Steven's Ground Lamb Kebabs?

I followed the directions to a tee: refridgerated the meat for an hour, mold technique, and Mr. Reichlen's flat stainless steel skewers, and what happened, the bottom of the kebabs fell off on the grill. I used the double-brick method, and this, in turn, provided enough gravity that my kebab decide to deconstruct itself. I went ahead and grilled the pieces of lamb, wrapped it up in some grilled naan bread and topped it with some cilantro chutney and hummus and added a steamed artichoke on the side - all I can say is, unbelieveable! My wife absolutely loved this Indian dish, but I only wish my kebab hadn't fallen apart. Any suggestions?

Sounds like you did everything right - did you oil the grill? Making sure the grill is oiled, brushing a light coat of oil on the kebabs, and being very gentle with them when turning are the only additional things I can think of.

Well, I didn't really have to oil the grill grates because I elevated the kebabs using two bricks wrapped in aluminum foil. It is almost like I needed some type of binder to hold the ground mixture onto the flat kebab - very perplexing!

I wonder if the fat content affects them. I have had really lean hamburgers fall apart. You might want to try adding some egg whites. They won't change the flavor, and they will set early in the cooking process helping to bind the meat together.

SCmustardman wrote:

I wonder if the fat content affects them. I have had really lean hamburgers fall apart. You might want to try adding some egg whites. They won't change the flavor, and they will set early in the cooking process helping to bind the meat together.

Right on both counts - I've had to add a bit of fat to most of my ground meat kebabs as they sometimes fall apart, and I've used whole egg in them as well to bind them a bit better. I don't normally use plain egg whites, because that would mean I'd have too many leftover yolks and I wouldn't know what to do with them (or I'd be making tons of mayonnaise).

Ground meat Kabobs happened to be my favorite grilled food!
If I could eat it everyday, I would. Unfortunately, it takes too long to prepare.
Here are few hints I could share with you that would help keep the meat on the skewers:
1. Keep the raw meat as dry as possible
I use 80/20 ground beef or lamb, any leaner than that you would end up with dry Kabobs. If using minced onions, you’ll have to get all the water out of them. I puree the onions in a food processor, and then squeeze all the water out of them using a kitchen towel. You could also use a strainer over a bowl and drain them overnight in the refrigerator. Reserve onion water for molding and basting, it gives the kabobs a great flavor. I also use tomato paste for color and flavor.
Using eggs helps for large batches of meat; however, for small amount of ground meat, 1 egg can add a lot of liquid and cause the meat to fall apart during molding.
Finally, don’t add any liquid flavoring, use only dry ingredient.
2. I add Baking soda to the mix, about ½ tsp per pound. Baking soda makes the meat clump up and gives it a nice texture after cooking.

3. You must knead the meat to develop texture. For this I use a food processor. I add breadcrumbs to the mixture, and then I run it in the food processor until it forms a ball just like dough. This makes easy to mold and gives it a great texture. Refrigerate the mixture before and after molding to allow it to set on the skewers.
Chicken and Lamb kabobs


4. Cook without a grate and very close to the coals. You must sear the meat quickly on each side, and then you can cook at slow rate once the meat is set. If the meat is high above the fire, the fat will start to melt and the meat will slip out.


If you follow these steps, you should be able to achieve great results even without wide skewers.
Here are some Kabobs molded around regular skewers


I’ve even done these on tongue depressors

Finally, serve with the usual condiments and enjoy!!

I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.

Z, I'm getting really sick of you coming off as the lamb/kebab Guru!

Just because nothing ever falls apartfor you, and I'd lick it off the floor if it did is no reason to show us mere mortals what they should look and cook like!!

Shame on you for providing pictures of food that I would gladly drive to where you live (and I know. Oh, yes I know!!)

Thanks for the master class, Z!!

It gives us all something to work toward!

-YB

Thanks for the inspiration!!

If I forgot to mentions it, it really is great to have you back!!

BTW, I finally figured out how to do a decent decent naan on the kettle.

I'l post it after a few more trials.

-YB again

Sorry YB,
I didn’t mean to cause you any trouble.
And you are always welcome at my house; I’d gladly cook these Kabobs for you!
Thanks for the welcome; it’s good to be back among friends.
I can’t wait to see the naan pictures.

Z, those are just some outstanding looking pictures. Very informative post!

Wow - thanks for the picture tutorial and making feel like a neophyte - I took some notes on your suggestions and am looking forward to trying these again in the near future. I doubt mine will be comparable to the ones in the pictures but trying is half the fun!