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    Home » Beef & Lamb

    Turkish Lamb Adana Kebab

    Published: Feb 27, 2020 · Modified: Sep 8, 2022 · By Qashang · This post may contain affiliate links.

    Jump to Recipe
    Adana Kebab is a spicy, long lamb mince kebab from Turkey with flavours of sumac, chili and parsley dominating it.  It is served with flatbread, Turkish salad and a garlic yogurt dip.  
     
    Turkish Lamb Adana Kebab on a plate garnished with lemon wedges, cherry tomatoes and parsley

    What Is Adana Kebab

    It is one of the most popular kebabs in the Turkish cuisine. Adana Kebab originated in the city of Adana in Turkey and is made of ground lamb mounted on a metal skewer and then grilled over hot coals. It is seasoned with sumac, chili flakes, cumin and some other spices.

    Turkish Lamb Adana Kebab looks very similar to the Pakistani Seekh Kabab. They have a slightly different flavour profile but like Seekh Kabab it is long, made with mince meat and after mounting it on iron skewers it is grilled. 

    Please note, this is my version of the Turkish Lamb Adana Kebab made with ingredients that are readily available.

     
    Closeup of Lamb Adana Kebab garnished with cherry tomatoes and parsley

    Notes On Turkish Lamb Adana Kebab Ingredients

    • The Adana Kebab is traditionally made with lamb. You can substitute the meat with beef or mutton if you want.
    • Sumac is a tangy spice used commonly in Turkish cuisine. It can be replaced with powdered dried pomegranate seeds.
    • Parsley is also a very important herb for these kebabs and tastes quite different from coriander/cilantro. But if you are unable to get it, you can use coriander.
    • Red chili flakes add the heat to these kebabs. If you are not fond of chili reduce it to ½ or 1 teaspoon.
    A plate of adana kebabs on skewers with garnish on top and sides around it

    Cooking Methods

    1. Grill: The authentic way is to make the Adana Kebab on a charcoal grill. The flavour and aroma of the charcoal totally elevates these kebabs.
    2. Pan-fry: Add a few tablespoons of oil to a flat pan (tawa), wrap the meat on wooden or metal skewers and cook till golden on all sides.
    3. Bake: For baking follow the instructions in my Baked Seekh Kababs recipe.

    Serving Ideas

    I love serving these Adana Kebabs with flatbread or pita, Garlic Yogurt Sauce (see recipe card below) and Turkish Salad (see recipe card below). You can also make wraps with these and have them for lunch.

    Adana Kebab with garnishes on top and Turkish salad and flatbread on the side

    Watch How To Make It

    You can watch a step-by-step tutorial of Turkish Lamb Adana Kebab in my Instagram highlights here.

    More Kebab Recipes

    • Lebanese Kafta Kebab
    • Joojeh Kebab with Saffron Rice
    • Pakistani Gola Kabab
    • Chapli Kabab

    Let’s stay connected! Follow me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest for the latest updates. And subscribe to my YouTube channel for video recipes.

    📖 Recipe

    Turkish Adana Kebab on a dish with garnishes on top

    Turkish Lamb Adana Kebab

    A spicy, long lamb mince kebab with flavours of sumac, chili and parsley.
    4.72 from 14 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Prep Time: 15 minutes mins
    Cook Time: 15 minutes mins
    Total Time: 30 minutes mins
    Servings: 6 big kebabs
    Author: Qashang

    Ingredients 

    FOR THE KEBABS

    • 500 g mince lamb or beef
    • 1 ½ teaspoon salt
    • 2 teaspoon sumac
    • 2 teaspoon red chili flakes
    • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
    • 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
    • 1 teaspoon crushed black pepper
    • 2 teaspoon roasted and crushed cumin
    • pinch cinnamon
    • ½ onion chopped
    • 3 tablespoon yogurt
    • 2-3 tablespoon parsely chopped

    FOR SPICE MIX

    • ½ teaspoon sumac
    • ½ teaspoon red chili flakes
    • ½ teaspoon crushed black pepper
    • ½ teaspoon roasted and crushed cumin

    FOR GARLIC YOGURT SAUCE

    • 1 cup yogurt
    • 3 tablespoon lemon juice
    • 3-4 cloves of fresh garlic minced
    • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
    • ½ teaspoon salt

    FOR TURKISH SALAD

    • 1 red onion sliced
    • 1 tomato sliced
    • 2 tablespoon parsley chopped
    • 2-3 tablespoon lemon juice
    • 1 tablespoon olive oil
    • ½ teaspoon sumac
    • pinch salt
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Add all the kebab ingredients to the food processor and pulse till incorporated. Rest the meat at least for 2 hours, overnight is best though.
    • Moisten your hand with water and make equal sized balls of the mixture. I was using big iron skewers so got around 6 huge balls. Take a metal or wooden skewer and make long, flat kebabs on it.
    • Heat a flat pan (or tawa) and drizzle 2-3 tablespoon oil. Place your kebabs on medium heat and cook for a few minutes each side until charred. Do not over cook them or they will get dry.
    • Alternatively, you can grill them on an outdoor charcoal grill or bake them. For baking see the Cooking Methods heading above.
    • Mix together the spice mix ingredients. And when the Adana Kebabs are cooked sprinkle it on both sides. You can also add it while they are cooking.
    • Now, make the Garlic Yogurt Sauce by combining everything together.
    • Also add all the Turkish salad ingredients in a bowl.
    • Serve the Adana Kebabs with flatbread, Garlic Yogurt Sauce, Turkish Salad, lemon wedges and pickled peppers.

    Notes

    • If you can't find sumac, grind dried pomegranate seeds and use them in the same quantity.
    Did you make this recipe?Please leave a star rating and a review in the comments. You can also tag @chilitochoc on Instagram. I love hearing your feedback!

    PIN IT FOR LATER

    Adana Kebab (Turkish Ground Meat Kebab) - Pinterest
    « Mini Pizza Rolls (Two Ways)
    Beef Kofta Curry (Pakistani Meatballs Curry) »

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    1. Richard says

      May 06, 2023 at 7:54 pm

      5 stars
      The kebab grilled on the green egg, some flat bread and sharisa sauce it was delicious.... To late for a picture lol Thanks 👍

      Reply
    2. Iain Lamond says

      October 11, 2021 at 3:59 am

      5 stars
      I made this and left overnight and we loved it, there was a bit too much so we made it with what we didn't cook the day after, it had lost a lot of flavour and bite, I thought it may have improved.
      Just something to bear in mind but we will certainly be adding this to our BBQ favourites, we also used tradidional Turkish bread rather than flatbread.

      Reply
    3. Bob wilkinson says

      April 05, 2021 at 2:59 pm

      5 stars
      Having lived in Turkey snd missing the food,?I tried this recipe with exact ingredients. Oh my, charcoal grill is truly the only way to cook these.

      Reply
      • Qashang says

        April 05, 2021 at 3:45 pm

        So happy to know you liked the recipe Bob! And definitely they taste best on a charcoal grill.

        Reply
    4. Areeba Nadeem says

      November 15, 2020 at 9:31 am

      5 stars
      Hi dear, I made these kebabs using the ingredients accurately. They tasted amazing and very tasty. The only issue I faced is that they were a bit hard after cooking. I made them in a very hot pan. Please advise how to make them softer.

      Reply
      • Chili to Choc says

        November 16, 2020 at 2:10 pm

        I am glad you liked the taste of the kebabs Areeba. To keep the them juicy, don't mix the meat too much in the beginning and don't over cook the kebabs. Hope this helps!

        Reply
    5. Asma Sheikh says

      April 11, 2020 at 5:49 pm

      I'm the old fan of Kebab. Going to take the taste soon.
      Thanks for sharing.

      Reply
      • Chili to Choc says

        July 12, 2020 at 4:07 pm

        My pleasure! Hope you like them.

        Reply
        • Lin says

          June 23, 2021 at 7:10 pm

          Very tasty but I found it hard to hold on the skewer? How do you stop the meat falling off the skewer?? I can’t find the flat ones they use
          Thanks

          Reply
          • Qashang says

            July 05, 2021 at 11:51 am

            Make shorter kababs, use enough meat that there are no gaps between the kabab and make sure the meat is finely minced.

            Reply
            • stefan says

              April 14, 2023 at 11:05 pm

              you can also use two skewers thru the meat so you can flip it and it won't spin.

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