I love lamb. I’ve seldom met an Arab who doesn’t like lamb. [I said seldom, so if you’re one of the few that are Arab and don’t like lamb, you may want to skip to another one of my lamb-less recipes]. Have you ever seen that scene in “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” when Ian, the fiancé, tells Aunt Voula he’s vegetarian. To which Aunt Voula thinks for a minute and exclaims “that’s okay, I make a Lamb!” Yea, that basically sums up the Arab-Lamb relationship. You eat it and you enjoy it, or you eat it and you don’t enjoy it. The common denominator here is that you eat the lamb no matter what.
I’ll spare you the story about the first time I met a whole raw lamb on our kitchen table … but you’re more than welcome to read about it. It was an experience I won’t forget.
I’ve done a decent amount of cooking lamb from including my Lamb Kabob Patties, Yogurt Marinated Leg of Lamb, and Garlic Rosemary Lamb Chops, but I wanted to try something a little different. I’m still working on recipe testing for my upcoming dinner. My family is reaping the benefits, and mom is so happy I’m taking over the kitchen every so often. The thing about the skewers is that you can throw them on an outdoor grill if the weather permits, or you can use a grill pan (or panini grill flipped to the grill side) indoors. I love versatile.
Ingredients
- 1 lb Lamb loin, cubed
- 2 Saffron Strings
- 1 teaspoon Allspice
- 1 teaspoon Cumin
- 1 cup Parsley
- Lemon juice from one Lemon
- Salt, to taste
- 3 cloves Garlic
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- ½ red onion, sliced
- 1 bunch Mint Leaves
- 1 cup Greek Yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine the garlic, parsley, red onion, allspice, cumin, salt, and saffron
- Pour into a food processor and pulse until chopped finely
- Add lemon juice and Vegetable Oil
- Puree until smooth, set aside the marinade
- Place the lamb cubes in a ziplock bag and add the marinade. Toss until combined
- Refrigerate overnight
- Preheat a grill pan (or light a grill). Drain the lamb, making sure to remove any access marinade.
- Place the lamb chunks on a skewer by puncturing the middle of the cube and sliding the meat down, leaving a little room between cubes
- Brush with vegetable oil and grill over high, turning every 10 minutes.
- Serve with mint yogurt sauce.
- In a food processor, pulse the mint until finely chopped
- Transfer to a small bowl, and stir in the yogurt and lemon juice, add salt to taste
- Serve in a small dipping bowl
