Turkish Adana Kebabs get their name from Adana, a city in Turkey, where they have said to have originated. Adana kebabs are traditionally made of minced lamb on a skewer and they are grilled over charcoal. They are mildly spicy, tender and juicy. The recipe and the ingredients are so simple, yet these kebabs are so full of flavour.
Jump to RecipeHOW TO MAKE TURKISH ADANA KEBABS
Adana kebabs are fairly easy to make. Traditionally Lamb mince is used to make Turkish Adana Kebabs. A special ingredient added is the lamb tail fat. Since tail fat is not easily available you can omit it. Another thing that sets apart Adana kebabs from other kebabs, is the distinctive technique of hand chopping. Chop the mince and chillies together on the cutting board using a knife, instead of using a food processor.
The ingredients required for making Adana Kebabs are below:
- Lamb Mince – Use lamb mince with little fat content, it shouldn’t be lean and also mince shouldn’t be very finely grinded.
- Peppers – Use mild peppers,, red and green. If the peppers are strong you can deseed them
- Garlic – Fresh cloves of garlic.
- Crushed red chilli – These are a must to get distinctive chilli flavour of kebabs. You can use less then mentioned quantities.
- Paprika, cumin and salt.
Begin with chopping peppers and garlic untill finely chopped. Add Spices and mince and continue to mix the mince with knife untill everything combined well. Allow mince to rest for 15 minutes. The authentic way is to use flat metal skewers for Adana kebabs. You can use flat wooden skewers as well or if they are unavailable, use any skewers . Make the kebabs slightly flattened on the skewer.
HOW TO GRILL THE ADANA KEBABS
You can choose any of the following method to cook Adana kebabs:
- Grill: The authentic way to make the Adana Kebab is charcoal grill. This gives them a beautiful flavour.
- Pan-fry: Use a cast iron pan or heavy pan with little oil.
- Oven: Use ovens grill function. But do remember to keep an eye out as they can burn quickly. Once they are grilled on one side, turn them over.
What ever method you use make sure you don’t over cook the kebabs. Overcooking makes the kebabs dry and tough.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH ADANA KEBABS
Serve Turkish Adana Kebabs with grilled peppers, onion and tomatoes. You can make onion salad with thinly sliced onions, Sumac , lemon juice and olive oil. Serve them with traditional Turkish Bread Lavash.
Watch how to make it.
More Kebab Recipes to Try
Turkish Adana Kebabs
Ingredients
- 500 g Lamb Mince
- 2 Green Peppers
- 1 Red Pepper
- 2 Garlic Cloves
- 1 tsp Paprika
- 1 tsp Crushed Red Chilli
- ¼ tsp Cumin Powder
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Oil
Instructions
- Chop peppers and garlic on cutting board until finely chopped.
- Add all the spices and mince. Using knife mix untill all ingridienst are combined well. Allow the mince to rest for 15 minutes.
- If you are using bamboo or wooden sticks soak them in water to prevent burning.
- Divide mince into small portions and make a ball out of mince. Slighly make it oval shape and then put it through skewers. Starting from the top slightly press and move to the bottom to flatten it.
- Heat a cast iron pan until hot. Pour the oil and put skewers. Cook untill done on one side and turn over. Don't over cook, it shouldn't be more than 3 minutes on each side.
- Server Immediately with Turkish bread or pita along with garlic sauce and salad.
Very detailed and thorough recipe! The end product looks delicious I’m trying these kebabs soon!!
Thanks Najia, do try them. I hope they turn out great !!