I first made pinchos morunos in a Spanish-influenced restaurant that I worked in as a young chef. As the junior member of the team, at the time I was in charge of the tapas section and as such, in charge of all prep work that would ensure the bite size tapas menu would run at full tilt, in abundance and all night long, never to run out of any item on the menu, never. “Check on” is the phrase that is said when a new order comes into the kitchen, and you then feverishly begin cooking as quickly and efficiently as possible . These lamb skewers were always a popular item on the menu, and chucking a couple of skewers over the grill as you got busy preparing the other dishes on order is a great memory for me, one that I look back on very fondly.
INGREDIENTS
800g diced lamb leg, or use another tender lamb cut
2 tsp hot or sweet Spanish paprika
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground fennel seeds
A big pinch saffron (or you could use ½ tsp turmeric)
1 tsp dried oregano
2 garlic cloves, very finely chopped or grated
1 large unwaxed lemon, ½ very finely chopped (any seeds removed), the remainder cut into wedges.
2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for frying
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
METHOD
Place the meat in a mixing bowl and add the olive oil, chopped lemon, spices, oregano, garlic and plenty of freshly ground pepper. Mix well and leave to marinate for at least an hour or even overnight.
Thread the marinated meat onto skewers (if you are using wooden skewers soak them in water for 30 minutes to stop them burning) and season well with salt.
Cook on a BBQ, under a grill or on a large pan over a high heat for about 3-5 minutes on each side until nicely coloured and cooked to your liking.
Season the meat with a bit more salt and pepper to taste and serve with lemon wedges on the side.