There is no better way to celebrate the summer sun than backyard barbecues. And while nothing beats thin, juicy cuts of steaks for barbecue season, if you are adventurous, kebabs are a must-have menu item.  

While kebabs are the perfect addition to your weekend barbecues, a few good sauces take the experience to the next level. Today, we share recipes for simple yet delicious kebab sauces that you can whip up for your next party with a little effort.

Easy, must-try kebab sauce recipes with their best pairings

The sauce is all the difference between a good and a great kebab experience. A kebab sauce is more than just a dip. It is the factor that binds your kebab meal together. A good kebab sauce adds color and contrasting textures to your plate, enhances the flavors, and elevates your whole experience. 

Of course, you can’t have a worthy barbecue without a handful of delicious sauces!

So, here we are, with some of the easiest kebab sauce recipes. Bonus tip? We also tell you which kebabs these dips pair the best with.

#1 Mint yogurt sauce 

Nothing goes as well with lamb kebabs as a good mint yogurt sauce. This kebab sauce is extremely refreshing and goes perfectly with the rich flavor of lamb. The thick yogurt base cools the spices in the kebabs, and mint has been a go-to flavor pairing for lamb since ancient times. Use it to dip your kebabs in or lather on a soft piece of lavash bread to create a delicious wrap. 

Directions:

Add all other ingredients to the Greek yogurt and mix until well blended. Test and adjust salt and pepper to your taste, and let it sit for half an hour before serving. This dip can be stored in an airtight jar and refrigerated for up to 1 week. 

Of course, you can experiment with other spices, but this recipe focuses on the cooling ingredients in the dip without overshadowing the mint, which is exactly what we need in this kebab sauce. 

Credit: This recipe is by Joshua Bousel from Serious Eats. 

#2 Chili coriander sauce 

If you are serving beef seekh kebabs, the condiment of choice is a tangy, spicy, chili coriander sauce. Originating from the Arab culinary world, this kebab sauce is called Zhug. It’s made with coriander leaves, parsley, and chili peppers of your choice. It is perfect with all kinds of kebabs, but goes best with beef and lamb. It’s zingy and cuts through the richness of the red meat, giving you a perfectly balanced bite. 

Directions:

Add all the ingredients to a blender and pulse until the mixture is a smooth paste. Taste test and adjust salt. The chili coriander sauce is ready to enjoy in minutes, with minimal effort. Serve with your favorite kebabs over a bed of plain fluffy rice, or with slices of fresh pita. 

Credit: This recipe is by Rafik Halabi from Bistro Badia.  

#3 Homemade peri-peri sauce

For those who love a little spice on their kebabs, nothing beats a good homemade peri-peri sauce. This South Africa-born sauce is made with spicy, red bird-eye chili peppers and carries a good amount of heat. It is particularly good with chicken mains such as seekh and kefta kebabs. 

Here is a quick recipe to make homemade peri-peri sauce that tastes as good or better than the branded versions. 

Directions

Add all the ingredients to a food processor and blend until a smooth paste is formed. Serve fresh with your favorite kebabs. You can also refrigerate it in an airtight container for a couple of days. 

Credit: This recipe is by Mike Hultquist of Chili Pepper Madness.

#4 Cucumber raita

A classic cucumber raita is always a hit – a South Asian condiment by origin, a traditional raita loosely resembles the tzatziki sauce. It is made up of a thick yogurt base with cucumbers, onions, chilies, and roasted warm spices like cumin. This sauce is great with all kinds of chicken and beef kebabs, such as seekh, and also complements other barbecue foods from the Indian subcontinent, such as chapli kababs, chicken tikka,  biryani pulao, etc. 

Here is a super simple and fun raita recipe that you can replicate in your kitchen within minutes. 

Directions

Just add all the ingredients to a bowl and mix well. Taste and adjust salt if required. Although it is not traditional, if you want the raita to taste more like tzatziki sauce, you can add a little crushed garlic and some olive oil into this dip for a richer taste. This kebab sauce is perfect with all kinds of chicken kebabs and wraps. It can be stored in an airtight jar in the fridge for up to 4 days. 

Credit: This recipe is by Sylvia Fountaine of Feasting at Home.

Concluding words…

Sauces are a very important part of any meal. They not only bring all the components on the plate together, but also enhance the flavor and the visual appeal of the meal. With protein-forward meals, such as kebabs, sauces play a vital role by adding an element of freshness and tang to the plate. 

Try the kebab sauce recipes we’ve shared with you. They’re all easy to put together and always a hit at barbecues; why not try them out in your kitchen?  These quick whips with heat’n’eat kebab and grill products from Kaiser & Colonel Kababz invite you to have an effortless and delicious barbecue party every weekend!