The real-deal Xinjiang lamb skewers recipe that helps you cook exactly the way that Chinese street vendors do. Learn the best practices of choosing cuts, making the marinade, and grilling over charcoal.
Living in Austin Texas, we have the privilege of enjoying high quality BBQ. If we crave some meat for lunch, we simply drive five minutes to a food truck and spend 15 dollars on a box of smoky beef brisket, sausage, and ribs, with mac and cheese and potato salad as sides. That meal is more than enough for two.
What I’ve missed has been Xinjiang style grilled lamb, an iconic street snack in Northern China. When summer comes, locals crowd the streets of Beijing. They sit outdoors, wearing t-shirts and flip flops, snacking on lamb skewers and drinking cold beer. People call them “old Beijing skewers” nowadays. But the food originated in Xinjiang, the largest Chinese administrative division, where the majority of people are ethnically Uighur and religiously Muslim.
What are Xinjiang lamb skewers
Lamb skewers, or chuar (串儿), are similar to Middle Eastern style lamb kebabs, but vary in the size of the cut and the way they’re seasoned. The most common type you’ll find in Beijing are the smaller skewers. For a dinner for two, it’s not strange that they’d start by ordering a dozen skewers, then finish with another 30 to feel satisfied. The skewers are always cooked in small batches and served right off the grill. We want our skewers smoking hot, so hot you can still hear the oil sizzling on the meat.
Made with 4 to 5 pieces of lamb, the skewers are only about 5 inches long, and the meat is no bigger than the thickness of your thumb. Vendors marinate the meat with salt, both whole and ground cumin, white pepper, chili powder, and Sichuan peppercorns. To make the cheap lamb kabobs extra juicy, they place small chunks of fat between each piece of meat. The fat mostly melts away on the grill, leaving caramelized crispy bits that burst in your mouth with savory juice.
Street vendors use the simplest grill, a 20-inch by 7-inch rectangular box made of thin sheet metal to hold the charcoal. It doesn’t even have a grate on it, let alone a lid. The grill is just narrow enough to hold the bamboo skewers with the meat fully exposed to the charcoal.
A vendor can skillfully hold 10 skewers in each hand in a fan arrangement, flipping every few minutes, and occasionally sprinkling another layer of cumin and chili powder onto them. The fat melts and drips down onto the charcoal, sputtering and smoking. The aroma from the roasted spices and browning meat mixes with the hot summer air.
Man, it was good!
How to cook Xinjiang lamb skewers in your backyard
To recreate the real-deal Chinese grilling experience, I purchased a 32-inch party grill from Amazon. It is exactly the type that street vendors use back in China. Of course you can cook this dish on your Weber grill. But the benefits of this smaller rectangle grill are:
- You can use a small amount of charcoal to generate very high heat.
- You can cook many skewers at the same time.
- The meat will be charred properly with direct heat, due to its short distance to the charcoal.
I won’t go too deep into how to use the Chinese grill here. I will publish a new post on how to host a Chinese grilling party later this week.
Which cut to choose
There are two options.
1. Choose a very lean cut with a small chunk of lamb fat.
This is the method that Chinese street vendors use. And it’s the most economic way to do it. The lamb fat will mostly melt away during grilling and become crispy brown bits. The combination of grilled lamb meat with fat tastes even better than crispy bacon.
I found it’s difficult to find lamb fat in the US (we have the opposite problem in China, too much fat…), because supermarket butchers tend to trim the lamb very well. If you use lamb leg meat, then you can trim the fat cap off and use it. Or you can get stew meat for the lean part. Then ask the butcher if they have any excess fat left. They usually do.
2. Choose a well marbled cut.
I have tried to use country style lamb ribs (you can see these in my pictures). I trimmed the meat from the bones and diced them into small chunks. This cut is well marbled and contains quite a bit of fat. However it costs more money and takes extra time to prepare.
Prepare the skewers the proper way
1. Cut the lean meat into small, evenly sized squares, and cut the fat into smaller, thinner pieces.
It’s important to get all the pieces just cooked through at the same time, so the meat remains tender and juicy. The proper size of the meat should be about 1-cm (1/2-inch) thick if you’re using bamboo skewers. I found it faster to cut the meat into a strip (1*1*2-cm / 0.5*0.5*1-inch) and thread the meat onto the skewer lengthwise.
I was using a much larger stainless steel skewer here, so I cut the meat into 1.5-cm (2/3-inch) pieces. Try to keep each piece under 2 cm (1 inch), so the skewers will be juicier and more flavorful.
2. Put a piece of fat between lean pieces when preparing the skewers.
This is the key part of making the best lamb skewers. If the raw skewers look a bit too fatty to you, it means you’re doing it properly.
The fat prevents the lean part from drying out. The majority of the fat will melt away during the cooking and the pieces of fat will turn to super crispy bits in the end. Same idea with crispy bacon. Plus, the dripping fat will cause some flames over the charcoal, which sear the surface of meat immediately. A bit of flame is our friend in this case.
3. Always marinate the meat.
Some online recipes suggest seasoning the lamb and cooking it straight away. But marinating is the key to creating the best lamb kebabs, according to Uyghur vendors. I’ve tried both ways and found that doing this extra step is totally worth the trouble. The marinade creates a juicier lamb and eliminates the gamey flavor.
Always try to marinate the meat for a couple of hours in advance, so the seasoning will penetrate deeper. If you don’t have enough time, you can still marinate the skewers for 30 minutes right before cooking.
Cook the skewers just like a street vendor
1. Do use a charcoal grill.
Even if you don’t have a Chinese grill, you’ll need a charcoal grill to generate the high heat needed to sear the meat properly. Not to mention that you’ll also get the heavenly smokiness. The smaller the grill, the better.
2. Build a modified two-zone fire
You should have three zones. A third of the grill should be covered with plenty of coals to sear the meat. You should also have a large area with a single layer of coals for slower cooking. Leave a small space without any coal, to place finished skewers and keep them warm.
3. Season the skewers with PLENTY of cumin and chili powder during grilling
Cumin powder loses its fragrance when heated up too much. To season the skewers properly, sprinkle plenty of cumin powder, cumin seeds, and chili powder (skip chili powder if you don’t eat spicy food). By plenty, I mean you should dump cumin powder from the jar until it almost covers both sides of the lamb. Half of the spice will drip away with the fat. So you get just the right amount of seasoning in the end.
4. Flip frequently and move between zones
You’ll be surprised at how fast the skewers cook when using the Chinese grill. It might take 5 minutes to sear the skewers on an average sized grill, but it only takes a minute or two in this case. You should flip the skewers constantly. The fat will melt and cause flames, which char the surface immediately. Move the skewers to the side with less coal. It will take a few minutes to finish cooking.
What if some guests don’t eat lamb?
The good news is that you can cook beef skewers using the same recipe. I often prepare beef skewers if I’m hosting an event or a class, just in chase some of my guests do not eat lamb. To make beef skewers, use the same method to choose, prep and cook the meat. One of my favorite cuts is boneless short ribs from Costco. It’s half the price of fancy cuts and has beautiful marbling.
When we host a Chinese grilling party, the star is always the lamb skewers. The other additional items for your party can be: pork chop buns, honey soy glazed wings, and hoisin asparagus.
Love Xinjiang food? Me too! I have a collection of Xinjiang recipes, including the famous Ding Ding Chao Mian, lamb samosas (kao bao zi), and lamb pilaf. They are delicious weekend projects for you to challenge yourself with 🙂
Xinjiang Lamb Skewers (新疆烤串, chuar)
Ingredients
- 1 lb (454 g) lamb meat (lean fat ratio 7:3) (*See footnote 1)
- 1/2 onion , sliced
- 2 tablespoons whole cumin seeds (Optional)
Marinade
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil (or vegetable oil)
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce (or soy sauce, or tamari for gluten-free)
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons cumin powder and extra for grilling
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder and extra for grilling
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon Sichuan peppercorn powder (Optional)
Instructions
- Combine oil, soy sauce, cornstarch, cumin powder, chili powder, and salt in a small bowl. Mix well.
- Trim fat from the lamb meat if necessary. Cut lean part into 1.5-cm (0.5-inch) cubes. Cut fat into thin pieces half the size of the lean pieces.
- Thread lamb cubes closely onto skewers, alternating between lean meat and fat cubes (*see footnote 2).
- Spread onion inside a 1-gallon ziploc bag. Place lamb skewers on top of the onion. Pour the marinade over the lamb. Massage the bag so the lamb is covered evenly with the marinade. Seal both sides of the bag and place upside down, the onions facing up. Let marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature or overnight in the fridge.
- Build a modified two zone fire, and leave some space without any coal.
- Transfer the lamb skewers onto the grilling grate, one finger’s width apart. Flip frequently until the lamb turns dark brown on all surfaces. Move to indirect fire. Generously sprinkle a layer cumin powder, then chili powder (or you can skip the chili powder if you don’t want the lamb to be too spicy). Flip, then sprinkle another layer of cumin powder. Sprinkle whole cumin seeds onto the lamb for extra flavor, if using. Grill until the meat is cooked through.
- Serve immediately. Or move to the side of the grill without coal to keep warm.
Notes
- Just like I mentioned in the post, you can serve beef alternatively or additionally if some of your guests do not eat lamb.
- If you really don’t like lamb fat, you can put one piece of fat for every two to three pieces of lean meat. Again, the fat will shrink a lot because a lot of it will render and drip off during roasting. The fat left on the skewer will be crispy and add a nice flavor to the meat.
I’m ethnically Mongolian and from Xinjiang and these skewers are amazing. To make it more authentic, the meat should be sliced thinner like 1/2 inch thickness and “threaded” onto the skewers. This makes cooking much faster. Also, try this same recipe with liver and it will blow your mind.
Hi Arslan, I’m from Beijing and these lamb skewers are our favorite! My current metal skewers are too large for 1/2-inch cut. And I had trouble grilling with the bamboo skewers, because they catch fire too fast. I need to practice more! Next time I’ll try chicken heart and liver. I can imagine, the liver will taste SO GOOD! 🙂
we had this for dinner the other night. superb. really reccomend. Thanks for sharing. Simon
OMG!! I so want to try these right now for dinner! Looking forward to trying these skewers, thanks for sharing – the flavours sound amazing! Pinned for later reference 🙂
https://missfoodfairy.com/2016/08/19/yellow-split-pea-falafels-in-pita/
I made these using venison (White-tail deer). Since venison is a very lean meat, I put a 3/4″ square of bacon between each cube of venison on the skewer. I marinated the bacon along with the venison and onions in a big bowl for several hours before threading the meat onto the skewers. Granted, it’s not a traditional Xinjiang or Uighur version of the recipe with venison and bacon, but I just wanted to let deer hunters know that this is another delicious way to cook venison. My family and guests raved about it. Be sure to keep it rare, as always with venison!
Hi Walt, I’m so glad to hear you like the recipe and thanks for taking time to leave such a thorough comment! The venison and bacon idea sounds so delicious. Xinjiang cuisine uses this flavor profile on many dishes, so I’d say your version is very authentic 😉 The cumin flavor especially works well on game meat. I’d love to try the recipe with venison next time when I can find some 🙂
Just what I was looking for. I lived in Beijing for 9 years, and outside NY Chinatown, you just can’t find these authentically done. Now I just have to find that leg of lamb. Oh, I would point out from your intro that Uygurs are now the minority in Xinjiang at ~42%.
Hi Gary, I really wish the Chinese lamb skewers will get more popular in the US, because they are SO GOOD!
In fact you can use other cut, even lamb stew meat. My husband used it to make these skewers last time and they turned out well. Although it won’t by my top choice. I think that small piece of crispy lamb fat is crucial!
Noted about the super low Uygurs ratio in Xinjiang… Although I’ll keep the blog post because it’s slightly more than Han (40.6%).
So, I finally got around to making these. I only deviated a bit just putting the meat in the bag with the marinade and onions overnight, rather than on the skewers. I made the skewers the next day, and they grilled really fast. With just a simple round grill, I had to move the chuanr around as they grilled instead of having zones (but I’m going to order the one on Amazon now). It was really delicious and very much what I remember from my years in Beijing. Another note I didn’t see here, if you use wooden skewers, especially the small ones, it’s a good idea to let them soak in water for 24 hours before being used. That helps to prevent them from burning up before the meat is cooked. Thanks for the recipe!
Hi Gary, thanks so much for taking time to leave a comment, and I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the dish!
Your method is totally legit. Actually it works better than marinating on a skewer, since the meat will be fully covered in the marinade and thus impart with more flavors. The only down side I found is, the marinade makes the meat quite slippery and a bit difficult to skewer. That’s why I used the shortcut to skewer them first…
As for the grill, I found the smaller Asian grill is much more efficient when dealing with smaller cuts. It sears the meat perfectly without needing a lot of coals. I can’t wait to hear your feedback once you tried the smaller grill.
And thanks for sharing the tip about soaking the skewers! I never trust myself with them because I always burn them into ash lol I’ll try the soaking like you suggested, no shortcut.
Have a great week ahead Gary!
Thank You for making Your legacy of treasures available to Us, Regards
Hi Maggie,
I made your Xinjiang Lamb Skewers for supper tonight, substituting beef for lamb (since we already had some available). Excellent recipe! I made some skewers with Sichuan chili powder and others without, to accommodate the different taste-needs of my guests. Both were delicious.
Thank you and keep up the great work that you do!
Hi Stan, I’m glad to hear the recipe worked for you! Yes, the seasonings work great with beef too. We always prepare both when hosting a party, so we can accommodate guests who do not eat lamb. Thanks for taking time to leave a comment! You just made my day 🙂
I made these skewers tonight using a lamb shoulder roast and they were so good. The only change I made was to do them on my gas grill. They tasted just like the ones at my favorite Northern Chinese restaurant, where the cook grills them outside in the parking lot!
Hi Maggie! I plan to make these soon. I’ve lived in harbin for a Short period and I lived off these kebabs. I’ve tried replicating them back here in the US with different versions of this recipe. Yours is next! Do you recommend any brand for the spices esply the chili powder? And by chilli powder you don’t mean cayenne pepper right? Also my butcher mistakenly gave me lamb stew cut bone in instead of shoulder!!! Any thoughts on if it will work the same? I guess I’d have to debone it! ?
I just came back from Chengdu 2 days ago and while i was there, i had plenty of this lamb skewers.I missed it a lot and my mouth watering to think of it haha and thats the reason i was lookinf for the recipe and luckily it brought to your page here because i found the recipe for chili oil as well.Thanks very much me Meggie.
This is a great and authentic recipe which I’ve made before. However I am standing at a meat counter and deeply frustrated because I can’t remember how much to ask for for how many people.
I really don’t understand why websites will cite how many kg of meat to buy but do not, in the same panel, mention how large a portion this is or for how many. You either have to take the article for a mention of “makes X skewers” or even go to the author’s home page to see if they say “all my recipes are for 4” etc.
Please, please, start writing “450g for 6 people as an appetiser” as a rough guide (or whatever is correct”. These days all your traffic will be by Google on mobile phones from people at the shop, not someone browsing their iPad in bed. Info needs to be instantly available.
Thanks for the insightful feedback! Just added the info into the recipe card. “450g for 6 people as an appetiser” is pretty spot-on. Hope you have a successful party!
hey Maggie! these look great! do you think these would still work out without the soy sauce (or tamari) and cornstarch in the marinade? also, i only have an electric grill. do you think it could work well enough? thanks!
Hi Talia, I think it would work without soy sauce and cornstarch. You might want to slightly salt it a bit more but you can always adjust saltiness later during the cooking. And yes an electric grill works too. Happy cooking!
Hi Maggie..I read with great interest your recipe of the Xinjiang Lamb skewers. I tasted it for the 1st time when I went to Shanghai 3 years ago and since then I have been craving for it. I live in Malaysia and this dish is not common here but available in a few pricey mainland Chinese run restaurant. I want to try your recipe but I have a few questions I would like to ask you so that I do not miss anything and will do it right. Hope you will kindly share your knowledge with me.
1) Is that all the ingredients required for the marinade? I have been trying to figure out what Sichuan peppercorn is and have checked in the supermarkets here without success. I suppose it is not common for Malaysia cooking so it is not easily available.
2) The skewers are put on top of the onions inside the zip lock bag and massage. That means the onions re not disturbed and after that the bad is flipped over so that the onions remain on top? The onions are big onions?
Sichuan peppercorns can be hard to find outside of China, especially the high quality fresh ones. It is very different from any other peppers, that has a citrus numbing taste that adds aroma to the dish. It’s a crucial ingredient to cook many Sichuan food, although you can skip it in this recipe. It adds a nice touch to the skewers, but not required here.
Re the questions on onion, I never disturbed the onion, but maybe I should! So I’ve tried marinating the meat before putting on them onto skewers. It marinates the meat more evenly but it’s very messy when you skewer the marinated meat. It’s a bit hard to marinate with the skewers on, but it makes the workflow a bit easier. Maybe you can spread the onions on both sides of the skewers for a even better result. I just sliced them. The pieces are not too big and not very small.
Pretty good. I have 3 people from Urumqi staying unable to return to China on account of the coronavirus. They said it tasted authentic!
Great recipe. I used it to marinade lamb chops. Everyone who had it, loved it. One thing I changed from this recipe is low sodium light soy sauce instead of regular light soy sauce, otherwise it get pretty salty.
I have done it once with lamb and it tasted amazing, all my friends love it! I decided to try this recipe on chicken breast (simply because I always have them at home!) and it was surprisingly delicious. Obviously it can never be as good as lamb but chicken breast works. You just have to make sure it doesn’t get overcooked.
Thanks Maggie, these lamb skewers are really delicious. I had a couple of big fatty lamb chops in the freezer & love the cumin lamb skewers at Uigur restaurants so did a little searching… Your recipe was the first one that came up! Even on my little gas grill, they came out great! Will be making them again. Especially love yiur tip to put pieces of fat between the pieces of meat. They came out exactly the way you said they would, crispy little pieces of love😋 Thanks again…
They are not “chuar” as you keep saying. They are chuàn ér; sometimes abbreviated to chuàn’r. In fact, in most of of China, they are just referred to as 羊肉串 (yáng ròu chuàn).
Great recipe, I use this often when I cook lamb on a BBQ with my friend (He’s eaten the real thing in Xinjiang many times), double thumbs up!!! Thank you.