Home > Main Course > Pork Skewers (Shashlik)

Pork Skewers (Shashlik)

You'll love this easy-to-follow Grilled Pork Skewers recipe with simple marinade from Natasha's Kitchen. Yeah it's a keeper.

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.

I love the smell of barbecue floating through the backyard; but not so much when it’s the neighbors BBQ. It’s too enticing. I’d be the one poking my head over the fence to see what’s cooking (good thing we have nice neighbors!). We’ve been grilling away almost daily.

I made this Pork Skewers (Shashlik) recipe twice in one day because I wanted it to be perfect for y’all. Seriously my husband grilled it in the morning, then we tweaked some things and made it again in the evening. It’s important to me to make sure I live up to my “tried and true” motto. I want you to try these pork skewers and say, yeah it’s a keeper.

This recipe was inspired by my cousin Alla of Washington. Alla you are one talented gal and thank you so much for replying to my random text messages about food!

Ingredients for Ukrainian Shashlik (Kabobs)

1 3/4 to 2 lb Pork Sirloin
1/4 cup dry red wine such as merlot
1/4 cup olive oil
4-5 cloves garlic, pressed
1 medium onion sliced into 1″ pieces
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
6 to 8 (12-inch) wooden skewers

Pork Shish Kebab-1

How to Make Pork Skewers:

1. Chop pork into 1 inch pieces and place them in a large bowl. Add sliced onion and press in the 4-5 cloves of garlic.

pork skewers-2

2. Sprinkle with 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper and stir everything to combine.

Pork Shish Kebab-4

3. Pour in 1/4 cup olive oil and 1/4 cup red wine. Stir everything to combine.

Pork Shish Kebab-5

Pork Shish Kebab-6

4. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the fridge for 3-4 hours.

Pork Shish Kebab-7

5. About 15-30 minutes before your meat is done marinating, place 6-8 wooden skewers in a pyrex dish with enough water to submerge the sticks. Soaking them keeps the sticks from burning on the grill.
Preheat your grill and just before adding your meat, set to medium.

6. Skewer the meat and onions (don’t squish them too tightly together; they meat should be just touching on the skewer, not smashed together).

Pork Shish Kebab-8

7. Grill over medium heat, turning every 4 minutes or so until all sides are browned and the meat is cooked through.

pork skewers-1-2

Enjoy with our favorite BBQ sauce or A1.

You'll love this easy-to-follow Grilled Pork Skewers recipe with simple marinade from Natasha's Kitchen. Yeah it's a keeper.

I’d love to hear about your grilling adventures. What’s going on your BBQ this week?

Pork Skewers (Shashlik)

4.89 from 26 votes
Author: Natasha of NatashasKitchen.com
Prep Time: 4 hours
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 4 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients 

Servings: 6
  • 1 3/4 to 2 lb Pork Sirloin
  • 1/4 cup dry red wine such as merlot
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 4-5 cloves garlic, pressed
  • 1 medium onion sliced into 1" pieces
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 6 to 8 12-inch wooden skewers

Instructions

  • Chop pork into 1 inch pieces and place them in a large bowl. Add sliced onion and press in the 4-5 cloves of garlic.
  • Sprinkle with 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper and stir everything to combine.
  • Pour in 1/4 cup olive oil and 1/4 cup red wine. Stir everything to combine.
  • Cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the fridge for 3-4 hours.
  • About 15-30 minutes before your meat is done marinating, place 6-8 wooden skewers in a pyrex dish with enough water to submerge the sticks.
  • Preheat your grill and just before adding your meat, set to medium.
  • Skewer the meat and onions (don't squish them too tightly together; they meat should be just touching on the skewer, not smashed together).
  • Grill over medium heat, turning every 4 minutes or so until all sides are browned and the meat is cooked through.

Enjoy with our favorite BBQ sauce or A1.

    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: Russian, Ukrainian
    Keyword: Pork Skewers, Shashlik
    Skill Level: Easy
    Cost to Make: $
    Natasha's Kitchen Cookbook

    Natasha Kravchuk

    Welcome to my kitchen! I am Natasha, the creator behind Natasha's Kitchen (established in 2009), and I share family-friendly, authentic recipes. I am a New York Times Best-Selling cookbook author and a trusted video personality in the culinary world. My husband, Vadim, and I run this blog together, ensuring every recipe we share is thoroughly tested and approved. Our mission is to provide you with delicious, reliable recipes you can count on. Thanks for stopping by! I am so happy you are here.

    Read more posts by Natasha

    4.89 from 26 votes (10 ratings without comment)

    Leave a Comment

    Recipe Rating




    Comments

    • Sherry
      July 28, 2024

      Came out gr8
      Thx ☺️
      Keep up the great work

      Reply

    • Anna
      October 28, 2023

      With so many fantastic questions I was hoping to find if I can make this in the oven and the good temperature to use it at with the amount of time. I can’t grill it I don’t have a grill, but I would love to make this in the oven. Please let me know what would be best to not overcook it so it’s not dry!!
      Temp and time! ♥️

      Reply

      • Natashas Kitchen
        October 28, 2023

        Hi Anna, I haven’t tried either way to be honest. I think it might be a little dry in the oven. Pork is one of those meats that really need the moisture in the marinade and they need to be cooked carefully.

        Reply

    • luke
      November 11, 2022

      This is a good quicky Americanized version of real Russian/Ukrainian shashlik. I spent time in Russia Rostov on Don and had the real deal many times. They put a lot of love into it. First they use much larger chunks of pork shoulder not sirloin. Lots of onion and spend a long time massaging the onion and meat together until your eyes are on fire. 1-2 days marinating. No vegetables and metal skewers not bamboo to handle larger chunks. Seasoning only salt and pepper. no wine, no garlic. They put a lot of attention while slow cooking standing by with spray bottle of water to control flare ups. Baste the meat with lard The men gather around to joke and chat while slow bbq. Plenty of vodka and toasts. It’s more of fun experience than a meal. Also Sturgeon shashlik is the best. Just sharing real Russian fun shashlik bbq’s. Thanks

      Reply

    • Foodie :)
      October 5, 2020

      Hi Natasha, I tried this recipe and it it turned out well.
      Would you give a tutorial on how to make a smoked shashlyk that has that delicious smoky smell? I want to make it with wood/char but have no idea where to start.

      Reply

      • Natashas Kitchen
        October 5, 2020

        That’s so great! Thank you for that suggestion, we will add it to our list.

        Reply

    • Kimberly
      June 7, 2019

      Natasha,

      We cook shashlik often and can’t wait to try this recipe! You have so many wonderful recipes. I was wondering if you could come up with a recipe for an easy Napoleon cake and Tirimisu?

      Reply

    • Snezhana
      July 23, 2018

      Hi can I use pork sirloin roast for this recipe?

      Reply

      • Natasha
        July 23, 2018

        Hi Snezhana, pork sirloin is very lean and would probably be too dry in this recipe.

        Reply

        • Katerina
          December 14, 2021

          But the recipe says pork sirloin. If that would be too dry what pork cut would you use?

          Reply

          • Natasha's Kitchen
            December 15, 2021

            Hi Katerina, a cut with more fatty content will produce more tender meat. You can also try pork shoulder if you want it more tender.

            Reply

          • Alina
            April 18, 2024

            Wondering the same thing. This looks so yummy and I can’t wait to try but wanna use correct meat. Natasha, you say not to use pork sirloin in the comments but the recipe says “pork sirloin”. What was the meat you used for the recipe?

            Reply

    • chris
      May 14, 2018

      About how long do these skewers take to cook? I see “turn every 4 minutes over medium heat” but about how many turns d’ya think to reach 145 – 150 degrees?

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        May 15, 2018

        Hi Chris, I grill for a total of about 15 minutes.

        Reply

    • Thomas
      August 11, 2017

      This recipe was the best tasting pork I ever had. I do have a question though. What would be a good authentic Ukrainian side to go with the Shaslik ?

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        August 12, 2017

        Any of the cucumber and/or tomato salads and mashed potatoes or roasted red potatoes or any potatoes really. The best combo right there! 🙂

        Reply

      • Liliya pro
        May 10, 2018

        Can it marinate for more than 4-5 hours?

        Reply

        • Natasha
          natashaskitchen
          May 10, 2018

          Hi Liliya, you can marinate longer if you prefer.

          Reply

    • Viktoriya
      May 22, 2017

      Hi Natasha,
      Can wine be omitted or substituted with something non-alcoholic?

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        May 22, 2017

        Hi Viktoriya, You might try some lemon juice or maybe something like cider vinegar. I haven’t tested those but that would be my best guess.

        Reply

        • Olga
          May 27, 2023

          Hi, what proportion of lemon juice/ cider vinegar should be used?

          Reply

          • NatashasKitchen.com
            May 27, 2023

            Hi Olga! I haven’t tested them. My guess would be that you could use them in same proportions.

            Reply

    • h
      May 4, 2017

      can pork tenderloin be used?

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        May 4, 2017

        Yes, it will work.

        Reply

    • Lana
      April 20, 2017

      Hey, would pork roast -boston butt work?

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        April 20, 2017

        Lana, for juicy, tender kebabs, I would recommend pork loin, or pork neck meat. Pork is typically fatty meat, so it really is ideal for juicy kebabs. Boston butt and pork leg meat yield drier and tougher kebabs. Hope this helps.

        Reply

    • Olga
      August 11, 2016

      Hi Natasha, can the red wine be substituted with white wine?

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        August 11, 2016

        Hi Olga, I haven’t tried with white wine but I think it would be a good experiment! Let me know if you try it 🙂

        Reply

    • olga mersov
      July 30, 2016

      Hi Natasha, can I substitute pork with beef? Would it also come out tender and delicious? thanks!

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        July 30, 2016

        Hi Olga, I haven’t tried this recipe with beef but I think it should work. The cut of beef and how long you cook it will affect how tender it is, but the flavors should work well together 🙂

        Reply

    • tony
      July 22, 2016

      the marinade was delicious, but the meat turned out pretty dry,. what did I do wrong

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        July 22, 2016

        Hi Tony, with pork, it will dry out if it is overcooked. Try cooking it a little less next time – check for doneness 1 to 2 minutes earlier.

        Reply

        • Tony
          July 25, 2016

          Tried grilling for less time and added extra wine to marinade per other reviews. Turned out delicious and so Tender. Loved it. Thank you

          Reply

    • Tanya
      January 24, 2016

      This is the best pork kabobs ever!! It was a hit with my family. I marinated them over night, and they were just ao yummy :).

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        January 25, 2016

        I’m so happy you love the recipe!

        Reply

    • Anya
      May 8, 2015

      Natasha, thanks for sharing this. My stepdad used to marinate pork in the same ingredients except he would use white vinegar instead of wine, and then he would marinate it for over 24 hours. The meat turns out so tender and can be cooked on cast iron indoor (for those who don’t have outdoor grill). I did his recipe few times and I liked it but I want to try yours with red wine. Thank you for your recipes.

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        May 8, 2015

        His method does sound really good and I’m sure marinating for that long would make for some very tasty meat! 😉

        Reply

    • Tanya I
      October 28, 2014

      Very Yummy and Tender! Thank You, Natasha, for a great recipe. I did add a little more wine, though;)

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        October 28, 2014

        I bet it tasted even better with more! I’m so glad you liked it 🙂 Thanks Tanya 🙂

        Reply

    • Don
      September 29, 2014

      I was in Ukraine a few weeks ago and had shashlik. This recipe is spot on. Absolutely fantastic!

      I added more wine so the pork was fully covered. It doesn’t need anything else.

      Thanks Natasha!

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        September 29, 2014

        Don, thank you for a great review. Reading your comment, made me crave them all of a sudden, so I might be making them again soon and adding bit more wine per your suggestion :).

        Reply

    • olga
      February 23, 2014

      Hi Natasha, what if i don’t have red wine, or wooden sticks can just bake it in the oven, or it will be a little dry?

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        February 23, 2014

        I haven’t tried either way to be honest. I think it might be a little dry in the oven. Pork is one of those meats that really need the moisture in the marinade and they need to be cooked carefully.

        Reply

    • Tanya
      January 23, 2014

      Wanted to let you know shashlik was sooo good! Just perfect, wine gave it a nice flavor. The men were raving over the meat. Lol

      Reply

      • Natasha
        natashaskitchen
        January 23, 2014

        That’s awesome! I love that they were raving over the meat… Music to my ears and yours to I’m sure 😉 Thanks for the great review!

        Reply

    As Featured On

    Never Go "Hangry" Again!

    Get weekly updates on new recipes, exclusive giveaways plus behind the scenes photos.