Simple Lamb Kebabs With Greek Flavors

- Total Time
- About 30 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 2pounds boneless leg of lamb
- ¼cup plus ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Juice of 2 lemons
- 2tablespoons minced garlic
- ⅓cup roughly chopped fresh marjoram
Preparation
- Step 1
Build a fire in your grill; when the coals are covered with gray ash and the temperature is medium high (you can hold your hand 5 inches above the coals for 3 to 4 seconds), you’re ready to cook. (For a gas grill, turn all burners to high, lower cover and heat for 15 minutes, then turn burners to medium high.)
- Step 2
While the fire is heating up, trim the lamb of all but a thin layer of fat and cut into 32 more-or-less-equal chunks. Combine in a bowl with the ¼ cup of olive oil and the salt and pepper and toss well to coat, then thread them onto skewers, about 8 chunks per skewer; they should snuggle up to one another but not be tightly pressed.
- Step 3
Put the skewers directly over the coals and cook, turning to expose all 4 sides to the direct heat of the coals, until done to your liking, 2 to 3 minutes a side (8 to 12 minutes total) for medium rare. To check for doneness, cut into one of the chunks and check to see if it is done to your liking — remove from the heat when it is just slightly less done than you want it to be when you eat it.
- Step 4
While the lamb is cooking, prepare the remaining ingredients but keep in separate containers. Slide the lamb chunks off the skewers into a large bowl, add the remaining oil, lemon juice, garlic and marjoram one after another, toss well to coat, season to taste if needed and serve.
Private Notes
Comments
A well pre-heated cast iron skillet will work for this just like it works for steaks.
Rather than marinate a la Souvlaki, the meat is grilled on sticks and then the flavor is added. Gives a much more flavourful result.
8 minutes is way too long to cook 1 - 2 inch chunks of lamb. Lamb is notorious for getting tough when overcooked so start with 5 minutes total and check. I overcooked mine by following this recipe exactly. I love lamb so I WILL perfect this at some point.
Why not combine all the seasonings with the oil first, then toss the lamb in the dressing? Is it so the herbs won't discolor? I have been doing this with grilled chicken thighs for years now (it's sublime) but I mix it all together first so the oil takes on the flavors of the garlic and herbs. Thoughts welcome.
It needed more garlic than I used (I used 3 large cloves). I only had one lemon so I used both the zest and the juice and that worked well. I used Dill & cilantro since that is what I had, maybe not traditional but tasted good. Great concept, will probably use it with other types of protien.
The cooking time for raw meat on a grill is at best an estimate - use your experience and senses, and when in doubt, take it off! This is a very good recipe....
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