There’s just something about kebobs/kabobs, isn’t there?! Especially when they’re grilled on skewers over coals. But I couldn’t, because when I made these it was the middle of winter and had just snowed. So I used the oven.
The recipe I used is from Serious Eats.com, which is a great resource for recipes and useful information about food. I liked the simplicity of this recipe, which is by Kenji Là³pez-Alt. I didn’t realize that these are called Adana kebabs after the city of Adana in Turkey.
According to Kenji Là³pez-Alt, the most important step in creating the meat mixture is the kneading. In fact, he recommends using a stand mixer if you have one. The ice water in the recipe adds moisture as well as keeping the mixture cold. Chilling time is also important.
Kebobs/kabobs will always be better cooked over coals or grilled, but the oven actually worked okay! I’ve left the original instructions in the recipe for cooking the kebobs outside.
Turkish Lamb Kebabs
18 ounces ground lamb (I used more)
Kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground cumin, divided
2 tablespoons ground sumac, divided
2 tablespoons ground Urfa pepper flakes, divided
2 tablespoons ice-cold water
For Serving:
1 red onion, thinly sliced (I used a white onion)
6 pieces lavash, flatbread, or pita
1 cup fresh parsley leaves
2 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced
Pickled peppers or pepperoncini
Combine lamb with 2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1 teaspoon cumin, 2 teaspoons sumac, and 1 tablespoon pepper flakes. Knead by hand or in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until mixture turns tacky and starts sticking to the side of the bowl. Add water and continue kneading until incorporated. Place in refrigerator and chill well.
Turn on the oven to convection roast 400 degrees F. If you don’t have convection, up the temperature to 425 degrees.
Meanwhile, combine remaining teaspoon cumin, 2 teaspoons sumac, remaining tablespoon pepper flakes, and 2 teaspoons salt in a small bowl. Set spice mixture aside.
Combine remaining 2 teaspoons sumac and red onions in a medium bowl. Season with salt to taste and set aside.
Using wet hands, (because the mixture is sticky), divide lamb mixture into 12 even balls. Using wet hands, form each ball into a long, flat kebab around a skewer. (Mine were 4 ounces each. I made them short and fat instead of long and skinny.)
Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange the coals on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes.
Alternatively, set half the burners on a gas grill to the highest heat setting, cover, and preheat for 10 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate. Place kebabs directly over hot side of grill, cover, and cook, turning occasionally and sprinkling with spice mixture until well charred on both sides and kebabs are cooked through, about 12 minutes total.
At my oven temperature, I took the kebabs out of the oven at 20 minutes. They were slightly pink in the middle, but I could have timed them at 18 minutes instead.
During last few minutes of cooking, place bread directly on top of kebabs in batches until heated through. (I didn’t do this; I used the microwave.)
Serve kebabs with warm bread, sumac onions, parsley, tomatoes, and pickled peppers.
The spice mixture is so good. Fortunately I have some leftover from the recipe because I kept forgetting to sprinkle it on the kebabs while they were roasting!
