Lamburgers, yum! If you've got enough, I like to sandwich a slice of fresh mozzarella in the middle of each patty.

Baked Kibbeh is a tasty middle eastern dish made with ground lamb. It has lots of spices but they enhance the flavor, they don't obscure it. It is truly a lamb dish.

Raw kibbeh is very good. It is the middle eastern equivalent of steak tartare. I want to know the butcher who ground the lamb though. Or grind it myself.

Jim

Here is a link that might be useful: Baked Kibbeh

I second a lamb burger...grilled..medium rare..and you can skip the cheese in mine...but I'd like a slice of onion please.
Linda C

Well Shambo's gyros, of course.

Here is a link that might be useful: Shambo's gyros video

How about in a quiche with plenty of spinach? Or a meat pie, shepherds would be an appropriate use for lamb. Meatballs in a cream sauce? Or small deepfried meatballs with panko? Lamb dumplings? Lots of tasty options.

I make lamb meatballs, just ground lamb with Penzey's lamb spice mixed in, form meatballs and bake for 15 minutes (I make 'em small). This is great for really tasting the flavor of the lamb to determine if you like it. I love lamb and love these meatballs. If you're not wild about the flavor, you can then cover it up with some sauce to disguise it, and eat it with noodles.

I love scrambled ground lamb with rice. yum!

Deanna, lamb is not like mutton, so your friend is right. I don't like either of them, so I'm not a good judge.

However, if I had ground lamb, I'd probably go with Shambo's gyros. I can actually eat gyros without wanting to spit them out, if they have enough sauce with them.

Annie (who cooks lamb in the roaster outside on the back porch because the smell is horrible!)

Annie

Jim, I had Kibbeh at a potluck years ago. I really liked it but was always intimidated by the preparation. I thought it was too complex for me to master. Maybe I need to rethink that. Have you used the recipe you posted? Is it a good one? Also, is it possible to use regular bulgur wheat? Maybe running it through the food processor a bit to cut up the pieces more?

Annie, your comments about lamb make me chuckle. I had friends who would only eat lamb after their mom soaked it overnight in milk. They felt the milk removed the "gamey" flavor. I clearly remember a couple of years ago when a friends gave me some frozen shanks he had gotten from someone who raised lamb. I worked all day braising them. When I finally tasted the sauce, I just about spit it out. It was soooooooooooooo strong. I could not eat the stuff and ended up throwing it all out. Ever since then, I only buy fresh lamb from the supermarket. Much milder.

shambo, I'm glad it isn't just me! Elery loves lamb, and he likes the "gamey" flavor, so his favorite was some organic lamb I bought from a local farmer. I couldn't eat the stuff, or even cook it inside.

He bought some lamb at the grocery store, though, and marinated it in Jessica's lime/chipotle marinade and it wasn't nearly as strong as the farm raised stuff I got. I still cooked it out on the porch...

Annie

Annie

Geez guys, I hate beef but don't mind lamb. Isn't that funny! I mix lamb with hamburger or ground turkey and make kofta style burgers.

I like lamb once in a while and this is one of my favs. I think Ann T has a meatball recipe for lamb also, maybe with avgolemon sauce? Anyway, here is my recipe ....

Greek Meatballs

1 egg, beaten
ý cup soft breadcrumbs
2 tbsp raisins, snipped
2 tbsp pine nuts, toasted
4 cloves garlic, minced
ý tsp salt
ý tsp ground cinnamon
1 lb ground lamb
EVO

In a large bowl combine egg, bread crumbs, raisins, pine nuts, garlic, salt and cinnamon. Add lamb, mix well. Moisten hands with water and shape lamb mixture into 32 meatballs.

Preheat oven to 400F. Lightly brush a 15 x 10 pan with oil. Place meatballs ý inch apart on pan. Brush lightly with EVO.

Bake about 20 minutes or until cooked through (160F). Drizzle with additional EVO if desired and serve immediately.

Yogurt Feta Sauce
4 oz. Crumbed feta cheese
þ c. plain yogurt
2 T. milk
1 clove minced garlic
1/3 c. each chopped seeded tomato and chopped, seeded cucumber (optional)
1 t. fresh dill

Place cheese, yogurt, milk, dill and garlic for sauce into food processor using steel blade and process until smooth. Do not add the tomatoes or cukes at this point. They are not to be processed.

Oh, man! Lot's of choices!!
Right now I'm leaning toward burgers or meatballs.

Jessy, you're gonna make me go get the videos shambo sent me and watch the gyro one, aren't ya?
I don't "do" videos on the internet here at home (dial-up), but I've got the DVDs.

Thanks to everyone. IF I like it, I may have to find some more to try more of the recipes!!

Deanna

"Have you used the recipe you posted? Is it a good one?"

I have not made kibbeh. I used to order it frequently at a Syrian restaurant in Cleveland, Ohio. I liked the raw kibbeh best.

I linked that recipe just to give Deanna the gist of it. In googling for recipes I noticed more than one emphasized that it was an easy version. So apparently it can be intimidating to make.

Lamb is a favorite in my family. My daughter is known to the butcher in her supermarket as the lady who wants him to grind some lamb for burgers. Whenever I see braised lamb shanks on a menu it is an easy choice.

Jim

I've never made kibbe but my mother used to. It's labor intensive to make each one. I remember her rolling the bulgar mixture into a ball, then sticking her finger into the ball to make the hole for the meat and elongate the ball. Then, fill the hole with the meat mixture and seal it up.

When she didn't have time to make all those individually, she used to just spread half the bulgar mixture in a 9x13 pan, top it with the meat mixture, then top with the other half of the bulgar mixture. Not as pretty and cool as individual ones but it tasted just as good. IIRC she cut them through in squares or parallelograms before baking.

Now there is a Middle Eastern import store a couple of miles from my house that makes kibbe that tastes just like my mother's. Whenever I go there for any reason, I pick up a couple as a treat.

Oh quit whining, grin

Gyros
Grilled Meat Patty Sandwiches

A favorite at Greek restaurants and festivals, these sandwiches may also be made at home. A delicious alternative to the American hamburger.

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground lamb
1 pound lean ground beef/veal/pork
2 teaspoons oregano
2 tablespoons finely minced/grated onion (optional)
3 - 6 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
Olive oil

Directions:

Mix all ingredients well.
Form into eight VERY thin oval shaped patties.
Heat skillet and brush with olive oil.
Fry patties until well browned, turning once. *
Serve folded into warm pita bread.
Garnish with Tzatziki, thinly sliced onions, and thinly sliced tomatoes.
Sprinkle with Feta cheese, if desired.

*Patties may be grilled, turning once.

Woo Hoo! Whining Works! (thanks, Jessy!)

Hmmmm.......
I've got everything here except the cucumber to make tzatziki and tomatoes for garnish.

Maybe I'll make 1/2 recipe using only lamb, no other meat and just serve in pita pockets with feta and garlic yogurt.

Sounds like an easy dinner!

Deanna

Thanks for the info on kibbeh. I like lamb and grew up eating bulgur wheat pilafi as a side dish. The combination sounds so good. Maybe I'll try that easier version.

Jim, I love lamb shanks too. I fix them often. When my mom was at her assisted living home, I'd take her out to eat once or twice a week. If the restaurant had lamb shanks on the menu, I'd be sure to order them for her.

Lamb is in my DNA; I grew up eating it regularly. And, of course, we had leg of lamb every Easter. But that stuff I got from my friend was horrible. It was a shock because I had never even imagined bad tasting lamb.

I just bought some farm raised organic lamb from a local farm. I never thought it might be more "gamey" than what I'm used to... restaurants mostly, b/c DH doesn't like lamb. Do you really think I'll need to do something (like milk-soak) to tame it down?

I bought both ground lamb (so this is a great thread, as I bought more than I can eat in one sitting!) and I bought 4 loin chops. When I get ready to try the chops, I'm sure I'll be back for advice! Meanwhile, keeping this thread for kibbeh and gyros (I already had plans for lamb burgers and ground lamb w. saffron rice)

Thanks Deanna, for starting the thread!

Bizzo, I sure don't want to discourage you. The farm raised organic lamb you have might be wonderful. The stuff I got from my friend was overly strong, but that doesn't mean someone else's farm raised lamb would be similar. I suspect that my friend and his lamb-raising friend did not practice careful husbandry of their animals. My friend also gave me some steaks from his supposedly grass fed beef and it had the worst musty smell I'd ever encountered.

Moussaka! (Think I spelled it right).

OK, back with my opinion....

I guess I'm just not a lamb eater. It was better than mutton for sure, but Annie is right. It stinks while cooking and I'm still not crazy about the flavor. I think maybe it's one of those acquired tastes....and I've not acquired it!

I made simple patties seasoned with just a little oregano, garlic, salt and pepper. I served in pita pockets with homemade plain yogurt mixed with feta cheese and thinly sliced onion. I had no cucumber or tomatoes so it was just a simple sandwich with a big green salad.

Thanks everyone for the suggestions, but I don't foresee lamb on my menu very often!

Deanna

Deanna, I'm sorry you didn't care for the ground lamb. Maybe it's just my imagination but I only like it when it's fresh, not frozen. That limits to me to only buying it two places so I don't have it that often.

I make a kibbe recipe posted here in the CF by Linda in TN many years ago.

STUFFED KIBBEH

For the shells:
8 ounces (about 1 1/2 cups) bulgur (cracked wheat)
1 pound ground lamb
1 onion, coarsely chopped
salt & pepper

For the stuffing:
1 onion, finely chopped
2 Tbs. Olive oil
2 Tbs. Pine nuts
1 pound ground lamb
salt and pepper
Sprinkle of cinnamon [my addition]

Oil for deep frying

To make the shells, soak the cracked wheat for about 20 minutes in hot water to cover by at least one inch; then drain and squeeze dry. Mix the meat, onion, salt and pepper for the shells until creamy. (An electric mixer can be used.) Then add the cracked wheat in batches and continue until the mixture is soft enough to work like a dough. Knead well by hand.

For the stuffing, fry the onion in oil until soft; then add the pine nuts and fry until golden. Add the meat, salt, pepper and cinnamon and stir until the meat changes color.

Wet your hands. Take a small egg-sized portion of the shell mixture and roll it into a ball. Make a hole in the center with your finger and shape into a thin-walled pot with a pointed bottom by turning and pressing it into your palm. Place some stuffing in the hole and pinch the top of the pot together to completely seal it inside. Shape the top into a point. Repeat with the rest of the mixtures, wetting your hands frequently.

Heat the oil. Deep-fry 4 or 5 kibbeh at a time until golden brown and drain on paper towels. Serve hot. Makes 15 to 20 depending on what size you make the balls.

I follow the recipe exactly but instead of deep frying, I cook them outdoors on the grill, turning frequently.

The "strongness" of lamb is directly related to the age of the animal and the amount of fat on it. If you don't like
muttoney lamb, cut off all shreds of fat.
And unless it's very VERY lean, you may not like lamb burgers.
I love lamb....chops, burgers shanks, roast saddle of lamb....but I don't like mutton.
Linda C