Go Back
Print
Mediterranean Pork Souvlaki

Mediterranean Pork Souvlaki with Labneh Tzatziki

Tender juicy pork shoulder cubes are marinated in a yogurt and spice mixture, and grilled to the perfect char.  Served with an easy to whip up garlicky tzatziki thanks to ready made labneh or skyr, this is the perfect summer grill meal.  Just add a salad.  And plenty of mints!!

Course Main Course
Cuisine Mediterranean
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Marinating Time 12 hours
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

For the pork

  • 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 3-1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp. ground coriander
  • 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 lb. pork shoulder or pork loin, or a combo of both, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • Olive oil or olive oil spray

Tzatziki, can be made in advance and chilled

  • 1 cup purchased plain labneh or plain skyr
  • 1 Persian cucumber or any small cucumber , if you can't find one, then use 3-4 inches of a regular English cucumber. This will need to be peeled and the centre seeds removed
  • 4-5 cloves of garlic depending on the size and your garlic tolerance!
  • 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • Fresh cracked black pepper
  • Kosher salt

For serving

  • 1 persian cucumber cut into small dice
  • 1/2 tsp. sumac optional
  • Extra-virgin olive oil grassy or peppery in flavour (nothing neutral flavoured here!)

Instructions

Marinate the pork

  1. In a large bowl, whisk the yogurt, lemon juice, coriander, cumin, cardamom, 1-1/4 tsp. salt, and 1 tsp. pepper. Add the pork and turn to coat. It can be stored in the bowl to marinate for at least 12 hours. Up to 24 hours is great. This should be done in the fridge!
  2. For freezing from this point just transfer the pork cubes and all the marinade into a 1-gallon zip-top bag. Press out the air and seal. Give the bag and the contents a good massage to coat everything evenly. Place in the freezer for up to 2 months.

Tzatziki

  1. Place the labneh or skyr into a medium bowl.
  2. Using the smallest holes of your grater, shred the persian cucumber up. It's perfectly alright if some of the skin makes its way in. Place the shredded cucumber in a cheesecloth or in several layers of paper towel and give them all a good squeeze to remove any excess liquid. Add to the labneh.
  3. Finely mince the garlic cloves. Alternatively you can grate these as well. Transfer to a the labneh and cucumber.
  4. Give it all a good stir.
  5. Add the lemon juice, 1 tsp at a time, till you are happy with the consistency.
  6. Add 1 1/2 tsp of salt and 1 tsp of pepper. Stir and then taste. Re-season with anything you'd like more of!

Cook the pork

  1. Transfer the pork to a colander in the sink. Drain until most of the marinade has dripped through. I will actually wet my hands and toss the cubes to help release the marinade. Make sure the pork has been at room temperature for about 30 minutes afterwards.

  2. Divide the cubes amongst six to eight long metal skewers. If you are using wooden skewers make sure that they have soaked in water for at least 30 minutes.

  3. Rub or spray the pork lightly with olive oil and sprinkly lightly with salt.

  4. Prepare your grill to medium-high (380-400F or so), or heat a grill pan over medium-high heat.  You can also use your broiler if needed.  Heat to high, and use the upper rack, watching over them.  Turn as needed

  5. Grill, turning once on each side, until the meat is just barely pink in the centre and char marks appear, 7-10 minutes.

Serve

  1. Divide the labneh tzatziki between 4 and 6 plates (I say this will feed 4, but it could feed 6 if you have some great sides, like a lemon rice or potatoes, and a hefty salad!)

  2. Add a skewer or two to each plate. Sprinkle everything with the diced cucumber and a sprinkling of sumac. The sumac is optional, but like lemon juice or zest, it adds a lovely tang!

Recipe Notes

Parts of this recipe (the cucumber and sumac garnish) were inspired by Fine Cooking!