Ingredients
Kebab
- 800 glamb shoulder, hand-minced with a zırh or coarsely chopped
- 150 glamb tail fat, hand-minced
- 2 tbspred pepper flakes (pul biber), or to taste
- 1 tspsalt
- 1 tspblack pepper
- 2 clovesgarlic, crushed to a paste with a little salt
Sumac onions
- 2red onions, sliced paper thin
- 1 tbspsumac
- a handful of flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 1 tbspolive oil
To serve
- 4lavaş or pide flatbreads
- 2long green peppers and 2 tomatoes, for grilling
- butter, for brushing
Directions
- Chop the lamb and tail fat together by hand until the pieces are the size of rice grains. A mincer smears the fat and gives a pasty kebab; the geographical indication for Adana kebabı requires hand-mincing for exactly this reason.
- Knead the meat with the pepper flakes, salt, pepper and garlic for 5 minutes, pressing and folding, until it becomes tacky and holds together when squeezed.
- Cover and chill 2 hours. Cold, rested meat is what lets you mould it onto the skewer without it sliding off.
- Press the mixture along wide flat metal skewers in a long even ribbon about 2 cm thick, squeezing with a wet hand and pinching ridges at intervals so it grips.
- Grill over hot charcoal for 10–12 minutes, turning every 2 minutes, until well coloured and just cooked through. Grill the peppers and tomatoes alongside.
- Toss the onions with sumac, parsley and oil. Warm the bread on the edge of the grill, brush with butter, and slide the kebab off the skewer onto it. Serve with the onions and grilled vegetables.
Technique
- Tail fat is the flavour and the moisture. Substituting lean lamb gives a dry kebab whatever else you do.
- Wide flat skewers, not round ones: a round skewer spins inside the meat and the kebab falls into the fire.
- Charcoal must be glowing and ash-covered, not flaming. Dripping fat on open flame scorches the outside before the middle is done.
Substitutions
- Beef brisket with its own fat can replace lamb, though the result is milder.
- Under a very hot grill on a rack over a tray, formed into flat köfte rather than on skewers, if you have no charcoal.
Variations
- Urfa kebab, the same preparation without the chilli, for those who want it mild.
- Sarımsaklı, a garlic-heavy version served in some Adana kebab houses.
History
Ground, hand-minced lamb, mixed with fat and hot red pepper, formed onto wide flat skewers and grilled over charcoal, named for the city of Adana in southern Turkey, where it developed as a regional specialty closely tied to that city’s culinary identity and traditionally protected under Turkish geographic indication rules restricting use of the specific Adana kebab name. Its notably spicy seasoning distinguishes Adana kebab from many other Turkish kebab varieties, which tend toward milder seasoning, and the labor-intensive hand-mincing of the meat with a heavy cleaver, rather than a modern meat grinder, is considered by many traditional cooks essential to achieving the dish’s proper texture. Adana kebab remains one of Turkey’s most iconic and specifically regional grilled meat dishes.
Frequently asked questions
What is Adana kebab?
Adana kebab is a main from Turkey: spicy hand-minced lamb skewer grilled over charcoal, served with sumac onions. Ground, hand-minced lamb, mixed with fat and hot red pepper, formed onto wide flat skewers and grilled over charcoal, named for the city of Adana in southern Turkey, where it developed as a regional specialty closely tied to that city’s culinary identity and traditionally protected under Turkish geographic indication rules restricting use of the specific Adana kebab name. Its notably spicy seasoning distinguishes Adana kebab from many other Turkish kebab varieties, which tend toward milder seasoning, and the labor-intensive hand-mincing of the meat with a heavy cleaver, rather than a modern meat grinder, is considered by many traditional cooks essential to achieving the dish’s proper texture. Adana kebab remains one of Turkey’s most iconic and specifically regional grilled meat dishes.
How long does Adana kebab take to make?
Adana kebab takes 30 min plus 2 hr chilling of preparation and 12 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Adana kebab?
Yes, within limits. Beef brisket with its own fat can replace lamb, though the result is milder. Under a very hot grill on a rack over a tray, formed into flat köfte rather than on skewers, if you have no charcoal.
What is the most important thing to get right in Adana kebab?
Charcoal must be glowing and ash-covered, not flaming. Dripping fat on open flame scorches the outside before the middle is done.
