Teriyaki Beef (Appetizer or Main Course)

Prep Time 

2-3 hours, mostly to let the meat marinade

Cooking Time 

5-6 minutes

Total Time 

A few hours to a day. You can prepare in advance and refrigerate for cooking later in the day.

Introduction (Tell us a bit about the dish) 

This is a favorite dish at a luau as one of the main courses and can also be served as an appetizer with cocktails.

Ingedients 

1 pound beef cut into pieces about 1 inch square

Marinade:

4 tbs brown sugar
1 tbs honey or corn syrup
pineapple chunks - can use fresh or canned
1 clove garlic
2 tbs grated ginger (can use powdered ginger also)
1 tbs sesame oil
You will also need a number of bamboo skewers which you can buy in any oriental grocery

Instructions 

In a large bowl, combine all of the marinade ingredients. Test for taste.

Add the meat and mix well with the marinade.

You can now either add the pineapple chucks to the marinade or wait to use them right before you grill the meat.

You should allow the meat to marinate 2-3 hours. You can also do this the night ahead and place it in the refrigerator.

Just before cooking,using the bamboo skewers, place 2-3 pieces of meat alternating with a chunk of pineapple on each skewer.

You can then broil these in the oven or on your outdoor grill. It takes about 5-6 minutes to cook. You'll want to turn the skewer over half way through cooking.

Tips and Tricks 

• The size of the beef chucks can be larger, but you will need to cook the meat longer. You can also use long strips of beef and weave these onto the skewer adding the pineapple or vegetable in between the beef.
• You can also substitute chicken for the beef.
• There are lots of different ways you can prepare these. You can add cut vegetables to each skewer in addition to the pineapple.
• You can make up another batch of the marinade to use as a dipping sauce also. You may wish to add a bit of the pineapple juice and thicken it with some cornstarch or arrowroot.