Spicy Thai Lamb Kabobs

First - I apologize for my absence this last week. I really needed a break and Wednesday holiday screwed up my internal calendar. I didn't intend to take a week off from blogging, but I feel much better  now that I'm rested.

It's July, which means cookouts, weekends at the beach, and standing directly in front of the air conditioning when necessary. When it comes to summer entertaining, burgers and hot dogs have become the default setting. As much as I love the classics, I also like to mix things up a bit. Which is why I was thrilled to be able to host another lamb supper club courtesy of the Tri-Lamb Group.

Using a gorgeous boneless leg of lamb, I decided to make some yummy kabobs to throw on the grill. For this little soiree, I decided to go with a Thai theme, using my favorite spicy Thai marinade for the meat and coming up with some Thai inspired side dishes. Lamb is an ideal meat for entertaining because its flavorful and extremely lean. It grills beautifully and soaked up the complex flavors of the marinade.

I am always thrilled to have another lean meat option. On average, a 3oz serving of lamb has ONLY 175 calories. Additionally, a serving of lamb has 23 grams of filling protein, and is filled with B vitamins, iron and zinc.

Anyway, so I put together a simple menu that would incorporate a whole bunch of Thai inspired flavors, ginger, garlic, chilies and cilantro were emphasized in every dish. I'll be bringing you the rest of these recipes this week, so keep an eye out for these tasty treats.

COOKOUT MENU:

Spicy Thai Lamb Kabobs

Grilled Sweet Potatoes

Rainbow Peanut Slaw

Thai Guacamole

Raspberry Ginger Sangria

Since this was an outdoor party I had lots of opportunities to snap some photos of my garden! Everything is coming along nicely - the heat wave fried my kale, so I learned a lesson about planting cold weather crops early. So far things are coming along nicely. I've already got tons of hot peppers coming in, some will be mature in a few weeks. I've also got cherry and roma tomatoes. I am sooo excited about these. In other news, the butternut squash is taking over the garden, growing in every direction and covering all the other plants. I had no idea it would be so ... vigorous.

Read more for the full recipe!

Kebab Tips:

1. Try to cut your ingredients into roughly similar sized pieces. This will insure even cooking. Depending on the selection of veggies used, this may be a challenge
2. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours, longer if you have time
3. If using wooden skewers, always soak in water for 10-20 minutes before using to make sure they don't burn on the grill
4. Sear kabobs on direct heat and then move to indirect heat to ensure juiciness
5. Stabilize large chunks of meat and veggies with two skewers if necessary
6. Leave a small amount of space between ingredients. They should just barely touch on the skewer. This will ensure everything cooks properly and safely.


Marinade Ingredients:
1.5 cups low sodium soy sauce
juice and zest of 1 lime
2" piece of ginger, peeled
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, washed
2 jalepenos, washed (thai chilies are best but hard to find)

Kabob Ingredients:
24 oz boneless leg of lamb, trimmed
1 medium yellow onion, skin removed
1 large red bell pepper, washed, seeded and cut into 1" chunks
1 medium zucchini, washed, sliced in half and cut into 1" slices
8-12 cherry tomatoes
4-6 leftover chilies from marinade
8 wooden or metal skewers

Instructions:

1. Make the marinade. Combine soy sauce, lime juice and zest, ginger, cilantro and 2 chilies (or jalapenos) in a food processor. Puree. Set aside.

2. Cut leg of lamb into 1-1.5” chunks. A 24oz leg of lamb should yield anywhere from 24-30 chunks, depending on how you cut it. Aim for similarly sized, square pieces, as these will cook evenly.

3. Slice onion into quarters and then halve each quarter. This will yield triangle sized chunks of onions.

4. Slice pepper into 1” square chunks

5. Cut zucchini in half, length wise. Then cut into ½” wide slices

6. Thread veggies and lamb onto skewers in any order or combination of your choice. Use 3-4 chunks of lamb per skewer and make sure to separate the pieces of lamb with veggie chunks. I used the following order of ingredients: zucchini, lamb, onion, lamb, pepper, lamb, onion, lamb, pepper, tomato, chili. Depending on how long your skewers are, you may be able to fit some more veggies. 

7. Make sure to leave a small amount of space (think ¼”) between pieces on the kebobs. This will ensure everything cooks properly

8. In a shallow dish or pan, arrange skewers and cover with marinade. Make sure to evenly distribute the marinade so that all ingredients are coated. 

9. Cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate. Marinate for at least 3 hours before grilling

10. Remove meat and discard any excess liquid.

11. Heat gas or charcoal grill. If using gas, set temperature to high heat. If using charcoal, prepare hot coals and then spread in one even layer.

12. Grill kabobs for 10-15 minutes, turning 3-4 times, until meat is medium-rare. If you are using a meat thermometer, remove lamb from heat when the thickest part reads 140 degrees Fahrenheit.

13. Allow kabobs to rest for 8-10 minutes. Serve!