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Lamb Shashlik

Name: Lamb Shashlik
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Ukrainian
Ingredients: 1000 g Lamb shoulder, cubed; 2 medium Onion; 1 tsp Ground cumin; 2 tsp Fine sea salt; 1 tsp Ground black pepper; 2 tbsp Lemon juice; 2 tbsp Sunflower oil; 1 medium Red onion; 10 g Flat-leaf parsley

Tender cubes of lamb shoulder marinated in onion, cumin and lemon, grilled over embers on skewers and served with raw red onion and parsley.

Prep: 30 min
Cook: 20 min
Difficulty: Easy

About this dish

Lamb shashlik is the oldest form of the dish, the one the Turkic and Caucasian grill masters began with, and the form Ukrainians adopted from them. Lamb has plenty of its own flavour, so the marinade is deliberately short and plain: onion, a little cumin and lemon to cut the richness. Served with a heap of raw onion, it is meant to be eaten straight from the skewer.

Gluten-free
Lactose-free
Not vegetarian because of Lamb shoulder, cubed

Ingredients

4servings

1000gLamb shoulder, cubed
2mediumOnion
1tspGround cumin
2tspFine sea salt
1tspGround black pepper
2tbspLemon juice
2tbspSunflower oil
1mediumRed onion
10gFlat-leaf parsley

Instructions

Cut the lamb shoulder into 4 cm cubes, leaving a little fat on each piece, and slice the onions into thin rings.
15 min
Tip: Lamb fat melts at a lower temperature than other meats and carries much of the flavour, so keep a little on each cube.
Knead the onion with the cumin, salt, pepper, lemon juice and oil until it releases its juice, then mix through the lamb and marinate in the fridge for at least 3 hours.
180 min
Tip: The acid in the lemon tenderises lamb quickly, so more than half a day can leave the surface mushy.
Thread the lamb onto skewers, packing the pieces together and leaving the onion behind.
10 min
Tip: Keep the pieces about the same size so they finish together, and do not crowd the skewer so tightly that the heat cannot reach the middle.
Grill over hot embers for 15 to 18 minutes, turning often, until browned outside and just pink in the middle.
18 min
Tip: Lamb stays best slightly pink inside. Go past it and the meat turns tough and the flavour sharpens.
Rest the skewers for 5 minutes and serve with the red onion in rings and chopped parsley.
5 min
Tip: The raw onion and parsley cut the richness of the fat and make each bite fresh again.