Grilled Leg of Lamb Kebabs

Bonne fête, folks, we've made it to another Bastille Day. I struggled a little with what to make for this dearest of No Free Lunch traditions, and ended up settling on a recipe that's been overdue on the blog - a Julia Child-inspired leg of lamb. I've been making this with some regularity for the last two years, and it even made a pictorial appearance in the 2016 birthday special. I believe Child's original recipe is for a whole butterflied leg of lamb (for which this marinade would do nicely), but I generally make it into kebabs. Although kebabs might be stretching the theme a touch, let me remind you that less than 12 years after the storming of the Bastille, Egyptian Mamluks were recruited into the French army, and would eventually become part of Napoleon's Imperial Guard cavalry. I'm calling it close enough.

I must make an admission here in the ingredients section. The lemon juice completely slipped my mind when making the marinade today. If you do happen to be lacking lemon juice, I can report the lamb is still excellent. However, I normally include it, and it does add a nice element. This was also a great opportunity to use some fresh rosemary we've been growing on the deck, and while dried will do the job, it doesn't quite compare with the fragrance of fresh. Finally, let's talk about soy sauce. If there's anything food-related I could possibly claim to know more about than Julia Child, it might just be Chinese fermented bean products. For the uninitiated, Chinese soy sauce comes in two varieties: dark and light. Dark soy sauce is, as the name suggests, very dark, a little viscous, and will dye anything it comes in contact with a lovely dark brown, including your shirt. It's great for marinades and stews, but a little goes a long way. Light soy sauce is the "default" Chinese soy sauce and is typically used for saucing stir fried dishes, where a more delicate touch is required. I often mix the two, as I've done here.

Ingredients

• 2 lb. boneless leg of lamb
• 4 Tbs. olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, grated or minced
• 3 Tbs. Dijon mustard
• 1 Tbs. dark soy sauce
• 1 Tbs. light soy sauce
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary (about 1 tsp.), chopped
• 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 3 Tbs lemon juice
• 1 large onion

Instructions

For kebabs, cut the lamb into small chunks, about 1 to 1 1/2 inch square. Trim fat as needed, as the large chunks of fat can be tough. Transfer the pieces to a gallon bag.

Combine the olive oil, garlic, mustard, soy sauce, rosemary, oregano, and lemon juice. Mix well into a loose paste and pour over the lamb. Mix thoroughly to coat the meat. Transfer to refrigerator and marinate for a few hours.

Cut the onion into small pieces, about an inch square. Toss with a little olive oil. Thread the lamb on skewers, alternating with onion pieces. This will make about 4 skewers.

Grill on high flame until well browned on all sides and cooked to preferred temperature. Turn frequently for even browning. I generally keep the hood open on a gas grill to avoid overcooking.

Minced "Pigeon" in Lettuce Cups (生菜鴿鬆)

This is one post I'm very excited about. I have flipped past this recipe many times while looking through Pei Mei's books, and had not given much thought until recently. It's called "Minced Pigeon," after all. After trying some excellent versions of it in the Bay Area recently, I decided to give it a go, and I'm so glad I did. I'd venture to say this is almost a perfect dish. It really has it all: three meats, four vegetables, mushrooms, and noodles, all wrapped up in crunchy lettuce leaves. It comes together terrifically, and this is one I'll certainly be making again.

Pei Mei's recipes are almost universally simple. They all fit on one page, with a maximum of about four steps. That being said, this one has a lot going on. As usual, I made some adjustments to the recipe. The main change is replacing the pigeon with chicken thighs (this substitution is in the original recipe). Another big one was reducing the amount of noodles by about half. She recommends using water chestnuts, with bamboo shoots as a substitute, but I went for a mix of both. The Chinese name, shengcai ge song, translates to "lettuce pigeon mince." For the last character, I had to consult dad and grandpa, but overall this was another straightforward translation.

The new exotic ingredients in this recipe are the thin rice noodles. These are often called "rice sticks." There seems to be some variance in the width of the noodles, and I went with the thinnest ones I could get. I haven't tried them in anything else, but my guess is they would work pretty well in soup or pan fried. It's worth mentioning the chicken liver as well, since I've only used them once before. I bought a tub of them, and only used 4. The rest become a fantastic pâté using Jacques Pepin's recipe.

Ingredients

• 3 oz. (approx.) thin rice noodles
• 1 lb. boneless chicken meat
• 3/4 lb. boneless pork shoulder
• 4 chicken livers
• 1 onion (about 1 1/2 cup diced)
• 8 dried black mushrooms
• 1 8 oz. can water chestnuts, drained and chopped
• 1 8 oz. can bamboo shoots, drained and chopped
• 1 cup green peas
• Vegetable oil
• Iceberg lettuce leaves

Marinade

• 1 Tbs. light soy sauce
• 2 tsp. salt
• 2 egg yolks
• 4 tsp. cornstarch
• 1 tsp. sugar

Seasoning Sauce

• 2 Tbs. light soy sauce
• 2 Tbs. chicken stock
• 2 tsp. cornstarch
• 2 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. sesame oil
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper

Instructions

Soak the mushrooms in warm water for about 30 minutes. The mushrooms will float, so use something to weigh them down and keep them in the water. When done, discard the stems and dice the rest.

While the mushrooms soak, prepare the meat. Trim off excess fat from the chicken and pork, and mince into small pieces, about 1 cm. square. Mince the chicken livers and combine all three meats in a bowl. Add all marinade ingredients and set aside for about 10 minutes.

Heat a few inches of vegetable oil in a wok on high heat. Break up the noodles into chunks that will easily fit in the wok. Once the oil is very hot, carefully place the noodles in the oil. The noodles will immediately and dramatically puff up. Flip over to puff the other side, and set aside to cool. Do this for all the noodles. Allow the oil to cool a bit and transfer to a container. We will use the oil to stir fry the other ingredients later.

In batches, stir fry the marinated meat mixture on high heat until cooked through and browned. I did this in three batches. Set aside when done. Stir fry the diced onion for a few minutes, then add the mushrooms, water chestnuts, and bamboo shoots. Mix all seasoning sauce ingredients in a bowl. Stir fry another minute or two, then add the meat, peas, and sauce. Stir together.

Crush the fried noodles into small pieces. Pour the meat and vegetable mixture over the crushed noodles to serve. Serve with the lettuce leaves, which can be used to wrap the mixture.