Lamb Shish Kebab

These lamb shish kebabs, are a real tasty fakeaway treat for all of the family - much needed at the moment while we're all self-isolating. We had this last night with some Healthy Chicken Shish Kebabs, Turkish giant couscous, flatbreads, Cacik and Hummus and a lovely feta salad and we got the Turkish music blaring on YouTube and even opened some Efes to make us feel like we might be at a restaurant.

You can play around with the spicing to your personal taste. and the longer you marinate the meat for, the better, more flavourful and more tender it will be. 

The below cooks them to 'medium rare' with just a blushing pink in the centre; if you prefer your lamb cooked right through, just cook for longer. 

I cooked this under our grill last night - but you could of course cook on a barbecue too; although it's a bit trickier to get the timing right on coals or gas. 

I have included below for a 'vegetable skewer' which is just a lovely accompaniment to have charred onion and red pepper with your kebabs, but you could alternatively thread the lamb kebabs with the onion and pepper too or omit if you're not keen.

Lamb Shish Kebab

Here's how:

• 500g lamb leg 
• 3 tbsp natural yoghurt
• Juice and body of 1 lemon
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp cinnamon 
• 1 tsp allspice
• 1 tsp dried chilli flakes
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp Harissa paste (you can substitute for tomato puree if you don't have harissa)

For the vegetable skewer:

• 1 red pepper
• 1 large white onion

For post-cooking:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Juice of 1/2 lemon

A few hours before you wish to cook the kebabs, or even better, the night before; chop the lamb into small 2cm cubes, and place into a plastic container big enough to contain the meat and the marinade.

Now add the natural yoghurt, olive oil, harissa paste and all of the spices. 

Meanwhile roughly chop the garlic, and throw into the mix, and half the lemon and squeeze out the juice directly into the container, then throw in the remaining lemon halves.

Now use a spoon and mix thoroughly to ensure every piece of lamb is immersed in the marinade. 

When ready to cook, thread each piece of meat onto one of your skewers, and pack the meat on fairly tightly. 

For the vegetable skewer, cut the red pepper into 2 cm square-ish shaped and sized pieces and the same for the onion, and thread onto another skewer. 

Now place all of the skewers under a hot grill, for four minutes, then carefully turn over and cook for a further four minutes, which should make for medium rare lamb. 

In the meantime, pour into a small bowl or ramekin the 1 tbsp olive oil, and squeeze in the lemon juice. (You could also add a crushed garlic clove or some freshly chopped parsley if you wish.)

Remove from the grill, and place onto a plate to rest for four minutes whilst you assemble the rest of your dish. 

When you place onto a platter or onto individual plates, then use the olive oil and lemon mixture and a pastry brush and simply brush each kebab with the oil. Enjoy!

If you love a kebab you may also like the recipes for some of the below:

Healthy Chicken Shish Kebabs

Greek-style Chicken Souvlaki

Pork Souvlaki

Beef Kofte Kebabs

Tzatziki