Julius' Spiced Lamb Kebabs with a Zingy Chopped Salad and Labneh

Spiced lamb kebabs on herb skewers with a zingy chopped salad and homemade labneh made for the Make it Lamb campaign, which supports Love Lamb Week. We are lucky to produce incredible lamb here in Britain, with a naturally delicious flavour that is worth making the most of. It’s a versatile meat that stands up well to punchy flavours and works both flash fried or slow cooked.

Here I’m using lamb leg steaks, but diced lamb leg would of course work well too. This is a fun way of cooking lamb using branches of rosemary and bay to create kebab sticks that smoke and infuse the lamb with their flavour while it cooks. I've done it on the BBQ but it would work just as well under the grill too. The lamb is also rolled in a gentle spice blend and cooked over fire for smoky finish. Served with a zingy chopped salad, on a bed of homemade labneh with warm flatbreads. Enjoy!

Recipe Courtesy of Julius Roberts, @juliusroberts

Prep Time: 145 mins

Cook Time: 18 minutes

Serves: 6 people

Ingredients

  • 800g lean boneless lamb leg steaks
  • 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
  • 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
  • Salt and pepper
  • Olive oil

  • For the labneh:

  • 1 x 950g tub natural yogurt

  • For the chopped salad:

  • 2 x cucumbers (around 700g)
  • ½ red onion, peeled and sliced
  • 600g quality tomatoes, cut into chunky pieces
  • A bunch of fresh mint
  • Small bunch of fresh coriander
  • 1 lemon
  • A dash of muscatel (or similar) vinegar
  • Pomegranate molasses
  • Warm flatbreads, to serve

Method

  1. Start by cutting the lamb leg steaks into bite size chunks. Then skewer, either onto the branches of bay and rosemary, or wooden kebab skewers that have been soaked in water first. Transfer to a large plate.
  2. Add the coriander and cumin seeds to a dry pan and toast on a medium heat for a few minutes being careful they don’t Transfer to a pestle and mortar - with a generous pinch of salt, enough to season the lamb - and grind together to form a coarse powder. Sprinkle over the lamb skewers, drizzle with olive oil and roll them around to cover in the spice blend. Set to one side.
  3. To prepare the labneh, pour the yogurt into a mixing bowl, add a very generous pinch of salt and whisk together thoroughly.
  4. Pour the yogurt into a clean tea towel or some cheese cloth, then quickly tie together and hang over a large empty It will start dripping immediately as the salt draws the water out of the yogurt and after a few hours you get left with a thick tangy yogurt. If you’re tight for space, you can also just leave the tied tea towel dripping in a sieve suspended over a bowl.
  5. For the chopped salad, peel the cucumber so that you create stripes on the skin, then cut into quarters lengthways before chopping again into chunky pieces. Transfer to a large bowl with the tomatoes, then tear in the mint leaves and coriander, season generously with salt, add a good squeeze of lemon and follow with a dash of good vinegar.
  6. Toss together by hand and then have a taste, before adjusting the seasoning with more salt and acidity as required.
  7. Finally, I love to cook these kebabs over a charcoal fire where the smoke adds an incredible depth as they cook. The key is that you’re aiming for some lovely caramelisation while the meat remains blushing pink within. place on the barbecue and leave to caramelise before turning, until they are charred and golden all over. I love to brush them with a little melted butter and pomegranate molasses for a fatty sticky glaze while they cook, but this is just an added touch, but you can equally fry these in a very hot pan or under hot grill for 12-16 minutes, turning once.
  8. To serve add a generous spoon of the labneh on to each plate, cover with the chopped salad and finish with the kebabs and some warm flatbreads. Enjoy!