Şeftali – Cypriot kebab
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These şeftali – Cypriot kebabs – take a little bit of time to assemble, but they're more than worth the effort – the flavour you get from the combination of beef mince, lamb suet, onion and parsley is incredible, particularly when cooked over a barbecue. You can use any combination of beef or lamb here, but make sure you soak your caul fat properly to remove all the impurities. This is definitely a recipe that's worth making in big batches – once you get into a groove, you can make a lot of kebabs in a short amount of time!
Ingredients
Şeftali
- 900g of beef mince
- 450g of onion , finely chopped
- 200g of flat-leaf parsley , finely chopped
- 15g of fine salt
- 30g of pul biber chilli flakes
- 200g of lamb suet , frozen, then finely grated
- 3kg lamb caul fat , soaked in cold water with lemon for an hour
Parsley salad
- 1 bunch of flat-leaf parsley , leaves picked
- 1 red onion, sliced paper thin
- 1 pinch of sumac
- olive oil
- salt
To serve
- 3 lavash, or tortillas, cut into triangles
- 3 lemons , cut into wedges
Equipment
- Metal skewers
- Barbecue
Method
1
Light your barbecue – when the coals turn grey they are ready to use. Alternatively preheat your oven to 180ºC fan, or 200ºC conventional
2
Combine the beef mince, onion, parsley, salt, chilli and lamb suet. Knead for 5-10 minutes until well combined, then weigh out the mix into 85g balls and shape into sausages around 7cm long
- 900g of beef mince
- 450g of onion
- 200g of flat-leaf parsley
- 15g of fine salt
- 30g of pul biber chilli flakes
- 200g of lamb suet , frozen, then finely grated
3
To wrap the şeftali, stretch out a large piece of caul fat over your board. Place a sausage onto one corner and cut a piece of caul fat around the sausage big enough to leave a 1cm gap on either side and long enough to roll around one and a half times
- 3kg lamb caul fat , soaked in cold water with lemon for an hour
4
Place each şeftali onto skewers. You will need to use two skewers for the şeftali, one at either end to make sure they don't unravel. Alternatively, if you have a set of bars that sandwich together (like a grilling basket) you can line them up in there and use that. Continue to skewer the kebabs – you can fit multiple şeftali on each pair of skewers – until they're all secured
5
Cook over medium-hot coals seasoning with a little extra fine salt as you go and turning regularly. The şeftali should take 10-15 minutes to cook. Alternatively if you're cooking in the oven, sear the outside of the şeftali in a hot pan then roast in a 180ºC oven for 8 minutes
6
Make the parsley salad – combine the red onion and parsley, and dress with a good pinch of sumac, a dash of good olive oil and a little pinch of salt
- 1 bunch of flat-leaf parsley , leaves picked
- 1 red onion, sliced paper thin
- 1 pinch of sumac
- olive oil
- salt
7
Serve two şeftali on top of two pieces of lavash (or tortilla), and dress the top with some of the parsley salad. Serve with a lemon wedge on the side
- 3 lavash, or tortillas, cut into triangles
- 3 lemons , cut into wedges
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Şeftali – Cypriot kebab
