go-to kabob marinade.
Can you put this on a shrimp scewer?
Sure! I just wouldn't marinate longer than 30 minutes or the acid in the marinade will start to cook the shrimp.
I have been buying kabob meats (beef, chicken, lamb) pre-marinated from a local Arabic market. I want to do the marinade myself, so I am looking for a kabob marinade recipe – yours look good.
A couple of kabob cooking tips:
1 – meat goes on a skewer by itself, veggies on skewers by themselves, and maybe veggies on multiple skewers depending on their cooking times. The reason for separating the meat from the veggies is that meat cooks at a different rate than veggies, and even some veggies benefit from separated cook times. Separating them allows you to enjoy perfectly cook kabob meats and veggies.
2 – if you are using those skinny bamboo skewers like in the pictures above (I use them!), use two instead of one for each kabob. Skewer the meat or veggies with two parallel skewers about ½ inch apart. This keeps the meat or veggies from rotating on the skewer. You can grab a whole, loaded skewer with tongs and easily rotate it to cook the other side without a piece of meat or veggie refusing to flip over on the skewer.
I grew up eating kebobs & have been cooking them for my family for 19 yrs now... I've NEVER have to separate veggies & meat & they airways come out perfectly!
I always separate re cooking time choices. This is a great marinade. Thank you!
Those are great tips Joe! I am going to try this when I make this recipe.
I have separated my veggies from meat and my meat from shrimp as well to allow just what Joe said, everything to cook to its own temperature and time. Then pull them all off onto a serving platter and let everyone pick what they want.
I have been looking for this recipe for ages! Very similar to the one that used to be on the back of Lea & Perrins. I think the biggest difference is that they had red wine vinegar instead of lemon juice. You can also freeze the meat in the marinade. #singlegirllifehack Thanks
Put marinade on skewers while cooking
YUM! I needed a good marinade and this is it. I modified a little bit, but all of the right flavors are there. I do not put brown sugar, basil, or parsley and I use extra lemon juice. It made the meat so tender and flavorful! Do it! You won’t regret it
The best beef kabob marinade!
Loveeee this ! We make it weekly in the summer
Delicious marinade!
Added just a bit more lemon juice than the recipe called for … delicious!
This marinade is absolutely fantastic! Utter perfection! I’ve used it a few times now, the first attempt being a Mother’s Day dinner I hosted. It is a foolproof recipe that yields consistent results each time. I’ve even used it with steaks.
So happy you shared this gem - thank you!
I made a second batch of the marinade and as the kabobs were grilling, my husband basted them with that extra sauce. They were OUTSTANDING!
I wasn't sure how this would turn out, but I made them for dinner tonight and they were wonderful! Love the little potatoes on the skewers! The meat turned out medium and juicy-perfect! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
So glad you enjoyed these!
Great receipes. Could you please send your kabob receipes with the marinade to my email. Thanks in advance. Keep up the great work. Thanks 5 stars
This was the best marinade my family has ever tasted! We made beef kabobs on the grill and used a nice cut of thick sirloin steaks from Costco. The flavor was amazing! I also marinated some large whole mushrooms that were also incredible! My adult sons loved it so much that I am putting together a small Christmas gift for them that includes this recipe and all the seasonings to make it at their homes for their families.
Have made this twice now. Really good and remarkably forgiving recipe. I accidentally left out the brown sugar and threw in honey after they started marinating. Worked fine. Everyone who has eaten them has loved them. Make extra for left overs.
I used this marinade on my steak, chicken, and even shrimp (with some added lemon for the shrimp). And the veggies, of course... but skipped the potatoes. These were THE BEST kabobs I've ever had! I'm making sure to save this recipe.
First time making shish kabob and it was really good. The only thing is I used the microwave potatoes and I should have let them cook the whole 9 minutes instead of 6 before putting them on the skewer. Awesome dish though thanks for the recipe!
Excellent marinade recipe, thank you!
Can I use this same recipe for chicken Kabobs?
Absolutely.