Smoked Sausage

Sweet-meets-smoky in the best possible way. These quick kebabs thread thick coins of smoked sausage with chunks of canned pineapple and peaches, green pepper, and scallion, then get glazed twice with a two-ingredient apricot-Dijon paint that caramelizes into a sticky, mahogany lacquer over the coals.

The glaze is the trick. Apricot preserves bring fruit-forward sweetness, Dijon adds the tang and just enough heat to keep it from feeling like dessert on a stick. Brushed on twice, once before grilling and once after the first flip, it builds in two glossy layers.

Keep the heat at medium. Hotter coals scorch the sugars in the glaze before the sausage warms through.

Kitchen Tips

• Soak wooden skewers in water for 30 minutes before grilling, or use metal skewers, to prevent burning.
• Drain the canned fruit thoroughly. Wet pineapple and peaches steam instead of caramelize and water down the glaze.
• Cut sausage into thick 1-inch (2.5 cm) coins so they skewer cleanly without spinning.
• Leave a tiny gap between items on the skewer so heat can wrap around each piece evenly.
• Brush the second glaze coat with a clean brush, not the same one used on raw sausage, to keep things food-safe.

Variations

• Swap apricot preserves for peach jam, orange marmalade, or pepper jelly for different sweet profiles.
• Use kielbasa, andouille, or chorizo for a different sausage flavor.
• Add cherry tomatoes and chunks of red onion for more color and a little extra char.