The sun is shining and the heat is on so turn up that grill! I love to grill in the summer. There are few moments better than when the sun is setting, cold drink in hand, music is pumping and the sweet, smoky aroma of that grill is wafting through the warm air.  I offer you a very original and super easy kabob recipe ‘Pinchos Morunos’ Spicy Pork Kabobs. I mean who doesn’t like a kabob?! The original recipe, that is North African in origin, uses lamb. But now in Spain pork loin is often the meat of choice. Tender pieces of pork that are bright from lemon, sweet and smoky from paprika and cinnamon but punchy and aromatic from garlic, cumin, cilantro and saffron. They smell good enough to eat even when marinating. Those heady aromas that sizzle on the grill are going to have your neighbors knocking on your door and asking for an invitation! 

Spicy Pork Kabobs

Spicy Pork Kabobs

  • Cook Time: 25 min 12 hours to marinade
  • Persons: 6
  • Difficulty: Easy

  • Ingredients
  • 2.2 lbs of pork tenderloin
  • 5 garlic cloves
  • Juice of 2 lemons
  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 tbsp cumin seeds
  • 4 tbsp chopped cilantro
  • 1 tbsp sweet paprika
  • 1 tpsp spicy paprika (cayenne pepper)
  • 1 tpsp cinnamon
  • Pinch of saffron
  • 1 tpsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tpsp salt
  1. Instructions
  2. Trim the fat off of the pork loin and cut into thick 1 inch cubes.
  3. Peel the garlic cloves and place in a mortar and pestle. 
  4. In a pan on a medium/high heat toast the cumin seeds and saffron strands for a few minutes.
  5. Add the cumin and saffron to the mortar and crush with the garlic until it forms a paste.
  6. Place the pork in a large bowl and add in the garlic/herb mixture.
  7. Add the juice of 2 lemons, paprika, cinnamon, black pepper, salt and oil.
  8. Wash and dry the cilantro and roughly chop up. Add to pork.
  9. Combine pork mixture well. Cover and chill in refrigerator for at least 12 hours so the flavors penetrate the pork and it tenderizes.
  10. Remove meet from refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking and soak your kabob skewers in water if using wooden ones.
  11. Skewer 3 to 4 pieces of meat on each stick. Don’t cramp the meat to close together or it will not cook well.
  12. Fire up the grill on high. Cook the pork for just 2 minutes on each side.
  13. Serve and enjoy!

Top Tips

  • You can certainly use lamb (use the leg meat) instead of pork. ‘Pinchos Morunos’ taste great too with chicken (use the thigh meat) or even steak (use skirt or flank cut).
  • I have made a delicious twist on these and added a small cube of fresh pineapple in between each piece of pork on the skewer before grilling. They are now a family favorite!

Spicy Pork Kabobs – Pinchos Morunos

‘Pinchos Morunos’ Spicy Pork Kabobs – A recipe that I guarantee you will be asked for again and again once you’ve cooked them on your grill. Sweet, and aromatic from cinnamon, pungent from cilantro, cumin and saffron, spicy and smoky from paprika. Pork tenderloin has never smelt nor tasted so good!