Are you grilling fruit this summer? Just as barbecue cooking doesn't have to be limited to savory ingredients (see our recent roundup of grilled desserts!), your skewer options are not restricted to bamboo and metal.
Grilling Tip: Use Cinnamon Sticks As Skewers
Cinnamon sticks make splendid skewers for fruits like peaches, nectarines, plums, figs, and pineapple, holding them together and imparting a bit of flavor as they caramelize. While the more common 3-inch cinnamon sticks can hold a couple of peach quarters, for example, also look for 10- or 12-inch cinnamon sticks to make longer kabobs. Gently poke a hole in the fruit with a chopstick or wood or metal skewer first, then push the cinnamon stick through the fruit.
Although we have never tried it, we have also seen mentions of cinnamon sticks used to skewer meats like pork, chicken, and scallops.
Some recipes:
• Cinnamon Grilled Peaches, from Steve Raichlen
• Cinnamon Plums with Port Sauce, from Steve Raichlen
• Grilled Spice Figs on Cinnamon Spears, from James Boyce
• Grilled Cinnamon Chicken Skewers, from The Culinary Institute of America
Related: Rosemary Skewers for Grilling
(Image: Flickr member S. Diddy licensed under Creative Commons)
Comments (5)
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I'm not a great cook, but I am cheap. If you want to add flavor, why not soak ordinary skewers in water with a few drops of cinnamon oil added.
view SunnyBlue's profile
I throw a cinnamon stick into a brine with coffee for chicken. It's delicious.
view adiaphane's profile
This is crazy! It seems like the somewhat delicate nature of the cinnamon stick would lend itself to easily burning/breaking apart on the grill. Also, if you did soak these before, they would expand and be even more brittle/weak.
@SunnyBlue,
I like your idea with the cinnamon oil.
view josue's profile
Josue, we have never had any problems with the cinnamon sticks burning or breaking. But SunnyBlue's idea is a good one, too!
view Emily Ho's profile
I've never tried cinnamon sticks, but I have used cuts of sugar cane to grill kebabs. The sugar cane is naturally moist (if fresh), not prohibitively expensive, and adds a delicious sweetness to meat or fish.
view ellecee's profile