Do you need soak wood skewers?

Skewered meals cook quickly, are simple to prepare, are correctly portioned, and are enjoyable to consume. Unsoaked skewers, though, might put this quick dinner in jeopardy. When the entire meal must wait for the skewers to go swimming, a supper that should be served in less than 30 minutes will instead take double that amount of time.

What is the worst that could happen if you simply skipped the soak? Is this step truly necessary or is it based on kitchen superstition? If the skewers are left to dry out and become brittle, they are little more than food kindling. Although it's not an exact science, wet skewers will give you the extra time you need to cook kebabs to perfection. The tops and tails of soaked skewers can still often burn and blacken over the grill's blistering heat. Here are three methods for pre-soaking and on-the-spot soaking your skewers.

3 Ways to Soak Wooden Skewers for Grilling

In a dish

The quickest way to get bamboo skewers wet is to put them in a baking dish and cover them with warm water. As you prepare the meats and veggies and combine the marinades, set the dish aside. The optimal dip time is 30 minutes, so the skewers and the foods to be skewered should be prepared at the same time.

In the fridge

Starting the soak now will ensure that you never run out of soaked skewers when preparing supper if you frequently fail to do so. putting numerous skewers in a water bottle made of plastic and adding water to it. Put the bottle in the fridge, then squeeze it to get the skewers off when the grill is hot.Since just a few skewers may soak at once, this method is useful for the occasional kebab producer. Set a weekly reminder to make sure the water and skewers are always fresh.

In the freezer

Soak and freeze the skewers in bulk if you want to never run out of them. A 9 x 13-inch baking dish should be filled with a large box of bamboo skewers. For at least 30 minutes, cover with warm water and leave. After the skewers have been well saturated, drain the water, wrap them in plastic or aluminum foil, or place them in a zip-top bag or other reusable container, and then freeze them.

Remove as many as you need when it's time to grill (rolling the skewers between your fingers makes it easier to separate them) and skewer right from the freezer; no thawing is necessary. This long-term skewer fix will get you through the whole grilling season and beyond.

If you don't want to soak skewers, even in advance, think about buying a set of premium metal skewers. Metal skewers are reusable and don't need to be prepared in advance, but be aware that they retain heat and can be tricky to handle.