grilled lamb kofta kebabs with pistachios and spicy salad wrap

(serves 4)

ingredients

500g trimmed shoulder or neck fillet of lamb, chopped into 2.5cm chunks
2 heaped tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
1 level tablespoon ground chilli
1 level tablespoon ground cumin
4 level tablespoons sumac, if you can find any, or finely grated zest of 1 lemon
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
a good handful of shelled pistachio nuts

a few handfuls of mixed salad leaves, such as romaine or cos, endive and rocket, washed, spun dry and shredded
a small bunch of fresh mint, leaves picked

1 red onion, peeled and very finely sliced
1 lemon
a bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked
extra virgin olive oil

4 large flatbreads or tortilla wraps
4 heaped tablespoons natural yoghurt

Method

Authentic kebabs are delicious, full of nuts, spices, herbs and fruit, as anyone who’s tasted proper Middle Eastern cooking knows. In this recipe I’m using a spice called sumac – it has a lovely flavour – but if you can’t find it, try lemon zest instead.
Buy really good minced lamb, or else a cut of trimmed shoulder or neck fillet and mince it up at home in a food processor. If you buy slightly older lamb (hogget or mutton), it’s important to ask your butcher to remove the sinews, and that you cook the meat for a few minutes longer.

This dish is best cooked on a barbecue over hot coals, but if that’s not possible, put your grill on to its highest setting or heat up a griddle pan. Either way, get your cooking source preheated.
Place the lamb in a food processor with most of the thyme, chilli, cumin and sumac (reserving a little of each for sprinkling over later), a little salt and pepper and all the pistachios. Put the lid on and keep pulsing until the mixture looks like mince.

Divide the meat into four equal pieces and get yourself four skewers. With damp hands, push and shape the meat around and along each skewer. Press little indents in the meat with your fingers as you go – this will give it a better texture when cooked.

In one bowl, mix the salad leaves and mint. In another, combine the sliced onion with a good pinch of salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice (the acidity will take the edge off and lightly pickle the raw onion). Scrunch this all together with your hands, then mix in the parsley leaves. Grill the kebabs until nicely golden on all sides. Dress your salad leaves and mint with a splash of extra virgin olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice and some salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, warm your flatbreads for 30 seconds on your griddle pan or under the grill, then divide between plates and top each with some dressed salad leaves and onion. When your kebabs are cooked, slip them off their skewers on to the flatbreads – you can leave them whole or break them up as I’ve done here. Sprinkle with the rest of the sumac, cumin, chilli and fresh thyme, and a little salt and pepper. Now either toss the salads, grilled meat and juices together on top of the flatbreads and drizzle with some of the yoghurt before rolling up and serving; or let your friends toss theirs together at the table, then dress and roll up their own, drizzled with some extra virgin olive oil.