The Levantine take on shish kebab: cubes of lamb marinated simply in onion, allspice and olive oil, grilled alongside kafta and taouk in the classic 'mashawi' mixed grill. Minimal marinade is the point — good lamb and charcoal do the work.
Also known as: laham meshwi, lahme mechwiye, shish kebab, lahm meshwi, Lebanese shish kabob, lahm mishwi, lahmeh mishwiyeh, shish lahme, لحم مشوي
Visual recipe guide
The strip drifts on its own — hover any dia to pause and zoom.
Watch it made
Ingredients
- 800 g lamb leg or shoulder, in 3 cm cubes
- 1 onion, grated and strained for juice
- 60 ml olive oil
- 1 tsp ground allspice
- 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon
- 0.25 tsp white pepper
- 1.5 tsp salt, added at the grill
- 4 pita breads
- 100 g toum (garlic sauce) or extra lemon
How to make it
- 1
Turn the lamb through the onion juice, oil, allspice, cinnamon and white pepper and refrigerate 4 h.
- 2
Thread the cubes snugly onto skewers without cramming them.
- 3
Grill over hot coals 8-10 min, turning three times, until the edges char while the centres stay rosy.
- 4
Salt the skewers as they leave the fire, never before.
- 5
Rest 3 min folded inside pita, then serve with toum and grilled tomatoes.
Pro tip: Levantine grill masters salt at the fire, not in the marinade; early salt pulls the juice you spent four hours protecting.
