Lemon and mint lamb kebabs with couscous salad recipe

for 4 people
Takes 20 minutes to make and 10-12 minutes to cook
Easy

Perfect for a barbecue, but if it rains, cook under a grill for a tasty summer meal. These light cookies are just as delicious eaten on their own, but look stunning when presented as a dessert. This recipe uses the UK's No.1 sweetener

INGREDIENTS

500g lamb leg steaks
4 small red onions, cut into wedges
2 small-medium courgettes, halved lengthways and thickly sliced
(sh) Lemon and mint dressing
Grated zest from 3 lemons
4 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tbsp granular Canderel
4 tbsp finely chopped mint leaves
(sh) Couscous
125g couscous
200ml chicken or vegetable stock
150g cherry tomatoes, halved
5 spring onions, trimmed and chopped

METHOD

1. Cut the lamb into cubes, thread onto metal skewers alternating with the onions and courgettes.
2. Mix together the lemon juice, zest, garlic, olive oil, and Canderel.
3. To make the couscous salad, put the couscous into a bowl, pour over the stock and leave to stand for 10 minutes then fluff up with a fork. Add 2 tbsp of the lemon and mint dressing, stir into the couscous. When cool add the tomatoes and spring onions and season if needed and toss together.
4. To cook the kebabs, preheat the barbecue, brush the kebabs with some of the dressing. Cook for 10-12 minutes, turning until the lamb is cooked. Serve with the couscous salad with any extra dressing drizzled over the kebabs.

Lamb kofta kebabs recipe

Serves 4
Ready in 25 minutes
Easy

A healthier version of that takeaway classic, this kebab recipe has all the taste without the grease.

INGREDIENTS

500g organic lamb mince
1 tbsp Moroccan spice mix (we used Schwartz)
1 spring onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander, plus extra for the salad
4 tbsp apricot jam, warmed
3 tbsp houmous
150g natural yogurt
Warm pittas, to serve (we used Sainsbury’s Taste The Difference Mixed Olive Pittas)
Salad and sliced red onion, to serve

METHOD

01. Preheat the grill to medium-hot. Soak 8 wooden skewers in water.

02. Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix the mince, spice mix, spring onion and the coriander. Season. Shape into 32 balls and thread 4 onto each skewer. Grill or barbecue for 10-15 minutes, turning, until cooked. Just before they are ready, brush with the jam.

03. Mix the houmous and yogurt in a bowl. Season. Accompany the kebabs with pittas, salad, sliced red onion sprinkled with coriander and the houmous dressing.

Shish Kebab / Lamb Kebabs Recipe

Serves 6

Sunday is kebab day in the Lebanese mountains and these kebabs are often on the menu, served with hummus and salad.

Ingredients

800 g lamb, meat from the leg, skinned, trimmed of most of the fat and cut into chunk as about 3 cm squared
1 tsp Adonis Barbeque Spices
Sea salt
Baby onion
1 large pita bread, opened at the seam


Cooking instructions

Put the meat in a mixing bowl. Add the Adonis seasonings and salt and to taste. Let it marinate for about 2 hours.

Thread the meat onto 8 skewers, inserting a peeled baby onion in between every two pieces of meat. Grill over high heat for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until done to your liking. Arrange the two layers of pita bread one on top of the other. Slide the meat off the skewers onto the bread. Serve immediately.

Shish Taouk / Chicken Kebabs Recipee

Serves 4-6

Here is a wonderful variation on shish kebab, which you can also prepare with drumsticks or chicken wings.

Ingredients

800g boneless chicken meat (both white and dark) , cut into pieces about 3 cm squared
6-8 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon, or to taste
1 tsp Adonis Shish Taouk Spices
Sea salt
1 large pita bread, opened at the seam
10 large cloves garlic, chopped coarsely
Sea salt
100 ml sunflower oil
100 ml extra virgin olive oil
3-4 tbsp full fat yoghurt (labneh)
1 medium potato, boiled and mashed
1 large pita bread, opened at the seam

Cooking instructions

Mix all the ingredients for the marinade together in a large mixing bowl. Add the chicken. Mix in well. Let it marinate for about 2 hours.

Put the chopped garlic and a little salt in a mortar and pound with a pestle until reduced to a very fine paste. Drizzle in the oil very slowly, stirring constantly as if you were making mayonnaise. You should end up with a dip with a consistency that is a little looser than mayonnaise. If you find the dip too strong, add strained yoghurt or mashed potatoes or a combination of both. You can also make the dip in a food processor if you have a small enough bowl for the amounts given above.

Turn your grill on to maximum heat or prepare a charcoal fire-the latter being an unbeatable way to grill the meat.

Thread equal quantities of chicken cubes onto 8-12 long metal skewers. Dont cram the pieces too close to each other to allow them to cook evenly. Grill for 5 minutes on each side, or until done to your liking. Arrange the two layers of pita bread one on top of the other. Slide the chicken kebabs off the skewers onto the bread. Serve immediately with the garlic dip.

Kaftah / Minced Meat Kebabs Recipe

Serves 4

Kaftah is traditionally molded onto skewers to make a kind of minced meat Sausage but you can just as easily shape it into patties or meat balls to either grill or cook over the stove, preferably in a non-stick pan.

Ingredients

2 medium onions, peeled and quartered
50g flat-leaf parsley (1/4 bunch), leaves only
600g minced lamb, preferably from the shoulder
1 tsp Adonis Kaftah Spices
Sea salt
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
2 tbsp coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tbsp Adonis sumac
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large pita bread, opened at the seam

Cooking instructions

Put the onion and parsley in a food processor and process until finely chopped. Transfer to a mixing bowl; add the minced lamb, Adonis kaftah spices and salt . Mix well with your hands until well blended. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Divide the meat into 12 equal portions.

Pre-heat your grill to high, or prepare a charcoal barbecue.

Roll each portion of kaftah into a ball. Place one ball of kaftah in the palm of your hand, take a long skewer, preferably a flat one as the meat will hold better onto it, and start wrapping the meat around the skewer, squeezing it upwards, then downwards to bind it around the skewer in the shape of a long sausage. Grill for 2-3 minutes on each side, or until the meat is done to your liking.

Mix the ingredients for the salad garnish together. Season with salt and Adonis Sumac to taste. Arrange the two layers of pita, one on top of the other, rough side up. Spread the garnish over the bread. Then slide the kaftah off the skewers onto the salad garnish. Serve immediately.