Kebab is a family name, not one recipe. It can mean cubes of lamb, ground beef shaped around metal, chicken stained gold with saffron, or vegetables blistered beside the meat.
The word crossed languages and borders because cooking over fire crossed them first. What matters locally is the cut, the marinade and the person turning the skewer before the exterior burns.
Read the skewer
Ground koobideh should stay juicy. Joojeh often carries saffron, onion and lemon. Turkish and Mediterranean skewers may lean on yogurt, oregano, garlic or pepper.
Order two styles for the table if you can. The comparison is more useful than a definition: one soft and deeply seasoned, another built around the clean flavor of a whole cut.
What to notice
- Browning along the ridges
- Juice retained inside
- A marinade that supports the meat