Independent comparisons. We may earn from shop links. More info

How to cook kebabs on metal skewers

Updated: 23 October 2026

The chicken looks dark and you are about to take it off, except the skewer is too hot to hold and the pepper has spun. How to cook kebabs on metal skewers is turning, gloves, and a temperature, not a new marinade. Metal does not need a soak. It does conduct heat into the handle and into the meat, which helps and also burns fingers. Which set to buy is on the [shish kebab skewers comparison](/hub/grill-accessories/shish-kebab-skewers). There is no lab cook. A qualifying purchase can earn us a commission at no extra cost to you.

The chicken looks dark and you are about to take it off, except the skewer is too hot to hold and the pepper has spun. How to cook kebabs on metal skewers is turning, gloves, and a temperature, not a new marinade.

Our top picks

Homealexa Homealexa 20 flat skewers

Best overall

Homealexa Homealexa 20 flat skewers
8.7/10about £12.34
View offer
JD Europe JD Europe 41 cm Adana

Alternative

JD Europe JD Europe 41 cm Adana
7.4/10about £19.99
View offer
IMEEA IMEEA 42 cm wooden handles

Best value

IMEEA IMEEA 42 cm wooden handles
8.1/10about £11.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Metal does not get a soak
  2. 2.Load and turn
  3. 3.Heat, gloves, and wooden handles
  4. 4.When a kebab is cooked

Metal does not get a soak

Steel does not need the soak you give bamboo. A soak leaves wet metal and a diluted marinade. BBC Good Food notes that metal need not be soaked and that it conducts heat. That is a recipe method, not a statute. Wash a new set, then dry it. Wet steel in a bag is how rust comments start, including on the printed-410 IMEEA six-pack after one wash. Oil the food lightly. Keep the raw board away from the cooked board. Press mince along a wide flat with wet hands. Leave a finger between cubes so the middle does not stay pale. A sleeve of Adana is one piece, not a row of gaps.

Load and turn

Thread similar thicknesses on one stick. Halloumi and peppers can share a stick if the pieces match. Chicken and a thin onion cannot, unless you probe the chicken. Turn the stick, not the food on it. On a 0.5 cm or 1 cm flat, a cube turns with the wrist. On a 2.5 cm JD blade the mince turns because you pressed it on. Those widths are different tools, set out on flat vs wide kebab skewers. Let the first side set before you flip. BBC Good Food’s 8–10 minutes is one chicken recipe, not your kettle. Six sticks is a household meal. Twenty is a party only if you are not stacking them. Stacked skewers steam.
Homealexa Homealexa 20 flat skewers

Testsieger

Homealexa Homealexa 20 flat skewers
8.7/10about £12.34
View offer

Heat, gloves, and wooden handles

Wait until charcoal is grey, with no flame licking the meat. Food Standards Scotland uses that cue and still wants the food cooked through. Wooden handles stay off the fire. A Hawdows review says the wood burnt on the first barbecue, and IMEEA’s 42 cm reviews include handles that separated. If the wood must cross the bar, the skewer is too long for that grate. Homealexa’s open hook is hot, and a cloth can catch in it. Use a glove. JD’s wide blades have no handle. Which listing matches the job is on best metal kebab skewers. An oven start for colour, which GOV.UK allows, is not a way to serve pink chicken.

When a kebab is cooked

Char is not doneness. Cut to the middle of the largest piece. This page will not give a rare-lamb temperature. If the stick is chicken, turkey, pork, or any kofta, cook it through, then rest it. Do not return a skewer that held raw chicken to the raw bowl. Slide the food off with a fork against the tray. Oven length, if you start indoors, is on kebab skewers for oven and air fryer. Then the points go into the bag or under the silicone tips. Wash, dry, and do not close a pouch on wet blades. A set that arrives rusty and stays that way can go back under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

Common questions

Do metal skewers need soaking?
No. Soak bamboo if you use it. Wash new steel to remove film, oil the food lightly, and dry the set after cooking. A soak does not stop a metal handle getting hot, and wet steel in a bag is a common start to the rust comments in these reviews.
Why does the meat spin when I turn the stick?
The rod is round, or the piece is smaller than the flat. A 0.5–1 cm flat turns cubes. A blade around 2.4–2.5 cm holds mince you have pressed on. If a mushroom splits on a wide JD or munloo blade, that is the width. Cut larger pieces or change shape.
How do I know chicken kebabs are cooked?
Probe the thickest piece. Food Standards Scotland uses 75°C. GOV.UK’s business page includes 70°C for 2 minutes among its combinations, and its barbecue note says no pink kebabs. Colour on the outside is not the test. A flat skewer helps you turn the meat. It does not measure it.
Can I baste with the raw marinade?
Not while it is still raw. Marinade that has touched raw chicken or mince needs a boil if you want to brush it on, or you make a fresh lot. GOV.UK’s barbecue guidance says not to reuse raw marinade. Use a clean brush on the cooked side.
How do I hold a skewer with no wooden handle?
With an oven glove, on the bare end, away from the food. JD’s wide blades have no cool grip, and reviewers say they get extremely hot. iulrtba’s metal ends did the same under a grill. A tea towel can catch on an open hook, which one Homealexa review described.
Should I start chicken in the oven?
GOV.UK suggests cooking chicken through in the oven and using the barbecue for colour. You can cook the whole kebab outside if the coals are grey and you probe 75°C in the thickest part. Do not shorten the oven step and skip the probe. The same rule applies if you only own a grill pan.

Related pages

Grill thermometer

Shish kebab skewers

Best metal kebab skewers UK: chicken cubes or mince

Kebab skewers buying guide: food, length, and wash

Flat vs wide kebab skewers: chicken cubes or kofta

Kebab skewers for oven and air fryer: measure first

Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison. Listing prices, stars, and review counts are from amazon.co.uk on 19 October 2026.

  1. Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 (retrieved 19.10.2026)
  2. SI 2012/2619, Materials and Articles in Contact with Food (England) (retrieved 19.10.2026)
  3. FSA — food contact materials authorisation guidance (retrieved 19.10.2026)
  4. GOV.UK — cooking food safely (retrieved 19.10.2026)
  5. GOV.UK — BBQ food safety (retrieved 19.10.2026)
  6. Food Standards Scotland — barbecue food safety (retrieved 19.10.2026)
  7. Business Companion — bladed articles (retrieved 19.10.2026)
  8. Smoke & Soil — metal skewers (retrieved 19.10.2026)