Grilled beef heart kebabs

"This is a great example of nose-to-tail eating. Beef heart is a working muscle, and like any good steak, needs fast cooking over high heat to remain tender. Serve these kebabs with a hefty garden salad made with baby carrots, cucumbers, radish and lots of green leaves." Matthew Evans, For the Love of Meat

Beef heart kebabs, anyone? Credit: Alan Benson

• serves

  6

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  5 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 1 beef heart
• 12 wooden skewers, soaked in cold water for 30 minutes
• 1 small red onion, cut into six wedges and the layers separated
• 240 g cherry tomatoes
• 1 red capsicum, seeds and membrane remove, cut into chunky pieces
• 240 g button mushrooms 
• lemon wedges, to serve

 

• Marinade
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp pepper
• ¼ tsp chilli powder
• 60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil

Marinating time at least 30 minutes, of overnight if time permits

Instructions

To prepare the heart, working with each chamber individually, remove the outer membrane, slice off the pockets of fat and trim the gristle within. Slice the heart into very thin strips weighing about 25 g each. Allow 2 strips per skewer.

To make the marinade, combine all the ingredients in a large bowl. Add the beef strips and stir to coat well, then leave to marinate for at least 30 minutes, or cover and refrigerate overnight. 

Remove the meat from the marinade. Thread the skewers, starting with beef, then onion, and then alternate the beef with the other vegetables and finish with a second piece of onion.

Preheat a barbecue grill to medium–high and cook the kebabs for 2–3 minutes each side. You want the beef to be pink in the middle and charred on the outside. Alternatively, you can cook them under a grill (broiler) for the same length of time. Serve with lemon wedges for squeezing over. 

Note

• Beef heart is available from all good butchers, but you may need to order them.

Photography by Alan Benson. Styling by Vanessa Austin. Food preparation by Alex Herbert.

For The Love of Meat with Matthew Evans starts Thursday 20 October at 7.30pm on SBS and then on SBS On Demand.  Visit the program page for show information, related articles and more recipes. 

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.