For an easy weeknight meal, getting meat that has been prepared ahead of time can really cut down on the prep work. For this dinner we had recently, we picked up a batch of beef brochettes from Snake River Farms, which come in a set of four. Generous pieces of tenderloin are threaded on wooden skewers and ready for the grill at home. We put together a tasty dish of red-wine marinated grilled beef brochettes with Traegered Balsamic Onion Lollipops- I am certain your family will enjoy it too.
EASY AND QUICK DINNERS ARE KEY
With the school year back in the swing of things, and active 1-year old twins under foot, our approach to easy and quick weeknight dinners is more important than ever. Things are a little crazy at our house and getting dinner on the table for the four of us can feel like a herculean feat.
Luckily, there are lots of ways to shortcut on homemade meals which take time out of the prep work particularly, allowing dinner to still be on the table in under an hour. One tip for expediting dinner is to purchase things pre-prepared so that you simply have to season or marinate and cook.
At your local grocery store, you can definitely find pre-assembled kebabs/skewers full of meats and veggies. While those are tasty and usually come out great, I will note that often meats and the veggies they’re skewered with cook at different time and temps from each other, and therefore tehy can be inconsistent in result.
Instead of going for skewers that are a medley of meats and veggies, I recommend selecting skewers of just meats and separate ones of veggies. You can season/marinade appropriately for the item and cook them to perfection instead of mediocrity. Trust me, it’ll be worth it.
BROCHETTES
For this recipe, we used a set of prepared beef brochettes from Snake River Farms. At first we weren’t sure what that meant, but we discovered that brochettes are just another term for skewers.
Borrowing from a French word for “skewer”, a brochette is just a fancy term for skewered meat. In our case, these were perfectly-trimmed tenderloin pieces, threaded on wooden skewers and uniform in size. You could also call these kabobs, kabobs or skewers. Regardless of what you call them, they’re delicious.
RED ONION LOLLIPOPS
To accompany our beef brochettes, we put together a fun and simple side dish, which compliments the grilled meat sticks very well. It’s as simple as marinading some thick slices of red onion in a balsamic-focused sauce, threading them on a wooden skewer and grilling alongside the brochettes until tender and slightly charred.
Calling them lollipops comes from how they look- big circles of onion on a stick. But in many respects, calling them a lollipop is also reflective of how delicious and sweet the onions become when cooked this way. You won’t believe how good they are!
PRIMARY INGREDIENTS
- Prepared beef brochettes (or tenderloin pieces and wooden skewers)
- Red wine
- Shallots
- Garlic
- My Garlic Junkie seasoning
- Rosemary
- Olive Oil
- Red Onions
- Balsamic salad dressing
WHY COOKING BEEF BROCHETTE ON THE TRAEGER WORKS
With the Traeger grills, you can cook foods hot and fast which produce amazing results. Because the heat is fueled by wood pellets, there is a hint of wood-fired flavor that imbues every bite of your food.
You can certainly cook this on a gas or charcoal grill too, just be sure to have two heat zones while you cook so that you can mitigate flare-ups as you go. But you will soon see that cooking these grilled beef brochettes with Traegered onion lollipops on the Traeger really makes them come out the best. Give it a try and let me know what you think!
STEP-BY-STEP
- Unwrap the prepared skewers or assemble them yourself by threading like-sized pieces of tenderloin on wooden skewers.
- In a Cambro pan or 8×13 dish, make the marinade.
- Chop the shallots to fine dice.
- Crush and press the garlic.
- Combine the wine, shallots, garlic, Garlic Junkie seasoning, rosemary and olive oil in the pan.
- Use a whisk and combine well.
- Place the brochettes in the marinade and turn to coat.
- Cover and place the pan in the fridge for at least 30 minutes– and up to 4 hours.
- Using a sharp knife, carefully cut the red onions into 4-6 thick rings. They should be at least ¾ inch thick.
- Place one slice flat on the cutting board and carefully push a wooden skewer into the onion until it reaches at least ½ way.
- Repeat with remaining onions.
- Place onions in a ziplock bag and pour in balsamic salad dressing. Turn to coat and seal the bag.
- 45 minutes before eating, preheat your Traeger grill to 450*.
- Place a cast iron pan in the grill and allow it to get very hot– about 15 minutes.
- Pull the meat and onions from the fridge and remove the skewers from the marinades.
- Place the brochettes on a paper towel to soak up excess wine marinade.
- Spray a light coating of cooking oil on the hot cast iron pan.
- Then place the beef skewers on the hot grill and allow them to cook for about 5 minutes per side.
- Place the onion lollipops on the grill and cook about 5 minutes per side until caramelized and soft.
- Pull the skewers when the internal temperature of the meat is 130*.
- Place on a plate and tent loosely with foil.
- Season the skewers lightly with salt and serve with black peppercorn horseradish sauce and red onion lollipops.
RECIPES SIMILAR TO GRILLED BEEF BROCHETTES AND TRAEGERED ONION LOLLIPOPS
Food on a stick is a fun and different way to serve food. You can do it with a variety of different proteins, all with great results. Skewered food is perfect for a party– appetizers or food that’s mobile and easy to eat– or for a fancy plated dinner.
Here are a few similar dishes to Grilled Beef Brochette with Traegered Onion Lollipops:
- Tropical Chicken Skewers
- Breakfast Kebabs
- Cajun Shrimp
- Fruit Kebabs
- Truffle Marinated Steak
- Marinated Skirt Steak
Products used in this cook:
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Grilled Beef Brochettes with Traegered Onion Lollipops
Equipment
- Traeger grill
- Pan or dish
- Garlic press
- Knife and cutting board
- Ziplock bag
Ingredients
- 1 pound repared beef brochettes or tenderloin pieces and wooden skewers
- 2 cups dry red wine
- 1 small shallot
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 tbsp Garlic Junkie seasoning
- 1 tsp rosemary
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1-2 large red onions
- 1 cup balsamic salad dressing
Instructions
- Create the skewers or unwrap the pre-assembled ones you purchased
- Make the marinade in a Cambro pan or 8×13 dish
- Finely dice the shallots
- Crush and press the garlic
- Mix the wine, shallots, garlic, Garlic Junkie seasoning, rosemary and olive oil in the pan
- Put the brochettes in the marinade and turn to coat
- Cover the pan and place it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes– and up to 4 hours
- Using a knife, carefully cut the red onions into rings at least 3/4 inch thick
- Put one onion slice flat on the cutting board and carefully push a wooden skewer into the onion until it reaches at least ½ way
- Repeat with the remaining onions
- Put onions in a ziplock bag and pour in the dressing balsamic salad dressing, turning to coat
- Refrigerate the marinating onions until ready to cook
- 45 minutes before eating, preheat your Traeger grill to 450*
- Place a cast iron pan on the grill and allow it to get very hot– about 30 minutes
- Remove the meat and onions from the fridge and remove the skewers from the marinades
- Place the beef on a paper towel to soak up excess wine marinade
- Spray cooking oil on the hot cast iron pan
- Place the beef skewers on the hot grill and allow them to cook for about 5 minutes per side
- Put the onion lollipops on the grill and cook about 5 minutes per side until caramelized and soft
- Remove all the skewers when the internal temperature of the meat is 130*
- Arrange the skewers on a plate and tent loosely with foil
- Season the skewers lightly with salt and serve with black peppercorn horseradish sauce (see note) and red onion lollipops
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