Lamb kebabs

Went camping this weekend - Joshua Tree.  What a fabulous place!  Trees that look like they're from another planet.  Rockscape to match.  And everything in bloom.  Wow.



We wanted to live large, and eat well while camping.  I mean, what's better than a day of hiking followed by a delicious dinner?  But it has to be easy to make in a camp site with minimal implements, and has to be delicious.  First night, we had bratwurst.  I parboiled the brats at home, and then packed them in the cooler and finished them on the grill at the campsite.  Simple.

Second night, lamb kebabs, modified from Serious Barbecue (where else?).  Now this is living large.  Sweaty.  Exhausted.  And eating lamb-on-a-stick.  Isn't everything better on a stick?

I made the marinade at home:

1 cup extra virgin olive oil
10 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp marjoram
3 tbsp fresh thyme
1 tbsp oregano
1 tbsp ancho powder
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp coarsely ground black pepper
½ tsp MSG
2 tsp cayenne

Mix together in a ziploc bag, and put the bag in the cooler with ice.  Meanwhile, chop:

3 pounds boneless leg of lamb

into 1.5 inch cubes.  Plus or minus.  Toss them in a second ziploc bag, and suck all the air out.  Toss this bag into the cooler, too.  (I did this two days before serving).

Finally, the glaze.  Mix:

½ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
¼ cup water
¼ sugar
1 tbsp coarsely chopped thyme
1 tbsp marjoram
1 tbsp serrano peppers, chopped
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped

Pour into a jar, keep cold in the cooler.  Now you're ready for camping, bring a grill, some skewers and 1 more ziploc bag.  Go camp, hike, enjoy.  4-12 hours before cooking, pour the chopped lamb into the bag with the marinade.  Let marinate in the cooler until an hour before dinner.

An hour before dinner, soak the skewers in water in the last ziploc bag.  You want to keep them from catching fire.  Remove the lamb from the cooler to warm up.



Fire up the grill.  When it gets up to temperature, take the skewers out of the water, and run them through the meat, with a small amount of space between each chunk.



Toss them on the grill.  Three minutes per side, then brush with the glaze.



About five additional minutes for medium rare, to eight minutes for medium well.  Brush with glaze frequently.



Look at that!!!

This tasted amazing.  Granted, hunger is the best sauce (or hiking exhaustion), but this was delicious.

We served with grilled kebabs of red, orange and yellow bell peppers, and pita bread.  (Be careful with this recipe, we had someone from a neighboring campsite come visit because of what he smelled and saw.  He asked what we were grilling, and asked "Is that gourmet?"  You'll have to send strangers away lambless if you don't bring enough for everyone...)