Lamb kebabs to die for!

[Ralph]

I didn't see a cookbook challenge thread for this week, so I figured I'd just start a new post!

Since the weather is finally starting to cooperate, I finally ventured into Steve Raichlen's Barbecue Bible. These kebabs were absolutely incredible - DW said it was probably the best dinner I've ever made!:o Served them with the pitas as directed as well as Israeli couscous from TJs (larger grains than typical couscous) mixed w/peas & cumin and sprinkled with feta cheese.


LAMB AND PISTACHIO KEBABS

These lovely ground lamb kebabs - flecked with crunchy green bits of pistachio nuts - are a specialty of the popular Develi restaurant in Istanbul. The restaurant's founder came from Gaziantep, Turkey's culinary capital near the Syrian border. In addition to its spicy cooking, Gaziantep is famed for its pistachios, which have an intense flavor and super-naturally bright green color. The nuts lend the meat a wonderful texture and flavor. For the best results, use Turkish pistachios, which are available at Middle or Near Eastern markets.

1 pound ground lamb
1/2 cup shelled pistachio nuts, preferably Turkish, coarsely chopped by hand or in a food processor (I used regular pistachios and toasted them)
1/4 cup minced red onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
1 teaspoon ground or flaked Aleppo pepper or pure chile powder (I used chili powder)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or more to taste
Pita bread, for serving

1. Combine the lamb, pistachios, onion garlic, I teaspoon salt, the Aleppo pepper, cumin, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper into a large bowl. Knead and squeeze the mixture with your hands until thoroughly blended, 3 to 4 minutes. To test the mixture for seasoning, saute a small amount of it in a nonstick skillet until cooked through, then taste, adding salt or pepper to the remaining mixture as necessary. Cover and refrigerate the meat mixture for 2 hours.

2. If desired, set up the grill for grateless grilling. Preheat the grill to high.

3. Line a baking sheet with plastic wrap. Divide the meat mixture into 4 equal portions. Lightly wet your hands with cold water, then, starting about 1 inch from the tip of a skewer, mold each portion of the mixture around the skewer to form a flattish sausage about 11 inches long and 1/2 inch wide. Place each kebab as it is made on the prepared baking sheet.

4. When ready to cook, if not using the grateless method, generously oil the grate. Arrange the kebabs on the grill. Grill, turning with tongs until nicely browned and cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes in all.

S. Use a pita to protect your hand as you slide each sausage off its skewer onto a serving plate. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 sausages; serves 4 as an entree

[KValley]

WOW Ralph- thank you so much for this. Despite my concern over doing further damage to my dog's tender psyche by cooking lamb again, I was going to send out a request for favorite lamb recipes. This looks divine- my mouth is watering.

Saturday night, a lovely Pinot Noir, Lamb and Pistachio Kebabs, hopefully a balmy evening. Date night chez nous :D

Cheers,

Julie

[Gail]

Thank you, Ralph, for an intriguing recipe. I'm curious, did you use the grate or grateless method?

Sounds yummy. As a matter of fact I'm drooling. Messily.

Must buy lamb.

[Ralph]

Originally posted by Gail
did you use the grate or grateless method?

Well, to be honest, both!

I have a kebab set for the grill consisting of six skewers and a square metal rack that sits on the grate. It has notches for each of the skewers. The author recommends the grateless method as meat too often sticks to the grate, which for kebabs like this would be disasterous!

I used the rack, but when I went to turn the kebabs, the weight of the meat ended up twirling them back with the cooked side to the heat! So, I just took them off the heat, removed the square rack, and put the kebabs directly on the grate, uncooked side down, for the last couple of minutes.

[beckms]

RALPH!!! THESE ARE SO GOOD!!!

Mmmm...................
:D

I cooked these on my George Foreman. I served them (to myself!) wrapped in pita bread, topped with sauteed mushrooms I had to use up.

I added some cayenne because I thought they would be good with some kick, but that was my only addition. I didn't let them sit for two hours in the fridge, because I was hungry :rolleyes:. They were fine cooked immediately.

The pistachios add a nice surprising crunch to the kebabs.

Oh these are excellent!
Thank you!

[Aspen]

Ralph,

Thank you for posting this wonderful sounding recipe.

beckms,

Thanks for the idea to cook them on the George Foreman grill. Do you remember how long they took to cook on it? Were they rare, med-rare or well done at that time?

I am always looking for ways to adapt recipes to the "George". :)

TIA

---Aspen

[beckms]

Aspen--

I cooked them for about 4 minutes, turned them, and about 1 or 2 minutes more, and they were cooked all the way through. One complaint I have about the GF is that, while it wicks away the grease,it also dries out the meat some. Next time I will cook a little less for a juicier lamb. But still excellent!

[vbak]

I love lamb and this recipe sounds great. I hate to spoil all the drools, but do you have any idea how much sat fat there is? Or, should you just eat it and forget it? Vicky

[KCSoccer]

Ralph,

Thanks so much for the review. I just purchased the Barbecue Bible last week but hadn't had the chance to go through it yet. And, I have several packages of frozen ground lamb in the freezer (we purchased a lamb from a farmer friend, and the legs & chops always seem to go first). Guess what we'll be having for dinner this weekend? :)

[Wendy w]

Oh Ralph, these look wonderful! Thank you for posting. I'm going to copy this into my MasterCook now. Beckms, thanks for the idea about cooking them on the Foreman, I'm going to add your notes to the MasterCook too!

[Grace]

I printed this out too, Ralph! Now I just have to find some ground lamb.....

But I'm definitely going to be trying this one! Do you think it would be good with some homemade tzatziki sauce?

[Wendy w]

Grace, I was just thinking the same thing! MMMmm!

[Ralph]

Originally posted by beckms
I didn't let them sit for two hours in the fridge, because I was hungry :rolleyes:. They were fine cooked immediately.

I found another kebab recipe in the book that addresses the refrigeration issue. They suggest putting in the fridge so that it holds together better on the skewer.

Grace, these are supposedly of Turkish derivation, so I'm not sure how the tzatziki would go, though DW thought a yogurt-based sauce/dressing would be good with them. The author recommends a Turkish Radish Salad or and Onion Relish w/Pomegranate Molasses as accompaniments.

And since the June CL has yet to come (!):eek: , I'll be grilling another set of kebabs next week. I'll post the review on a new thread.

[shoyski]

These DO sound excellent. We have a gas grill so I can't do the grate deal. What do you think would happen if I used the skewers but put some aluminum foil down first?

[mmtibbs]

I ran out and got the ingredients for this meal today and plan on grilling them in a gas grill, lying on foil....I'll let you know.

I also am making a traditional tziziki (sp?) sauce will yougurt, cucumbers, dill and mint. Sounds good to me! Add a side of tabouli and a glass of Shiraz and I'm a happy girl. I'll report back on my experience.

[mmtibbs]

Just a P.S.

The butcher at Henry's was more than happy to grind a half leg of lamb for me.

[Aspen]

Thanks for the additional information on using the George Foreman grill to make these. Your timing information and idea on future timing is very valuable.

Definately plan to make these.


---Aspen

[mmtibbs]

My family went nuts over these kababs. They were absolutely wonderful served on warm pita bread with a sauce I made up with yogurt, minced dill, a pinch of minced mint and a bit of garlic.

I grilled them on foil in a gas grill, but halfway through I threw them on the grates as I didn't like the gray color they were. They held together fine and browned up nicely. I think they are easier to turn if you make them into flat rectangles rather than tube shaped.

Hope others enjoy them as much as we did.

Michelle

[shoyski]

Thanks VERY much for the gas grill tips. I always feel naughty for using a gas grill. ;) I think we may be in the minority!! :p

[Ralph]

Originally posted by Ralph
And since the June CL has yet to come (!):eek: , I'll be grilling another set of kebabs next week. I'll post the review on a new thread.

My review (with recipe) is on this thread: http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=24999

[Gail]

I wanted to resurrect this thread and give this recipe another thumbs-up. It's a wonderful, flavorful dish-- easy to prepare, easy to love, and most certainly something I will repeat again. Even though it's Turkish, the smells emanating from the grill and kitchen conjured up wonderful memories of strolling the streets of Athens at night. I think half the fun of eating the dish was traveling back to Greece and Turkey all over again as I ate!

My husband grilled this for me directly on the grate, oiling with olive oil and searing all over first, so they didn't stick. Although he was a little dubious at first ("I hope you packed the meat well, or else it's gonna be a TERRIBLE mess...") but the warnings apparently were for naught. In fact, he reported, it was one of the easiest things he'd ever grilled.

Just for the record-- since I had stuff in the fridge to use up, I did the unspeakable, mixing Greek and Turkish dishes and thought the results fine. (tzatziki and pita, salad and a leek-and-dill rice pilaf.) Any Turkish or Greek board users are hereby directly to pretend they didn't read that.

Thank you for sharing this one, Ralph!

[albus87]

Actually Gail, what you did wasn't that unspeakable. I've been fortunate enough to live in both Greece and Turkey (thanks to the Navy). The food is very similar (in my humble American opinion, tho I'm not sure many from that region would agree with me!). The Greeks have Tzatziki and the Turks have "Cacik" (pronounced Ja-jik, if I remember correctly, it's been a few years). I remember it being thinner than the Greek version and I don't think it had dill or mint but the basic concept was the same: yogurt, cucumber and garlic. So, I don't think you committed culinary heresy or anything like that :)

Just a bit of food trivia...

Those kebabs sound great... if my DH only liked lamb...

[vbak]

Ralph, we made the lamb kebob/burgers for dinner tonight , and as all the replies suggest, they were delicious. The aroma was wonderful as they cooked on the grill. I kept thinking that garlic would taste great in these.:mad: Yes, I forgot to put it in. Anyway, I shaped them into burgers[I know, the kebob presentation would have been nicer] and DH did a great job cooking them. They didn't stick to the grill. I cut a burger in half and tucked it into a pita half and served it with cucumbers and sour cream like mom used to make. Thanks for sharing. It is a keeper. Vicky

[doggerham]

This does sound fab --

Ralph (or anyone) -- which of Reichlen's books is this from? My library lists 2:

The Barbeque Bible, pub. 1998 with illustrations by M.Chodos-irvine

AND

Barbecue Bible! : Sauces Rubs And Marinades Bastes, Butters & Glazes / by Steven Raichlen ; Illustrations By Ron Tanovitz. 

Can anyone review either/both of these books?

Thanks!

Amy

[beckms]

Can't help you, doggerham, but I CAN vouch for this recipe (see my post above)! Also, my supperclub had a recipe from one of those books, but I don't know which one. It was Rosemary-Skewered Scallops, and they were magnificent! So if they're both in the same book, it's a winner!

[Ralph]

It was from the Barbecue Bible, not the sauces book.

[Grace]

OK. I finally got around to making these tonight....WOWEE!!! They were awesome!! My DH LOVED them! Gave them a 9 - his highest rating of anything yet (nothing's ever gotten a 10 :rolleyes: ) I served them with homemade tzatiki, made with goat milk yogurt! YUM YUM!! And also some pomegranate molasses. I passed on the pita breads, and just served them "au naturel", and I made a mediterranean style orzo salad (the one from a few months ago - but I added kalamata olives), and a spinach salad with orange-pomegranate dressing. All in all an outstanding meal. And it was rather quick and easy, to boot.

So a HUGE THANK YOU TO RALPH!!!! XXXXXOOOO

[DeniseP]

Ralph, I've had this recipe and your review for almost a year now, and finally decided to make them. YUM, YUM, YUM. Even my finicky teenage sons loved them! My ground lamb package only weighed .85 pounds; I left the other ingredients the same and they tasted great. Thank you so much!

[doggerham]

Bump!

Ran across this recipe hidign out on my computer and put it on the list for Monday. Yee-haw! Lamb has usually been less popular here in Texas (y'know beef country, range wars, all that stuff). However, in the last year, I've seen more of it appearing in my neighborhood Kroger -- including ground.

Made these last night and served with pitas, tzatziki (adapted from a recipe in March 2004) and broccoli slaw. I added some feta to mine, DH skips feta.

Ralph -- thanks again!

[vbak]

Doggerham, you're making me hungry. I have 3 packages of ground lamb in the freezer, and I am waiting for the weather to warm up to make thesse again. I serve these with a baked orzo with several different cheeses{Epicurious}. tzaki sauce, and a crispy Greek salad. I can hardly wait. Spring, summer, where are you?

Vicky

[Seronsong]

I made this for a dinner party last week and I have to say it was a all-around hit. Different from your average meal and absolutely delicious bite after bite. I added lemon zest and thyme and cayenne to this recipe (from a Jamie Oliver recipe) and it put it over the top. Made a mint parsley yogurt sauce and a fresh hot pepper paste to slather on the pitas. Served with grilled eggplant couscous on top of field greens. OMgosh, please try this. The pistachios in the lamb were nice and crunchy and made it so different. I have not had lamb in year and I'm so glad I tried this!! Thanks Ralph from 2002!!!!