This is an authentic Indian curried beef mince recipe called Qeema (or keema or kheema). It’s a gem of a find because it tastes incredible but unlike many Indian dishes, there are no hard-to-find spices in the ingredients. And it’s super fast – on the table in 20 minutes! 

Qeema – Quick & Easy Indian Curried Beef Mince

This recipe is an excellent way to get an Indian food fix without having to hunt down hard-to-find Indian spices.

It’s also an excellent way to change up your usual rotation of beef mince recipes. Spag Bol, we love you, but sometimes it’s nice to try something new!!

And new this is. You probably haven’t seen Qeema on Indian restaurant menus because it’s a home cooking meal. But blimey, it’s a great find! 100% legit Indian flavours, 7 minute prep, 13 minute cook. Get all the spices from regular grocery stores – turmeric, garam masala, cumin, coriander and cayenne pepper.

What you need for Qeema

The key to achieving the bold, authentic Indian curried beef flavour in this quick ‘n easy recipe is a good amount of fresh garlic and ginger, and a generous amount of ground spices.

Here’s what you need:

• Beef mince – That’s ground beef to those of you in the States! I’m using lean today, but regular is fine (fattier – juicier). I also made this recipe a few years ago using chicken mince which was terrific.

• Fresh garlic and ginger – Key to flavour in this otherwise simple Indian dish, so don’t skip these.

• Spices – Garam masala, cumin, coriander, turmeric and cayenne pepper. You can get all these at regular grocery stores here in Australia. Garam masala is an Indian spice mix which I tell people is the “better curry powder” because it tastes more legit, whereas the curry powders you get at regular grocery stores are very Westernised.

• Fresh coriander/cilantro for garnish. (Skip if you’re not a coriander fan).

• Green cayenne pepper (optional garnish) – This is for garnish, and it adds fresh chilli flavour without much spiciness because cayenne peppers are not that spicy. But it’s entirely optional, so feel free to omit!

How to make Qeema

1. Sauté – Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Add ginger and garlic and saute for 30 seconds until golden, don’t let it burn! Add onion and cook for 1 minute until it is starting to turn translucent.

2. Add beef and cook, breaking it up as you go, until it changes from pink to light brown. Add remaining ingredients EXCEPT water. Cook for a further 2 minutes to let the spices bloom.

3. Cook 10 minutes – Add water, give it a stir, then put a lid on (or cover with a baking tray if you don’t have a lid for your pan). Turn heat down to medium and let it simmer for 10 minutes or until most of the water has evaporated, but still a bit juicy.

4. Serve over with basmati rice or plain white rice, garnished with extra chilli and coriander/cilantro, and lots of Mint Yogurt. Naan or flatbreads would make it even better, though if time is not your friend, try frozen roti (pictured in post, more on this below the photo).

What to serve with Qeema

Serve over basmati rice and mint yogurt or plain yogurt (recipe below for mint yogurt). Then mix up the beef into the rice so it flavours the rice, then dig in!

It’s also pictured above with flaky, buttery roti which I stuffed with the Qeema and rice. Not homemade. I always have a stash of frozen ones which you can get at regular grocery stores. I love them because they can be cooked from frozen in a few minutes – how good is that! Ideal to use for any and all Indian / South East Asian saucy foods, like curries.

Though, if I have the time (or foresight to plan in advance), you can’t beat homemade naan. 😊

For vegetable sides, try one of these:

• Indian Tomato Salad with Mint Raita Dressing

• South Indian Carrot & Cabbage Salad with Coconut is fresh and popping with flavours – love the coconut flavour in this!

• Give this Everyday Cabbage Salad an Indian spin by sautéing garlic and cumin seeds in oil before mixing up with other Dressing ingredients.

Indian Tomato Salad with Mint Dressing

Cabbage & Carrot Thoran-style Indian Salad

Everyday Cabbage Salad

I really hope you try this Qeema recipe, the flavour is so authentic! Something a little different to make with that packet of beef mince you threw in your shopping trolley on the weekend. – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

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Qeema Indian Curried Beef

An authentic Indian spiced ground (minced) beef recipe known as Qeema (or keema or kheema). This is a gem of a recipe because it tastes incredible but unlike many Indian dishes, there are no hard-to-find spices in the ingredients. And it's super fast – on the table in 20 minutes!

Serve over basmati rice. Great with plain yogurt, even better with Mint Yogurt.

Course Dinner

Cuisine Indian

Keyword beef mince curry, curried beef, queema

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 255cal

Author Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp vegetable or canola oil , or other neutral oil
• 4 tsp ginger , finely mince
• 5 large garlic cloves , minced (about 4 tsp)
• 1 large onion , finely diced
• 500g / 1 lb beef mince (ground beef)
• 3/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper or chilli powder (pure, not US chili powder spice mix), omit for not spicy
• 1 1/4 tsp garam masala (Note 1)
• 1 1/4 tsp cumin powder
• 1 1/4 tsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 cup water

Garnish

• 1 green cayenne pepper , deseeded, finely sliced
• Cilantro/coriander leaves
• Plain yogurt or Mint yogurt (below)

Mint yogurt (optional, pictured in post)

• 3/4 cup plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup (lightly packed) mint leaves
• 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt

Instructions

• Sauté – Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Add ginger and garlic and saute for 30 seconds until golden, don't let it burn! Add onion and cook for 1 minute until it is starting to turn translucent.
• Add beef and cook, breaking it up as you go, until it changes from pink to light brown. Add remaining ingredients EXCEPT water. Cook for a further 2 minutes to let the spices bloom.
• Cook 10 minutes – Add water, give it a stir, then put a lid on (or cover with a baking tray). Turn heat down to medium and let it simmer for 10 minutes or until most of the water has evaporated.
• Serve over with basmati rice or plain white rice, garnished with extra chilli and coriander/cilantro, and lots of Mint Yogurt. Naan or flatbreads would make it even better, though if time is not your friend, try frozen roti (pictured in post, Note 3).

Mint yogurt

• Blitz then stir – Put just 1/4 cup of the yogurt with the mint leaves and salt in a jug just big enough to fit the head of a stick blender. Blitz until mint is very finely chopped. Then stir in remaining yogurt. (Note 4) Refrigerate until required.

Notes

Recipe credit – very slightly adapted from this Indian Queema Minced Beef by Scrambled Chefs.

---

1. American “Chili Powder” is not pure ground chilli, it contains other spices like paprika and is not very spicy. This recipe calls for pure ground chilli for spiciness, or cayenne pepper.

2. Garam Masala – Spice mix used in Indian cooking, a more legit curry powder. Sold at regular grocery stores in Australia -> Coles, Woolworths, Harris Farms.

3. Roti – Flaky Indian round flatbread that’s sold in the freezer section of large grocery stores these days. Love them because they’re so handy – cook from frozen on the stove in just a couple of minutes. Cheap, tasty, if you’ve never tried it, it’s a game changer! 🙂

4. Mint yogurt – Blitzing makes yogurt watery. So just blitz the minimum to puree the mint, then stir the rest in which thickens the sauce up again.

5. Leftovers keep for 3 – 4 days in the fridge, or freezer for 3 months.

Nutrition for beef only, not including rice or yogurt sauce.

Nutrition

Serving: 172g | Calories: 255cal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 78mg | Sodium: 525mg | Potassium: 517mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 217IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 4mg

First published April 2016. Republished 7 years later with sparkling new photos, brand new recipe video (couldn’t make them back then!) and of course added a Life of Dozer section!

My easiest Indian recipes

More easy Indian recipes!

Butter Chicken

One-pan Baked Butter Chicken

Oven Baked Tandoori Chicken

Naan recipe – chewy & fluffy!

Chicken Tikka Masala

Beef Biryani

Chickpea Curry with Potato (Chana Aloo Curry)

Indian Recipes

Life of Dozer

He doesn’t realise it’s a vegetable platter. (Yet).

The post Qeema – Easy Indian Curried Beef Mince appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Hailing from southern Thailand, Thai Tumeric Chicken (Gai Yang Khamin) is lip-smackingly delicious street food that’s sweet, sticky and savoury. The marinade is unbelievably simple: garlic, fish sauce, oyster sauce, turmeric powder and sugar. The turmeric really makes it!

Southern Thai Turmeric Chicken (Gai Yang Khamin)

This is a great one to marinade tonight and bake tomorrow, to bring authentic Thai flavours to your dinner table! It’s sweet but has layers of savoury, and is incredibly delicious for something so simple.

With the excellent street food in Thailand, it will come to no surprise that I found this during my travels. It’s a street food that hails from the south called Gai Yang Khamin, and is one of those recipes that tastes like it has way more ingredients in it than it does.

At the time I tried it, I didn’t know what it was called, though the mystery was solved through furious Googling for “yellow Thai grilled chicken” in my determination to replicate it back at home.

Street vendors grill this over smokey coals and use butterflied whole chicken. I bake it in the oven and use chicken thighs instead to make it Monday-night-friendly. This does not, however, compromise flavour – it is still ridiculously delicious!

Ingredients in Thai Turmeric Chicken

This is one of those recipes that tastes like it’s got way more ingredients in it that it does. I get a secret thrill out of finding recipes like this!!

For the juiciest, stickiest chicken with the best glaze, bone-in thighs are best. But I’ve provided directions for breast and other cuts.

• Chicken – As noted above, skin-on, bone-in thighs are best because the time it takes for the skin to go sticky and golden is the same time it takes for the inside to cook through to juicy perfection. Leaner, boneless cuts, like breast and boneless thigh, cook through faster, before the surface has a chance to caramelise. However, I’ve provided directions for these – and you could always pan fry instead! Drumsticks are also an excellent, economical option – these work perfectly as a direct substitute.

• Turmeric powder – Key flavour and colour for this dish. This is what makes this Thai Turmeric chicken!!

• Fish sauce – Secret ingredient! Adds salt with extra layers of flavour so this otherwise simple marinade isn’t bland.

• Oyster sauce – Second secret ingredient! Adds sweetness with savoury undertones.

• Sugar – For extra sweetness.

• Garlic – Quite a decent wack!

• Pepper – I like the flavour white pepper brings to this but you can substitute with black pepper.

How to make Thai Turmeric Chicken

Pop this in the marinade tonight then bake it tomorrow! Marinade for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight. Then bake and baste until golden and sticky (45 minutes).

1. Mix the marinade in a bowl – garlic, fish sauce, oyster sauce, sugar and turmeric.

2. Marinade the chicken for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight.

3. Bake on a lined tray for 50 minutes until the surface is sticky and delicious.

4. Baste using the tray juices at the 30 minute mark….

5. Then baste again at the 40 minute mark and pop it back in for a final 10 minutes to caramelise the surface.

6. Garnish with fresh coriander/cilantro leave if you want (it’s just for looks), then serve using the pan juices as a sauce!

What to serve with Thai Turmeric Chicken

Serve this with a pile of steaming jasmine or coconut rice and plain chunks of cucumber and tomato, something you commonly see served as a vegetable side all over Thailand. The fresh crunch of cucumber and juiciness of tomato is a nice contrast to the sweet-savoury-meatiness of the chicken, with the added bonus that you don’t have to bother with a dressing. I’m not going to argue with that!

Though, if you are a better person than me and would like to make more of an effort for your side salad, you could toss any fresh or steamed greens with Asian Sesame Dressing (for a quick option). For a more substantial side salad, try Thai Chicken Salad minus the chicken, or Thai Beef Salad minus the beef (I love the dressing of these salads).

And here are some more options for things to serve on the side:

Suggestions for sides

Coconut Rice (fluffy, not gluey!)

Green Papaya Salad

Thai Fried Rice

Pineapple Fried Rice (Thai)

Thai Prawn, Mango and Avocado Noodle Salad

Supreme Soy Noodles (NEW recipe – finally!)

Garlic rice

Or, eat it street food style – just grab the chicken with your hands and munch it on the go. You know I did! (Though the vision is slightly different – in my kitchen at home in my scruffy apron, rather than the bustling streets of Thailand.😂)

– Nagi x

Watch how to make it

Back to the old-style hands only video for this one! Ran out of time to do the new style with me and Dozer in it.

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Thai Turmeric Chicken (Gai Yang Khamin)

Recipe video. This is based on a popular southern Thailand street food that's typically made with a butterflied chicken grilled over smokey coals. It's sweet but has complexity owing to the simple but clever marinade.

Here, I'm making a home version using the marinade for bone-in chicken thighs instead and baked it in my boring oven. I miss the charcoal flavour but it's still lip smackingly delicious! The tumeric powder really makes it.

Course BBQ/Grilling, Dinner

Cuisine Thai

Keyword Thai chicken, thai marinade, turmeric chicken

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes minutes

Marinade 3 hours hours

Total Time 3 hours hours 50 minutes minutes

Servings 5

Calories 505cal

Author Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Ingredients

• 5 large chicken thighs, skin-on, bone-in (~1.2kg/2.4lb) (Note 1)

Marinade

• 4 garlic cloves , finely minced or crushed using garlic press
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 1/2 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tsp white pepper , ground (sub black)
• 1 tbsp ground turmeric
• 1/4 cup brown sugar (tightly packed cup)

Instructions

• Marinade chicken – Mix Marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Add chicken and toss to coat. Marinade for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight.
• Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan-forced).
• Prepare – Line a tray with baking paper/parchment paper. Place chicken on the tray, skin side up. Scrape all Marinade out of th bowl and dab onto chicken.
• Bake for 40 minutes, basting at the 30 minute and 40 minute mark using the tray juices to make it golden brown and sticky, and rotate the tray as needed for even colour.
• Increase the oven temperature to 200°C/390°F (180°C fan-forced). Pop the chicken back in for a final 10 minutes to caramelise the skin.
• Rest for 3 minutes before serving with jasmine or coconut rice, and plain chunks of tomato and cucumber the Thai way!

Notes

1. Chicken cuts – For the oven, bone-in thighs are best because they remain juicy with the oven time needed to caramelise the skin nicely. Drumsticks run a close second (use around the same weight).

Next best is boneless thighs, then bringing up the rear is tenderloin and breast (recommend adding 1 tbsp oil into the marinade). Use around 750g/1.5lb for any of these cuts.

2. Cooking methods – This recipe can be cooked on the BBQ, stove or baked. Take care on the stove and BBQ as the sugar burns, so use medium heat.

• Stove – Heat a skillet over medium heat. Place skin side down and cover with a lid. Cook for 5 minutes or until the skin is dark golden. Then turn and cover with a lid again. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes until cooked through, basting the skin with the residual marinade in the bowl. 
• BBQ – use medium heat and cook for around 15 minutes in total, basting the skin with the marinade in the bowl).
• Other cuts:
  – Drumsticks: Bake 50 minutes.
  – Skinless boneless thighs: Bake 20 – 25 minutes, or stove/BBQ for 5 minutes each side on medium.
  – Breast: Bake for 20 minutes, or stove/BBQ for around 5 minutes on each side on medium.

3. Recipe source: Slightly adapted from this Tumeric Chicken recipe from Real Thai Recipes.

Nutrition per serving assuming 5 servings. This does not take into account the fat that is rendered out when cooking.

Nutrition

Serving: 260g | Calories: 505cal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 34g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 200mg | Sodium: 972mg | Potassium: 504mg | Fiber: 0.5g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 160IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 39mg | Iron: 2mg

Originally published November 2015. Updated with sparkling new photos with a recipe video added and most importantly, Life of Dozer section added!SaveSaveSaveSave

Life of Dozer

When Dozer sings.

(Aka annoying, persistent bark that he quickly realised is a highly effective way to get me to play with him, on command. #sucker)

The post Thai Turmeric Chicken appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Lamb Souvlaki skewers are Greek kebabs with bold garlic-lemon-oregano flavour. Sensational flavours for lamb! The smell when they hit the grill are to-die-for. Make wraps with pita bread or plates with lemon rice or Greek lemon potatoes.

Lamb Souvlaki

Souvlaki is essentially Greek fast food but to think of these being compared to McDonald’s is somewhat laughable because hello! Succulent pieces of tender lamb infused with bright lemon flavours, a stack of garlic, and earthy oregano, that smells so outrageously good as they cook you can’t help but grab one straight off the grill and eat it hot, straight off the stick…..

Nope. That is not the reaction anybody has at Maccers!

So, make this for your next gathering or marinade it today to serve for dinner tomorrow. Let’s bring a little bit of Greece to your table!

Ingredients in Lamb Souvlaki

Souvlaki is all about the marinade which tenderises the lamb and infuses it with gorgeous bold, lemony, intensely garlicky flavours.

Best lamb for lamb souvlaki

I think most people associate lamb leg with roasting, but it’s sensational for quick cooking like steak when it’s butterflied or cut into cubes like we do with souvlaki. Beautifully tender and juicy, especially after marinating, with great lamb flavour.

Boneless lamb leg – For ease of cutting, I use boneless lamb leg which is literally just your favourite roast leg of lamb with the bone cut out. It’s readily available at grocery stores and butchers here in Australia.

Other cuts that can be used:

• Lamb backstrap doesn’t have as good a lamb flavour and is a little too lean for a good souvlaki, in my opinion. Better to cook it whole and slice (like in this recipe) but it can be used, if you want.

• Lamb chops – Thick cut juicy chops, like chump chops and forequarter chops, will work (see this recipe for what they look like) but there’s quite a lot of bone and fat that needs trimming.

• Lamb cutlets – I personally wouldn’t use pricey lamb cutlets – too expensive! Also, they are too thin (unless you cut the meat off a lamb rack but I don’t know anyone who’s got the budget to use a premium roast like that for something like souvlaki!).

• Chicken – See here for the Chicken Souvlaki recipe.

Not suitable – Slow cooking cuts like lamb shoulder and shanks aren’t suitable because they will be tough when cooked in this manner.  

LAMB SOUVLAKI Marinade

Next, here’s what you need for the marinade. Lemon juice and vinegar helps tenderise meat but the key is to use the right amount of each plus enough olive oil else the acid can “cook” the lamb (makes it turn white like ceviche) or make the meat turn leathery instead of tender.

• Lemon – We use both the zest and juice. The zest adds great lemon flavour whereas the juice adds tang and plays a part in tenderising the meat.

• White wine vinegar – Gives the meat tenderising another helping hand. It’s less harsh than lemon juice. Another excellent meat marinade tenderiser. White wine vinegar is best here because it’s more mild than other clear vinegars and is made from wine so the flavour is on-point for souvlaki. But you can substitute with similar vinegars like apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar.

• Extra virgin olive oil – This is to reduce the tanginess from the lemon and vinegar as preventing the meat from “cooking” due to the acid in these ingredients.

• Garlic and dried oregano – Two Greek favourites! We use a good, bold amount of both.

• Bay leaves – For even more flavour. I like using fresh because you can crush them in your hand to release flavour. Dried bay leaves can be used too but don’t crush them because they’ll disintegrate.

• Salt – To season the meat inside.

How to make Lamb Souvlaki

Minimum marinating time of 12 hours is essential to ensure the marinade works its magic to tenderise and infuse flavour! 24 hours is ideal.

1. Trim excess fat and cut the lamb into meaty 2.5cm / 1” cubes. I find the easiest way to do this is to cut into thick 2.5cm / 1” slices, trim the fat off, then cut into cubes.

2. Said cubes. 

3. Marinate – Mix the marinade in a bowl then mix in the lamb. Refrigerate for at least 12 hours, up to 24 hours. You will notice the lamb becomes a little white on the surface which is due to the acid in the lemon and vinegar beginning to “cook” the lamb at the 24 hour mark. This is tenderising in action!

   TIPS: To marinate for longer, add 2 extra tablespoons of olive oil to dilute the acid so the lamb doesn’t get “cooked”. The marinated meat can also be frozen and cooked at a later date – directions in the recipe card.

4. Thread onto skewers. I usually make 12 skewers with 3 to 4 pieces on each.

   TIPS: If intending to cook on the BBQ using wooden or bamboo skewers, soak the skewers in water for 30 minutes to prevent them from burning and cook on the flat iron side of your BBQ. If using the grill line side, it’s best to use metal skewers as wooden skewers can catch on fire easily.

5. Cook for 3 minutes, turn then cook the other side for 3 minutes (ie just cook 2 sides, not 4 sides). This can be done either in a pan on the stove or on a medium high BBQ (I demo both in the video).

   The lamb pieces should have a great sear on them, and be blushing pink inside for medium rare. To be exact, use a meat thermometer and aim for an internal temperature of 60°C/140°F for medium rare (blushing pink, optimum juiciness).

6. Pile onto a platter with serving fixings of choice – to make wraps, eat hot straight off the sticks or to make plates! See next section below for ideas.

How to serve Lamb Souvlaki

1. Wraps – My favourite way to eat Souvlaki is Greek fast-food style, bundled up in a warm flatbread, stuffed with either Greek Salad that’s chopped up small (as shown in the video) or with finely sliced lettuce and tomato (as pictured in this post).

   Either way, a big smear of tzatziki is essential – though I’m partial to hummus too and if both those options are just too hard, I’ll resort to a quick lemon-yogurt-olive oil sauce that takes 30 seconds flat to make. (Of course I’ll pop it in the recipe for you!)

2. Make plates – Another way to serve Souvlaki is to make plates with a pile of hot, steamy Greek Lemon Rice topped with freshly grilled Lamb Souvlaki and a big pile of juicy Greek Salad on the side. Or, other Greek sides – such as Greek Risoni Salad or Greek Lemon Potatoes.

3. Eat it hot, straight off the stick – Then of course, there’s the most obvious way: just eat them, hot, straight off the stick. For the impatient. You’ll see me demonstrate this in the video too. I know, shocking. 😅 – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

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Lamb Souvlaki

Recipe video above. The bold garlic-oregano Greek marinade works wonders to tenderise and infuse incredible flavour into the lamb! The flavour when this is cooking is out of this world.

Eat them straight off the skewer while still hot or bundle up into warm pita bread with fixings.

Course Mains

Cuisine Greek

Keyword lamb souvlaki, souvlaki

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Marinating 1 day day

Servings 12 skewers

Calories 95cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

• 1.2 kg/ 2.4 lb boneless lamb leg , fat trimmed, cut into 2.5cm/1” cubes (~900g / 1.8lb after trimming) (Note 1)
• 1 tsp cooking / kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 8 – 12 skewers , wooden or bamboo

Lamb souvlaki marinade:

• 5 garlic cloves , finely minced
• 5 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 3 fresh bay leaves , crushed in hand (or 2 dried kept whole)
• 1/3 cup white wine vinegar
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp cooking / kosher salt

To serve – stuffed or make plates:

• 4 – 6 pita bread , warmed or toasted (or easy homemade flatbreads)
• 1 batch tzatziki (from my Gyros recipe) or Lemon Yogurt Sauce (Note 3)
• Greek salad (chop small for stuffing) or shredded lettuce and tomato slices
• Greek lemon rice (to make plates instead of wraps)

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Marinate lamb:

• Mix marinade ingredients in a bowl. Add lamb and toss to coat.
• Marinate in fridge for 12 – 24 hours.

Skewer & cook:

• Skewer – Remove meat from marinade and thread 3 to 4 pieces on each to make 12 skewers, or 5 to make 8 larger skewers (pictured in post).
• Sprinkle the meat with the salt and pepper. (This really makes a difference to the finished dish, better than just in the marinade).
• Cook – Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large non-stick pan over high heat. Cook half the skewers for 3 minutes, turn then cook the other side for 3 minutes until nicely seared (target internal temp 60°C/140°F for medium rare, optimum juiciness).
• Transfer to a plate and loosely cover with foil to keep warm while you cook the remaining skewers.

BBQ cooking (Note 2):

• Soak skewers – Soak wood/bamboo skewers in water for 30 minutes if planning to cook on the BBQ (prevents burning). My skewers are 18cm/7” which fit in a pan (stove cooking).
• Preheat BBQ to medium high. Flat iron hot plate is safer for wooden skewers (so they don't catch fire) else use metal skewers on the grill side.
• Skewer, oil & season – Skewer per above. Drizzle with the oil (so it doesn't stick to the BBQ) then sprinkle both sides with the salt and pepper.
• BBQ cook for 3 minutes on each side.

Serve:

• Pile Souvlaki onto a serving platter for DIY wraps with tzatziki (from this recipe), toasted pita bread and Greek salad (chopped small), or shredded lettuce and tomato slices. Else, make plates with lemon rice and a Greek Salad!

Notes

1. Lamb cut – I like leg the best for tender, juicy meat (especially after marinating!) and great lamb flavour. It tends to come with a thick layer of fat which is best trimmed.

Thick cut lamb chops will also work. Lamb back strap is leaner and just isn’t as juicy. Lamb shoulder, shanks and other slow cooking cuts are not suitable for this recipe. I can’t afford to use lamb cutlets or lamb rack for a recipe like this!

2.BBQ –  If grilling on a BBQ, it’s safest to use the flat iron side for wooden skewers. Else, use metal skewers so you can cook on the grill side (ie slats type).

3. Lemon yogurt sauce – Mix yogurt with a squeeze of lemon juice, slosh of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper.

Leftovers will keep for 3 – 4 days in the fridge. For a make-ahead freezer option, put the lamb in the marinade then freeze. Thaw 24 hours – the meat will marinade as it thaws. Then thread and cook per recipe.

Nutrition is per skewer (excludes fixings). An estimation only – it’s always hard to say how much salt and oil in the marinade actually ends up in the finished dish.

Nutrition

Calories: 95cal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 227mg | Potassium: 155mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 0.2g | Vitamin A: 8IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg

More lamb recipes

Roast Lamb Leg with Gravy

Moroccan lamb backstrap

Greek Butterflied Lamb Leg

Ultimate Roast Lamb: 12-hour lamb shoulder

Rosemary Crumbed Rack of Lamb

Rosemary Garlic Lamb Cutlets

Lamb Recipes

And for Greek food lovers!

Gosh, even I’m surprised how many Greek recipes I’ve done over the years!!

Greek Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb

One Pot Greek Chicken and Lemon Rice – best chicken and rice ever!

Greek Zucchini Tots (Mini Fritters)

Greek Meatballs (Keftedes)

Greek Lemon Potatoes

Moussaka (Greek Beef and Eggplant Lasagna)

Spanakopita (Greek Spinach Pie)

Greek

Life of Dozer

A familiar sight when you walk into the kitchen:

Then on the other side of the island, this is what you see:

Hard to resist!

The post Lamb Souvlaki appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Shortbread biscuits sandwiched with lemon icing. Melting Moments are a timeless Australian cafe favourite! True to their name, they literally “melt” in your mouth. They are delectable!

Melting Moments – flashback!

I am pretty sure Melting Moments is one of the first baked goods I ever attempted to make. The recipe from the Women’s Weekly “Best Ever Recipes” cookbook published back in the 1970’s or 1980’s which, to this day, is still my all time favourite cookbook. It holds such sentimental value, being the very first cookbook I ever owned. (Actually, “owned” is a bit of a loose term given I stole it from my mother. 😂)

The recipe I use today is based on the original Melting Moments recipe from this cookbook, though the ingredient quantities and mixing method has been slightly tweaked for what I think is a better “melt in your mouth” texture.

Also, the original recipe called for star shaped biscuits to be half dipped in chocolate then sandwiched with orange buttercream frosting, as pictured above. These days the popular cafe variety is plain biscuits joined with lemon frosting which is what I’m sharing today.

Ingredients in Melting Moments

Melting Moments are shortbread cookies joined together with lemon buttercream frosting. While some recipes call for custard powder to make the cookies more yellow, I personally prefer the flavour without imitation custard flavour.

The cookies

• Flour – Just plain / all-purpose flour.

• Cornflour / cornstarch – This is what gives shortbread cookies the signature soft “crumbly” texture.

• Icing sugar (soft) / powdered sugar – This is the sweetener for melting moments which gives the cookies the signature shortbread cookie texture (ordinary sugar makes them harder).

  ⚠️ Australia – Get packets labelled “SOFT icing sugar” or “icing sugar mixture” not pure icing sugar (packet labelled as such). Soft icing sugar is sugar mixed with cornflour/cornstarch, tapioca that is used for fluffy frostings. Pure icing sugar (packet labelled as such) is made with 100% sugar only and is used for icing that sets hard, like royal icing.

• Unsalted butter – Softened to room temperature which is (technically!) 17°C / 63°F. Don’t let the butter soften too much else the dough is a little more tricky to roll into balls.

• Vanilla extract – For flavour. Extract is better than imitation essence. I wouldn’t use vanilla beans or vanilla bean paste for this purpose – it’s a waste!

lemon ICING

Older-style recipes, such as the original Women’s Weekly recipe, tended to use icings which are not as creamy but firmer and a bit crumbly. These days, the cafe versions use buttercream frosting which is soft, creamy and fluffy, with the most common being lemon flavoured. So that’s what I use in my recipe. However, I’m also including a passionfruit version too!

• Unsalted butter – Softened to room temperature so it can be whipped into a fluffy frosting.

• Soft icing sugar / powdered sugar – As noted above, be sure to get soft icing sugar! If you use pure icing sugar the frosting will not be soft and fluffy, it sets hard.

• Lemon – Both zest and lemon juice.

For a passionfruit frosting, you will need passionfruit pulp (fresh, not canned, it’s too sweet) plus a bit of lemon to balance out the flavours.

How to make melting moments

1. Cream butter – Place butter, vanilla and icing sugar in a bowl. Beat for 1 minute until smooth and fluffy, starting on low speed to avoid an icing sugar cloud-storm.

2. Stir in dry in 3 lots – Add 1/3 of the cornflour and flour, then stir it in with a rubber spatula. Once the flour is incorporated, add half the remaining cornflour and flour, stir in, then repeat. The mixture is a a little softer than usual cookie dough, but it shouldn’t be pourable.

3. Scoop 1 tablespoon of the mixture onto the trays – 28 mounds in total. A cookie scoop with a lever is handy here!

4. Roll – Then roll into balls using lightly floured hands to prevent the dough from sticking. As mentioned above, this dough is a little softer that typical cookie dough.

5. Flatten with fork – Use a fork dipped in flour to press the balls down to 1 cm / 0.4″ thickness.

6. Bake for 15 minutes in a 180°C / 350°F (160°C fan-forced) oven, switching the tray shelves and rotating at the 10 minute mark. The cookies should be very pale golden, not browned.

7. Fully cool on the trays.

8. Lemon icing – Meanwhile, make the lemon icing. Beat the butter first until creamy, then gradually add the icing sugar, starting on low with the handheld beater to avoid a snow-storm. Add the lemon zest and juice, then beat on high for 2 minutes to make the frosting nice and fluffy!

9. Sandwich the melting moments together with lemon frosting. A piping bag makes short work on this as well as making the edges of the icing nice and tidy, but you could just spread with a spoon or knife.

10. Refrigerate 1 hour – You can eat the cookies straight away but the frosting will be a little soft so it squirts out when you bite into the cookies. So to reduce squirt-age, I like to refrigerate the melting moments for 1 hour to set the frosting. Then bring to room temperature before eating which softens the frosting again, but it’s still not as soft as when freshly made so it won’t squirt out as much.

    (I really never thought I’d use the word “squirt” so much in one paragraph. What has become of me?? 😂)

Why homemade tastes better

Make these for afternoon tea, for a bake sale, for book club with your friends. Or, just because homemade Melting Moments really are that much better than mass-produced store bought ones. Yes, I really did buy some so I could tell you that the cookies aren’t as “melt in your mouth” and the frosting is usually dried out rather than creamy inside.

But the thing that bothers me the most is that many store bought cookies aren’t made with butter but instead use more cost effective fat options like vegetable shortening which have no flavour. Butter is what makes these so good!!

I hope you get a chance to make these one of these days. They really are special! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

Print

Melting Moments

Recipe video above. These special cookies are an Australian cafe favourite. Shortbread cookies joined with lemon buttercream frosting, they are beautifully buttery, lemony and true to their name, literally "melt in your mouth" unlike any other cookie I know!

My cookies are generous sized because I like them big: 6cm / 2.4" diameter, 3.5-4cm / 1.5" thick. I wouldn't go any larger (too much cookie) but feel free to go smaller!

Course Sweet

Cuisine Australian

Keyword melting moments

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Cooling 1 hour hour

Servings 14 cookies (sandwiched)

Calories 335cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

Melting moments:

• 250g (2 sticks + 1 tbsp) unsalted butter , softened (Note 1)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup soft icing sugar / powdered sugar , sifted (not PURE icing sugar, Note 2)
• 1 1/2 cups plain / all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cornflour / cornstarch

Lemon icing:

• 100g / 7 tbsp unsalted butter , softened
• 2 cups soft icing sugar / powdered sugar , sifted (not PURE icing sugar, Note 2)
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• 1 tsp lemon juice

Passionfruit icing:

• 80g / 6 tbsp unsalted butter , softened
• 2 cups soft icing sugar / powdered sugar , sifted (not PURE icing sugar, Note 2)
• 4 tbsp fresh passionfruit pulp , (not canned, too sweet)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Cups – Metric

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F (160°C fan-forced). Line 2 trays with paper.
• Cream butter – Place butter, vanilla and icing sugar in a bowl. Beat for 1 minute until smooth and fluffy (start on low to avoid an icing sugar cloud-storm).
• Dry in 3 lots – Stir in cornflour and flour in 3 lots using a rubber spatula. (ie add 1/3 of flour + cornflour, stir in, repeat twice more).
• Scoop 1 tablespoon of the mixture onto the trays (cookie scoop handy here), then roll into balls using lightly floured hands (to prevent it from sticking). You should have 24 – 28 balls.
• Bake – Press down into 1 cm / 0.4" thickness using a fork. Bake for 15 minutes, switching the trays at the 10 minute mark. Fully cool on trays.
• Sandwiching – Pipe frosting onto half the melting moments, then sandwich with remaining cookies.
• Set – Refrigerate for 1 hour to set the frosting (else it's so soft, it squirts out!). Then remove from the fridge 30 minutes prior to serving.

Lemon icing:

• Cream butter – Place butter in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium high for 1 minute until smooth and fluffy. Add 1/3 of the icing sugar, then beat in starting on low and increasing to high (to avoid snow-storm!). Repeat another 2 times.
• Beat 2 minutes – Add lemon zest and juice. Then beat on high for 2 minutes until fluffy. Transfer to piping bag, snip end off to make a 1cm / 1/2" hole. Use per recipe.

Passionfruit icing:

• Same method as above for lemon icing.

Notes

 1.Butter US measurement – You’ll need 17 tbsp of butter for this recipe which is 2 sticks + 1 tbsp.

2. Icing sugar type – If you’re in Australia, don’t get pure icing sugar, sets hard like for royal icing. Get packet labelled SOFT icing sugar or “icing sugar mixture”, or check the ingredients and ensure there’s either cornflour/cornstarch, tapioca or similar as well as cane sugar/sugar.

Storage – Keep in an airtight container for 4 to 5 days. It’s best to store in the fridge but bring to room temperature before serving. Though if it’s fairly cool weather, you can just keep in the pantry.

Nutrition per Melting Moment. Remember, these are generously sized!

Nutrition

Calories: 335cal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 54mg | Sodium: 4mg | Potassium: 22mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 625IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 8mg | Iron: 1mg

Life of Dozer

This happens a thousand times a day. You can see how much he loves it. 😂

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