I can recall, during my college days, making trips to a local Persian restaurant called Moby Dick to order a big plate of kabobs and rice, along with the homemade bread. The kabobs changed from visit to visit ... Kebab-e Kubideh, Kebab-e Jojeh, Kebab-e Chenjeh, or a combination of those kabobs. I would stuff myself with meat and rice, dispensing with the need for dinner that day.
The word "Kebab" is Persian in origin. As the story goes, Persian soldiers used to skewer pieces of meat on their swords and "grill" them over a fire. Although the dish may have originated with the Persian empire, it spread throughout the Arab world and its influence has even reached to countries with longstanding and varied cuisines such as Greece, India, Malaysia and, of course, the United States.
I still go to Moby Dick, although with far less frequency. Instead, I have decided to start making kabobs myself. The purchase of a gas grill added to the desire to make my own kabobs. I started with Kabob-e Jojeh, which also served as one of my culinary challenges for the Around the World in Eighty Dishes. The dish, Kabob-e Jojeh or Chicken Kabobs, turned out very well. After that success, I told myself I would move on to different kabobs.
The word "Kebab" is Persian in origin. As the story goes, Persian soldiers used to skewer pieces of meat on their swords and "grill" them over a fire. Although the dish may have originated with the Persian empire, it spread throughout the Arab world and its influence has even reached to countries with longstanding and varied cuisines such as Greece, India, Malaysia and, of course, the United States.
I still go to Moby Dick, although with far less frequency. Instead, I have decided to start making kabobs myself. The purchase of a gas grill added to the desire to make my own kabobs. I started with Kabob-e Jojeh, which also served as one of my culinary challenges for the Around the World in Eighty Dishes. The dish, Kabob-e Jojeh or Chicken Kabobs, turned out very well. After that success, I told myself I would move on to different kabobs.
Recently, I decided to make Kabob-e Chenjeh, which is a lamb kabob. This is an easy recipe to make. Good size chunks of lamb marinated in olive oil and lemon juice and grilled over a hot grill. This dish turned out just as well as the Kabob-e Jojeh.
KABOB-E CHENJEH
Adapted from Persian Mirror
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
2 pounds of lamb (such as boneless leg of lamb),
cut into even sized pieces.
1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup of lemon juice
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper
Directions:
1. Marinate the meat. Mix olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper and add to meat cubes. Keep meat cubes for 4 to 5 hours in refrigerator. Marinate the meat in the marinade for at least one hour, preferably four to five hours.
2. Prepare the skewers. Thread meat and tomatoes on skewers. Brush with marinade.
4. Plate the dish. Remove the meat from the skewers. Serve with rice or Persian bread.
ENJOY!
For more about kebabs, check out Wikipedia.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI am a Moby Dick Chenjeh addict, who moved to FL. Been trying to recreate the recipe for myself. I found a similar one where they added about 3 onions in the marinade and marinated overnight. It is more similar to the original, but I still haven't made it 100% exact.