Siniya - Baked Lamb Kebabs W/Roasted Vegetables and Tahini

Amarante

Fri, Oct 16 2020, 11:31 am

This was excellent and it is a one pan dinner because everything is cooked on the sheet pan. You can add some pita bread or other simple carb to round out.

As the recipe states, you can sub any ground meat for the lamb but I am actually a fan of lamb so I used lamb.

One can make the tahini sauce ahead of time and the green zhug is a spice mix which can be made well ahead of time - up to a month.

Recipe looks more complicated than it is because it includes the directions for the tahini sauce and the
zhug.

Baked Lamb Kebabs with Roasted Vegetables and Tahini (Siniya)

Excerpt From: Eden Grinshpan Eating Out Loud : Bold Middle Eastern Flavors for All Day, Every Day: a Cookbook

Serves 4

Siniya (sin-ee-ya) is just so cool. It’s a Palestinian dish where the tahini is baked along with the meat (usually ground lamb, though you could use beef or turkey), which creates a whole new texture for my favorite condiment and ensures that every bite gets that garlicky, nutty flavor. Best yet, the brilliant way all the simple steps of the recipe come together in one baking dish makes this a win for me.

Vegetables

2 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed clean, cut into 1-inch-thick rounds
½ head of cauliflower, florets roughly separated
1½ cups cherry tomatoes
1 large red onion, roughly chopped
1 head of garlic, separated into cloves, unpeeled
⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Lamb Kebabs

1 pound ground lamb (or beef or turkey)
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
¼ cup pine nuts, toasted in a dry pan until fragrant
1 large shallot, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, grated
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of ground cinnamon

Finishing and Serving

1 cup Garlicky Tahini (this page)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Green Zhug (this page)

1 Prepare the vegetables: Preheat the oven to 450°F.

2 In an 11 x 15-inch baking dish (large enough to spread the vegetables out in a single layer so they brown, not steam), combine the sweet potatoes, cauliflower, tomatoes, onion, garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss thoroughly to coat. Roast until the vegetables are lightly charred, about 25 minutes.

3 Meanwhile, make the lamb kebabs: In a large bowl, combine the lamb, parsley, pine nuts, shallot, garlic, salt, coriander, cumin, pepper, and cinnamon. Mix gently with your hands to combine. Form the mixture into 8 small patties.

4 To finish and serve: In a small bowl, whisk together the garlicky tahini and 3 tablespoons water to thin it out slightly.

5 When the vegetables are lightly charred, place the patties directly on top and sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides. Drizzle everything with the thinned garlicky tahini and return to the oven until the lamb is cooked to medium, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve with green zhug over the top or on the side.

Garlicky Tahini

Makes about 2 cups

Something magical happens when you blend tahini paste with ice water: It transforms into a rich and creamy sauce or dressing (shout-out to Mike Solomonov for this ice water hack; I swear it makes the sauce that much lighter and more velvety in texture). Add a hit of garlic, lemon juice, and salt and you’ll instantly have the Swiss Army knife of condiments in your fridge that you can use to finish just about any dish—fish, meat, grains, roasted veggies, salads, or sandwiches. It’s also perfect for using as the foundation for hummus. Garlicky Tahini also happens to be how I sneak protein into any vegetable meal. I’m an addict, and now Ayv is, too.

1 cup tahini paste
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, plus more to taste
1 garlic clove, grated
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
½ cup ice water, plus more if needed (see Note)

In a medium bowl, whisk together the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and ice water. It will reach a weird, lumpy consistency, but don’t be afraid. Keep whisking until it smooths out and becomes light in color (if it doesn’t, it needs more ice water, so just add a bit more). Tahini sauce with the perfect consistency will drip through the tines of a fork, but just barely. Taste for seasoning, adding more lemon juice or salt if desired. Store in a jar in the fridge for up to 1 week. If the tahini gets too thick while in the fridge, just loosen it up with a little water before using.

NOTE This is how much I need for the brand of tahini that I use, but it may be different for you. Start with some of the water and add until you’ve gotten a smooth, creamy consistency. If you add too much water, add a little more tahini to thicken the sauce back up again.

Green Zhug

Makes about 1 cup

2 teaspoons coriander seeds, toasted in a dry pan until fragrant
2 teaspoons cumin seeds, toasted in a dry pan until fragrant
½ cup grapeseed oil
1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, thick stems removed
3 serrano peppers, stemmed
1 garlic clove, peeled but left whole
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon kosher salt

In a spice grinder, grind the toasted seeds until the mixture forms a powder. Transfer the mixture to a blender. Add the oil, parsley, serranos, garlic, turmeric and salt and blend until it comes together. Store in a jar in the fridge for up to 1 month