Urfa kebab on charcoal grill

There are two Middle Eastern kebabs; Adana kebab, which is spicy, and Urfa kebab with a rather “sweet” flavor. Middle Eastern kebabs are made of ground mutton meat and a generous amount of tail fat. Kebab is not the same as a burger patty and it isn’t skewered meatball either. Kebab stands out for its meat, its preparation and spices. A meticulously chosen combination of spices, which are in the right proportion and quantity, is the secret of every griller and every professional. The mince has to be really elastic. For this purpose, we must knead well, the mince should be cold and we should sequentially refrigerate and knead, several times. Let’s see how to make Urfa kebab; the spices, the preparation, and the grilling. It’s a good excuse to gather your friends.

INGREDIENTS

1.5kg (3.3lb) mutton ground meat with 30% tail fat
25g sea salt (preferably fleur de sel)
3g black pepper
1g cumin (preferably wild cumin)
1.5g coriander
150g grated Florina pepper (with its juice)
150g grated onion (with its juice)

PREPARATION

You’ll need minced mutton (from the leg) with tail fat (30% of the mince should be tail fat). Finely grind spices in a mortar and bash them to bring out their essential oils. Combine with salt to get a scented salt. This scented salt will spread the spices and their aroma throughout the mince.

It’s crucial to refrigerate the mince before kneading it. Hence, 1 hour before kneading, place in the freezer to make sure it’s cold enough (not frozen) to work with. Add the grated onion and Florina pepper and knead well. Both onion’s and pepper’s pulp should be also cold. Then, add the spices gradually and mix again. It’s important to add them gradually and knead because it helps to evenly spread the scented salt. To keep it from sticking to your fingers, dip your hands in cold water before kneading.

Put the mince in the fridge again to cool. Repeat kneading for 2-3 times during the next 24 hours. It’s highly important to knead more than once, in order to give the mince a more gluey consistency.

COOKED ON amber.q A

COOKING

After this kneading process, 24 hours later, you’re ready to grill the kebabs. Pile up the charcoals inside the fire cabin. Prefer using charcoals with steady-rate, high thermal efficiency. Place kindling (alcohol-soaked cotton) on top and light them. The charcoals will be lit after 25-30 minutes, easily, quickly and without smoke.

Get the mince out of the fridge. Use 110-120g of mince and skewer on a kebab wide spit. Your hands should be wet to start skewering (it helps to spread the mince on the spit). Skewer all the kebabs and when the charcoals are fully lit, spread them inside the fire cabin.

Grill on high heat and turn the spits quickly at first. This way you make sure that the kebab won’t cool down and fall from the spits. Kebab’s grilling is short, so you should be on alert to turn the spits quickly and in time. Anyone that has small rotating skewers, can use them for grilling kebab effortless and evenly. Grill along with your kebabs, sweet green peppers and tomatoes.

Serve with grilled pita bread, tzatziki sauce, grilled peppers, and tomatoes. Good wine and good friends are essential ingredients for success.

Happy grilling everyone!