Lula Kebabs

Fire up the barbecue, summer’s arrived! Nothing quite beats taking the kitchen outside and enjoying the scent of freshly grilled meat. I love the flavor of meat cooked over a fire. When you bite into the juicy and moist meat, you can taste the seared and smoky flavor infusing it all the way through each bite.

Summer is the best time of the year to relax and enjoy the great outdoors. Most people are trying to avoid spending hours in the kitchen and bending over a hot stove. Lula Kebabs is a smart way to go. Simply mix the ground meat with herbs, spread it over the skewer and throw them on the grill.

Caucasus food indeed!

There’s a little bit of prep work involved in making lula kebabs, but by following my simple steps you will be rewarded with the juiciest and flavorful meat on the comb you ever tried!

You can use any type of ground meat for this recipe: beef, chicken, turkey or lamb. But it’s critical to add some minced fat to the mixture (tip #1) to achieve the juicy and sticky consistency.

Lula Kebabs Ingredients:

1 lb ground meat

1/3 cup pork or lamb fat, minced

1/3 medium onion, minced

1 tbsp finely chopped parsley

1 tbsp finely chopped cilantro

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Tzatziki Sauce Ingredients:

1 medium cucumber

1 tbsp lemon juice

1/4 cup yogurt

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 tbsp dill, finely chopped

1/2 tsp salt

freshly ground black pepper

There’s nothing better than walking outside to grab a few handfuls of fresh parsley or cilantro to add to your meal. And even if you don’t have space for a garden, try planting a few herbs in pots on a sunny spot – you won’t regret it! The only problem is that once you start, you won’t be able to stop – I can’t stop myself from adding fresh herbs to everything lately!

Combine all the ingredients and mix everything well by hand. Mixing is a critical step in achieving the right consistency of the meat (tip #2) Keep mixing for at least 10 minutes until the meat mixture becomes sticky and the dough-like consistency.

Once you are done, dip your hands into a bowl with warm water and shape the meat into a ball. Pick up the ball and throw it at the bottom of your mixing dish. Repeat for about 5-10 minutes or so. This will help keeping your kebab attached to skewers and prevent it from falling apart and most importantly falling into a charcoal (I had that happen to me, not fun!). So be patient and follow this step.

Once you are done, cover the bowl with plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (better overnight). You want the meat to become hard and chilled – (tip #3).

To shape lula kebabs, divide the mixture in 4 equal balls. Put it onto the skewer by holding the ball with one hand and turning the skewer with the other hand clockwise. Squeeze the meat gently and spread it over the skewer evenly. Make sure there are no holes or cracks and everything looks uniform. Seal the ends to prevent any juices from ripping your kebabs apart.

Grill and turn lula kebabs often to avoid burning, about 3 minutes on each side.

To make the tzatziki sauce peel and shred the cucumber. Season it with salt and set aside for 10 minutes. The salt will extract all the water from the cucumber which you can simply drain or wipe using the paper towel. Then combine cucumber with the rest of the ingredients and mix well.

Serve with hot lula kebabs, hummus or fresh pita bread.