Marinated Greek Lamb Kebabs
When you’re craving lamb, but don’t need to roast a whole leg, these tender, flavorful Marinated Greek Lamb Kebabs will fit the bill. The Mediterranean flavors work perfectly with lamb, and these Greek kebabs are destined to become a family favorite.
This Leg of Lamb Recipe is cubed, marinated, and grilled to infuse both smoky and Greek flavors into the meat. It’s absolutely wonderful!
Why You Must Make
- The simple flavors of red wine, red wine vinegar, fresh herbs, garlic, and lemon pair perfectly with lamb.
- Lamb is popular in Greek cuisine and this marinade reflects traditional Greek flavors.
- Grilling adds even more deliciousness to these lamb skewers, by way of the Maillard reaction when the amino acids react with the sugars and create delicious flavor compounds.
Expert Tips
These marinated Greek lamb kebabs are super easy to prepare. Start with a leg of lamb or purchase already cubed lamb from your butcher. Just make your marinade the night before you plan to grill and marinate your lamb cubes overnight.
- PRO-Tip: Big chunks of lamb are better than smaller ones. I aim for about 1 1/2-inch cubes so that the lamb does not get overdone as can easily occur with small pieces of meat. You also want the onions and peppers to have enough time on the grill so they cook and soften.
- If you buy a leg of lamb and cube it yourself, the cost will be less than buying it already cut.
- Keeping the lamb and veggies in the marinade overnight allows the wine, vinegar, and lemon juice to tenderize the lamb. The acid in those ingredients helps denature the proteins in your meats while imparting a delicious flavor (although the marinade works mainly on the surface of the meat).
- PRO-Tip: Marinate in a large Ziploc bag. Make sure to seal well, so the marinade does not spill in your refrigerator.
- Flip the bag once or twice during the marination time and agitate it so that all the surfaces of the lamb are exposed to the marinade.
- We love to grill over charcoal as often as possible as the smoke provides an additional flavor to the lamb that is lacking with a gas grill. But either option will work well.
- Remove the lamb from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before grilling to get the chill off.
- Grill your lamb to medium rare for the best results. Check the internal temperature with an Instant Read Thermometer. (affiliate link)
- It should read 135º when you pull it off the grill. There will be some residual cooking and the final temperature will be higher. Tent the kebabs with foil and let them rest for about 10 minutes before serving. This allows the juices to reabsorb and the meat to come up to temperature. This Leg of Lamb Recipe is to die for!
No matter what you call these or how you spell them, if you enjoy lamb, or want to try it for the first time, I think you’ll enjoy this recipe for Greek kebabs! It’s picky hubby approved!! Serve it with my favorite Greek Salad with Feta, Cheesy Spinach Rice Casserole, Homemade Pita Bread, and Greek Lemon Bundt Cake for dessert! If you’re looking for a leg of lamb recipe, here’s my Glazed Leg of Lamb. As a bonus, these kabobs are actually a leg of lamb recipe, so you won’t have to carve it!
Frequently Asked Questions
Use a boneless leg of lamb or lamb shoulder or lamb sirloin. Made sure the cut is not too lean as the fat will help keep the meat moist as it cooks.
Cook it to Medium Rare for the best results or 145°. It’s best to pull the lamb off the grill at 135°, cover it with foil, and let it rest for 10 minutes. The juices will reabsorb and the residual heat will bring the temperature up 10 degrees.
Kebab is the more popular spelling, a Turkish word meaning sword or skewer, but Kabob is also used. Even Cabob is seen on occasion. Plus, this dish is also known as souvlaki, which translates to “made from lamb” in Greek and Latin.
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Lamb Kebabs
Marinated and grilled lamb kebabs with a Greek flair!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds lamb, cut into 1 ½-2-inch cubes (my butcher cubed some leg of lamb)
- ½ cup red wine
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 + large cloves of garlic (minced)
- Juice of ½ lemon
- ½ teaspoon fresh thyme or a sprinkle of dried thyme
- 1 large onion (cut into 1+ inch chunks)
- 1 red bell pepper (cut into 1+ inch chunks)
Instructions
- Combine wine, vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, oregano, lemon juice, and onion in a large ziplock bag. Add lamb and mix to combine.
- Marinate overnight in the fridge.
- Skewer lamb chunks with slices of onion and bell pepper.
- Grill to desired doneness.
Notes
Adapted from Greek Cookery Marin.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 848Total Fat: 58gSaturated Fat: 22gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 32gCholesterol: 220mgSodium: 736mgCarbohydrates: 16gFiber: 2gSugar: 10gProtein: 57g
92 Comments on “Marinated Greek Lamb Kebabs”
I still have never cooked with lamb. I’ve eaten it a couple of times a long time ago though.
This is the way I’d like to try it though.
These are beautiful kebabs. Do you know I’ve never even tasted lamb? I think I’m going to put that on my list of things to try next year!
Glad you enjoyed my recipe Lizzy…
Love your skewers!
For those who are not lamb lovers this marinade works really well on pork, cut up country style ribs especially with some fat for the grill, and with white wine and white wine vinegar with chicken for chicken Souvlakia…
I haven’t had lamb on forever! My husband’s not a fan, so I only make it once in awhile when he’s deployed. But somehow it always seems to get pushed aside… maybe it’s high time I make some!
Your kabobs look perfect!
Lamb is a favorite of mine and my husbands. I actually wanted to try the FF recipe but this week it was impossible. Love your kebabs! They look like something I would enjoy for dinner tonight. Have a lovely Thanksgiving!
I love lamb! Your kebabs look so delicious.
Lizzy, I’m not a huge fan of lamb, but your lamb kebabs look so delicious!
Drooling! Lamb is my favorite meat and my favorite way of eating it is grilling on skewers. Never tried marinating it with wine and parsley though. I often do it with olive oil. Thanks for th idea!
Your lamb kebabs look super delicious, I am a huge fan of Greek flavors!
I am a fan of lamb and your lamb kebabs looks so mouthwatering to me! I honestly prefer it more than lamb curry!
The Greek Salad sounds good too!
I’m not much of a lamb eater because I didn’t grow up eating it (Northern island Hokkaido is famous for eating lamb in Japan, but that’s pretty much it). My poor husband would love this kind of dish. Your dish is beautiful too. I need to train myself a little more with lamb.
Hi Lizzy! I’m sorry your hubby wouldn’t eat the curry…I adore the stuff, but it usually has cinnamon in it and I’ve blended without and it is NOT the same!
That being said, I’m not a huge fan of lamb, but you made this look SO appetizing I wouldn’t hesitate to try it! …the hallmark of a good dish!
The kabobs and salad look delicious! have a great weekend1
Eeek! I find myself getting hungry looking at your photos and reading the recipe for the lamb kebabs. Yum!
Great looking kebabs! And I don’t know what your husband is thinking, what’s not to love about curry? :), Miriam@Meatless Meals For Meat Eaters
Beautiful, Lizzy! I’m not usually a fan of lamb, but the seasonings on this sound so great, I think I would give these a try!
I still think Dorie would approve–these look wonderful!
those kebabs look outstanding! i love lamb and greek food, i know my husband would enjoy this dinner one evening
As much as I love curry, I understand it’s not for everyone. These look like some fabulous kebabs. As always, wonderful job Lizzy! 🙂 Have a great weekend. ~ Ramona
The heck with turkey, I want this for Thanksgiving! Looks amazing.