Adana kebap

Hand-Minced Lamb Kebab

Adana kebap is lamb and fat chopped or minced until it is almost a paste, seasoned with red pepper and pressed in a long strip on a wide, flat skewer. The meat is chilled so that it holds on the skewer, then cooked quickly over charcoal until the fat sizzles and the edges char.

The first recipe uses 625 g of fatty lamb mince with a grated onion, parsley, garlic and spices including Aleppo pepper, cumin and sumac, chilled for 2 hours and grilled for 6 to 8 minutes. The second chops 700 g of lamb with 200 g of lamb fat and a red capsicum by hand, seasons it with only hot paprika and salt, and rests it for 3 to 4 hours.

Ingredients

For the kebabs

  • 625 g fatty lamb mince (about 20 to 25 per cent fat)
  • 1/2 medium white onion, finely grated and squeezed dry
  • 1 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
  • 2 tsp Aleppo pepper or hot paprika
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
  • 3 garlic cloves, grated
  • 1 tsp ground sumac
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • Vegetable oil, for the grill

To serve

  • 2 large tomatoes, quartered
  • 4 flatbreads or pitas
  • Thick yoghurt or labneh
  • Sliced red onion with sumac and parsley

Method

  1. Mix Put the lamb in a large bowl with the onion, parsley, spices, salt and garlic. Knead by hand for 3 to 4 minutes until it becomes sticky and paste-like.
  2. Chill Cover and chill for 2 to 4 hours. The cold mixture is firmer and sticks better to the skewer.
  3. Skewer Divide into 8 portions. With wet hands, press each portion round a flat skewer into a flattened strip about 20 cm long and 2 cm thick, with finger marks along it. Chill for another 30 minutes if soft.
  4. Grill Heat a barbecue or griddle pan until very hot and oil it lightly. Grill the kebabs for 6 to 8 minutes, turning often, until browned and charred, the fat has stopped dripping and the meat is cooked through with no pink inside. Grill the tomatoes and flatbreads alongside for about 5 minutes.
  5. Serve Rest for a couple of minutes. Serve on the flatbreads, pulling the meat off the skewer, with the tomatoes, onion salad and yoghurt.

Food safety

Minced meat must be cooked right through. Check that the middle of a kebab is piping hot with no pink, and wash hands, boards and bowls after handling raw meat.

Fat is what keeps the kebab juicy. Lean mince gives a dry kebab.

If the mixture falls off the skewer, it is too warm or too wet. Chill it again.

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