Cubed and skewered, meats get on the table faster: Pork Satay With Apple Chutney

Looking to get dinner on the table fast? Put it on a stick.

Cutting meats and vegetables into smaller bits, then threading them onto skewers can dramatically reduce cooking time because there is no thick centre for the heat to reach. Five hundred grams (one pound) of chicken breasts left whole will take far longer to cook than the same amount of meat cubed and skewered.

The texture of the meat also benefits. Because cooking time is less, the meat (especially pork and chicken) have less time to dry out.

In this recipe for pork satay, boneless country-style ribs are cut into chunks and given a quick marinade before landing on the grill. They also could be cooked on a grill pan or under the broiler.

An easy apple chutney can be made to accompany the pork. Or to save even more time, skip that part of the recipe and use purchased mango chutney.

Pork Satay With Apple Chutney

Pork

50 ml ( 1/4 cup) cider vinegar

50 ml ( 1/4 cup) canola oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

5 ml (1 tsp) salt

1 ml ( 1/4 tsp) ground black pepper

5 ml (1 tsp) grated fresh ginger

Pinch nutmeg

625 g (1 1/4 lb) country-style pork ribs, cut into 1-cm ( 1/2-inch) chunks

Chutney

1 large yellow onion, cut into quarters

30 ml (2 tbsp) pickled jalapeno pepper slices

175 ml (3/4 cup) loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves

175 ml (3/4 cup) dried apricots (about 125 g/4 oz)

2 medium apples, peeled, cored and chopped

1 ml ( 1/4 tsp) ground cloves

30 ml (2 tbsp) grated fresh ginger

75 ml (1/3 cup) cider vinegar

50 ml ( 1/4 cup) light brown sugar

2 ml ( 1/2 tsp) salt

1 ml ( 1/4 tsp) ground black pepper

250 ml (1 cup) water

Place 10 wooden skewers in a shallow bowl of water to soak.

In a medium bowl, whisk together vinegar, oil, garlic, salt, pepper, ginger and nutmeg. Add pork, toss to coat, then set aside.

Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine onion, jalapeno slices, cilantro and dried apricots. Pulse until just chopped. Transfer to a medium saucepan over medium-high. Stir in apples, cloves, ginger, vinegar, brown sugar, salt, black pepper and water.

Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often, until liquid is mostly evaporated, about 12 minutes. Set aside.

Heat a grill to medium-high. Coat the grates with oil.

While chutney cools, thread chunks of pork onto each skewer. Grill, turning for even cooking, until pork reaches 70 C (160 F) at the centre, about 5 minutes. Serve pork skewers with chutney.

Makes 5 servings.

Nutrition information per serving (values are rounded to the nearest whole number): 446 calories, 218 calories from fat, 24 g fat (8 g saturated, 0 g trans fats), 78 mg cholesterol, 36 g carbohydrate, 21 g protein, 4 g fibre, 499 mg sodium.