Grilled Beef Skewers Recipe (2024)

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Grilled and marinated flank steak skewers have long been a family favorite recipe. Beef skewers make a fantastic appetizer for any backyard or beach BBQ. For this recipe, flank steak is thinly sliced and marinated for 24 hours in a beer-based teriyaki marinade and then grilled to perfection. Since the meat is thinly sliced, the skewers cook in about 5 minutes and are super tender and slide right off the stick.

While I don’t consider this an Asian recipe, it does pair very well with my fried rice recipe and some homemade crab rangoons. You can make it a complete meal along with my takeout-inspired sweet and spicy chicken recipe!

If you enjoyed this recipe, also try my beef bulgogi bowls and my beef and broccoli recipe!

Homemade Teriyaki Marinade

The beer-based teriyaki marinade is a simple homemade sauce I came up with a few years ago. It’s flavorful, citrusy, sweet, and subtly smokey all at once. My marinade is a spin on a standard teriyaki sauce with some additional spices, citrus, and beer in place of water.

My homemade teriyaki is made with:

• Beer: I like to use a hazy, tropical IPA however any IPA or malty ale will work.
• Soy sauce
• Worcestershire sauce
• Brown sugar (for a little sweetness)
• Olive oil
• Fresh lemon juice (the acid tenderizes the beef)
• Garlic powder
• Paprika
• Crushed red pepper flakes

How to Prep the Flank Steak

Flank and skirt steak tend to be very flavorful, yet tougher cuts of meat due to the dense muscle fibers. You will notice the steak has a very defined grain running through it. If you slice against the grain, the meat will break apart much easier. Slicing strips with the grain will force you to bite through these tough fibers. Shoot for generous 1/4-inch thick slices for the best results.

This recipe requires you to cut the flank steak BEFORE marinating and grilling. Be sure to let the sliced flank steak marinate in the marinade for about 24 hours if possible. This will tenderize and add more flavor to the steak. If using wooden skewers, let soak for 30 minutes before grilling to avoid burning.

To ensure the beef stays on the skewer, weave it through the stick several times so it stays intact. The beef will be very tender after marinating so this method will really help.

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