Shish Kebab
Ingredients
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- 1 1/2 pounds lamb leg – trimmed and cut into 1.25-inch cubes
- 4 ounces lamb tail fat – cut into 1-inch pieces (optional)
- 8 ounces yellow onion – grated (~1.5 medium yellow onions)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper – freshly ground
- 1 tsp Aleppo-style pepper flakes
- 6 ounces red onion – thinly sliced (~1.5 medium red onions)
- 1/2 cups flat-leaf parsley – finely chopped (~0.5 n/a parsleys)
- 1 tsp sumac
- 1 tbsp lemon juice – fresh
- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 2 peppers green peppers – halved and seeded
- 3 tomatoes plum tomatoes – halved
- lavash bread – warmed (for serving)
- lemon wedges – for serving
Instructions
1. If using wooden skewers, soak them in water for 30 minutes to prevent burning.
2. In a large bowl, combine the grated yellow onion, olive oil, kosher salt, black pepper, and Aleppo-style pepper flakes.
3. Add the lamb cubes to the bowl and toss to coat thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate to marinate for 2–4 hours. Remove from the fridge 30 minutes before grilling to take off the chill.
4. Make the onion-parsley salad: In a medium bowl, toss the red onion, parsley, sumac, lemon juice, extra-virgin olive oil, and fine sea salt. Let it stand 15 minutes to wilt slightly.
5. Prepare a charcoal or gas grill for medium-high heat (grate preheated and cleaned).
6. Thread the lamb onto skewers, packing the cubes lightly with a bit of space between pieces. If using lamb tail fat, alternate a piece of fat between every 2–3 pieces of lamb. Shake off excess marinade and discard any remaining marinade.
7. Place the green peppers and plum tomatoes on the grill and cook, turning occasionally, until blistered and tender, 6–10 minutes; move to a cooler side if they char too quickly.
8. Grill the lamb skewers over direct heat, turning every 2–3 minutes, until well browned with light char and just cooked through, 8–12 minutes total; an instant-read thermometer should read 135–140°F for medium, or cook to preferred doneness.
9. Warm the lavash bread on the grill until pliable, 30–60 seconds.
10. Rest the skewers 3–5 minutes. Serve the shish kebab with the grilled peppers and tomatoes, onion-parsley salad, and lemon wedges.
Shish Kebab is a Turkish-style preparation of skewered, marinated cubes of meat cooked quickly over a live fire. The result is meat with a smoky char on the outside and a tender, juicy interior, accented by simple seasonings that let the lamb’s flavor shine. It is typically served with blistered peppers and tomatoes, fresh onion-parsley salad dusted with sumac, and warm flatbread.
Historically rooted in the cuisines of Anatolia and the broader Ottoman world, şiş kebap (literally “skewer roast”) exemplifies the region’s live-fire cookery. In Turkey, the meat is usually lamb, often threaded with pieces of lamb fat for succulence, and vegetables are grilled separately rather than on the same skewer. The dish spread widely across the Middle East and into the Caucasus and beyond, inspiring many local variants; in English-speaking countries, “shish kebab” became a catch-all for mixed meat-and-vegetable skewers, though the Turkish original remains more minimalist.