Serious Eats: Recipes
Cook the Book: Ground Lamb Kebabs with Turkish Hot Peppers
[Photograph: Caroline Russock]
Every night this summer when the temperatures have risen to cooking-prohibitive territory I've turned to my local Turkish delivery joint and ordered plates of Adana kebab served with grilled flat bread, a lemony cucumber and tomato salad, a spicy onion relish, and a tart yogurt sauce to complete the sandwich. As far as delivery food goes the combo is ideal—the flavors are fresh and lively and there are more than enough fresh vegetables involved to ward off any feelings of takeout-related guilt.
I was ready for the flavors of my favorite Ground Lamb Kebabs with Turkish Hot Peppers to remain a mystery to me until I got my hands on a copy of Planet Barbecue! by Steven Raichlen. After reading through Raichlen's extensive research on the subject, my beloved Adana kebab seemed much more accessible—the unique flavoring of the lamb coming from a combination of Syrian Aleppo pepper, chopped parsley, and paprika. Once all of the herbs and spices are mixed with the ground lamb and grilled the flavors were a dead ringer for my favorite take out, possibly even better, fresher, brighter, and lambier.
As always with our Cook the Book feature, we have five (5) copies of Planet Barbecue! to give away this week.