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Lamb Kebabs
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5 from 1 vote

Turkish Lamb Shish Kebab

Tremendously tasty and tender lamb shish kebabs made with a generously seasoned yoghurt marinade and cooked to perfection in your oven, indoor grill barbecue or air fryer.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Servings: 2
Calories: 447kcal
Author: Helen

Ingredients

Marinade

  • 50 g yoghurt (note 1)
  • ½ tsp paprika
  • ½ tsp ground cumin
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp tomato puree (or Biber Salcasi) (note 2)
  • ¼ tsp garlic powder (note 3)
  • ½ lemon juice

Kebabs

  • 400 g lamb room temperature and fat removed and cut into 2cm/1-inch chunks (note 4)
  • 1 red pepper (optional) cut into 2cm/1-inch pieces
  • 1 green pepper (optional) cut into 2cm/1-inch pieces

Yoghurt Sauce (optional)

  • 120g Greek or plain yogurt
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • ½ lemon juice
  • ¼ tsp garlic powder (note 5)
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp sugar
  • ¼ tsp black pepper

To serve (optional)

  • Lettuce
  • Pickled chillies
  • Sriracha
  • Cucumber
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Combine the marinade ingredients in a bowl, add the lamb pieces, cover with cling film and place in the fridge to marinade. (2-3 hours minimum, ideally overnight)
  • Remove the lamb from the fridge 30 minutes before you plan to cook it and thred the lamb pieces and chopped peppers (if using) onto metal or wooden skewers.
  • Cook to medium or well done using one of the below cooking methods. (Note 5)
  • Serve with flatbread, yoghurt sauce and your choice of accompaniments.

Indoor grill oven

  • Grill for approximately 10 minutes, turning halfway.

BBQ (Grill)

  • Cook for 10-15 minutes, turning halfway. You'll need to light a charcoal barbecue 30 minutes before cooking.

Oven baked

  • Heat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Line a baking tray with foil or grease it with little oil to prevent the meat from sticking and cook for 10-15 minutes without turning

Air fryer

  • Heat the air fryer to 200°C (400°F), spray the basket with olive oil and place the skewers inside the air fryer when it has come to heat and cook for 8-10 minutes, turning halfway.

Notes

  1. Yoghurt: you can use low fat if you prefer.
  2. Tomato puree: traditionally, a shish kebab marinade is made with Biber Salcasi, a Turkish red pepper paste. Because it's hard to come by I recommend tomato puree, but feel free to use Biber Salcasi instead if you have it.
  3. Garlic powder: you can use 1-2 cloves of crushed garlic instead.
  4. Lamb: lamb shoulder, lamb sirloin, lamb leg and lamb neck are suitable. 
  5. Garlic powder in yoghurt sauce: you can swap it for fresh garlic but you will need to sauté it first to temper and avoid adding a bitter flavour to the sauce.
  6. Lamb doneness: Use a meat thermometer or cut into one of the large pieces to check. Medium: 160ºF/71ºC Well done: 170ºF/77ºC   
  7. Nutritional information: is for lamb kebabs only and does not include sides or accompaniments.

Nutrition

Serving: 1portion | Calories: 447kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 51g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 136mg | Sodium: 1069mg | Potassium: 1024mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 2362IU | Vitamin C: 142mg | Calcium: 170mg | Iron: 5mg