Turkey kebabs Middle Eastern style

Turkey kebabs Middle Eastern style

When someone says – Kebabs. What comes to your mind first? A piece of meat loaded with fat!
Well; after all, kebabs have been known to be tastiest because of all that fat keeping the meat moist.

Honestly, we can’t afford those kebabs.
So here’s how I make my healthy turkey kebabs Middle Eastern style.
Tasty, delicious and easy to make.

Serves 4
Here’s what you’ll need:
500 grams ground Turkey
1 large onion – chopped fine.
1 large garlic minced fine.
1 inch piece of ginger minced fine.
1/2 cup chopped Parsley
1/2 tsp Cumin powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/4  tsp all spice powder (optional)
1/4 tsp cinnamon powder (optional)
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp Chilly powder (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp lemon juice
Kebab skewers – soaked in water for half hour.

Method:
Place the ground meat into a bowl.
Ideally you could add all the ingredients in with the meat and form the kebabs but I do it slightly different.

Saute the onions until they are translucent.

Now add the onions and all the rest of the ingredients into the bowl with the meat.  Don’t forget the lemon juice or salt and pepper.

Mix well. But do not over mix or the kebabs will be tough.
Dip your hand in some water to avoid the meat from sticking to your hands.
Now divide the meat mixture into equal portions.
Take each portion in your hands. Form into a ball, then a sausage.
Thread your skewer thru the sausage.

This is how they should look. Do not make them too large or too fat. Keep them similar in size so they cook evenly.

You could fire up your grill and grill these babies for about 10 to 15 minutes OR
For an everyday lunch I don’t have patience with the grill.
I heat a skillet on high.
Once the skillet is very very hot, place the kebabs on.

Usually, you do not need any oil and this helps to brown the meat faster avoiding the need to over cook the meat due to browning. Besides the fat in the meat will melt into the pan.

Do not move the kebabs for at least 2 to 3 minutes cause they will be stuck to the pan.
Once browned they will be easy to move. Patience.

After three minutes – flip them over.
If your meat is as lean as mine here – and you feel the need to add oil – add no more than a tbsp at a time.

after three minutes check the sides to see if they are browned – if not flip.
I added one tblsp of oil while turning them around.
Ground meat usually cooks faster, especially chicken and turkey – so do not over cook.
Usually about 10 to 15 minutes…in total.

And there you have it.. Middle Eastern Turkey Kebabs.

I do hope you try these.  Enjoy.
As in the picture above -I usually serve these with Tahina sauce, Pita bread and a side salad.
I showed you how to make Tahina sauce in my post Chicken Shawarma Pita pockets

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