The history of the traditional recipe
His triumphant journey around the worldLula kebab originated in Turkey. The origins of this recipe are lost in the centuries. There is a version that we owe the creation of the recipe to Turkish nomadic warriors, who during their long horseback riding would put a piece of meat under their saddle. The Turk would sit in the saddle, his war horse would gallop, and the meat would beat naturally, turning practically into mince. When they stopped for a rest, a fire would be lit, the meat, perfectly beaten under the saddle, would be strung on sabers, seasoned with steppe herbs and fried over an open fire. The result was a kind of shashlik, which was eaten right there, hot off the stove, with great appetite. "Kebab" is translated from the Turkic language as "fried meat", "lyulya" - "tube". In the end - everything is simple and clear. Since this is a Muslim recipe, traditionally the types of meat allowed in this religion are used in its preparation, that is, everything except pork. Most often - lamb, less often - beef and goat, and sometimes - poultry. Nowadays, lula kebab is present in the cuisines of many countries, and in each country this recipe has acquired features inherent in the culture and taste preferences of a particular people. So, in India, a similar dish is prepared from chicken meat, seasoned with spices, with the addition of vegetables and fruits, and is called rishmi kebab; in Israel, tender turkey meat, which is fried on the grill, is most often used for kebab; and in Iran, fish fillet is prepared this way. Modern chefs prepare lula kebab from carefully ground minced meat, to which fat tail fat is sometimes added for greater juiciness. Onions and spices are added to the minced meat, the mixture is formed into oblong cutlets, they are strung on skewers and fried, most often on a grill or barbecue. We will try to cook a wonderful lula kebab at home using a regular oven.
Required ingredients
- any fatty minced meat (or meat), it all depends on your preference - 500 g;
- onions - 300 g;
- fat tail or pork fat - 50 g;
- salt, pepper, garlic, spices, herbs - to taste
- wooden skewers - as many as needed.
Recipe Before you startmaster a new recipe, prepare wooden skewers. They need to be soaked in cold water for half an hour immediately before cooking. This is done so that the sticks do not burn at a high temperature in the oven. The minced meat for making lula kebab must be fatty, otherwise you will not get a traditional Caucasian dish, but simple cutlets. Grind the minced meat or pieces of meat together with onions and lard in a meat grinder or blender, add salt, pepper, garlic, finely chopped herbs, favorite spices (coriander and basil work well). You can add the juice of half a lemon. Then begin to beat and mix the resulting minced meat as thoroughly as possible. The minimum time for mixing is 7-10 minutes. For example, you can put the minced meat in a plastic bag and beat it hard on the table. Protein should come out of the meat, the mixture for lula kebab turns out viscous and homogeneous, this will allow our cutlets to stick better on the skewers. You can put the mince in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes so that it cools down, marinates and becomes more flexible. In the meantime, turn on the oven and set the temperature to 200°C. Start preparing the baking sheet. It is best to put a grate on it, which should be covered with foil on top. You should get oblong indentations. This is done so that the fat and moisture that will be released from the kebab during cooking flow down the indentations into the baking sheet without touching our dish. This will also help us achieve a slight smoky effect, which will bring our recipe as close as possible to the traditional one. Take the dish with mince out of the refrigerator, take a small portion from it and begin to form a flat cake with clean hands. Then place the prepared skewer in the middle of the cake and form an oval cutlet around it. Our products should resemble the top of a reed in some way (see photo) IMAGE 1 Place the skewers with minced meat across the grooves on a prepared grill with foil. Place the baking sheet with the grill in a preheated oven on the middle level. Do not forget to check our dish more often, watch it very carefully. Bake until the top is browned, forming an appetizing crust. Then turn the lula kebab over to the other side and wait until the second side becomes golden. The dish should be well baked, and a fabulous aroma will flow from your oven. It is best to serve lula kebab with fresh vegetables, sprinkled with vinegar or lemon juice, without removing it from the skewers. You can use any side dish at your discretion: potatoes, rice, and even pasta will do. You can also serve one or more sauces with the dish. Spicy, exquisite and aromatic lula kebab will surprise and delight your loved ones and will even be suitable as a main dish for a festive table. We hope that the recipe presented here will be useful for you. Enjoy your meal!
