Name: “Gentle Al” Kebabs with Fire-Charred Eggplant and Yogurt
Yield: Makes 4 Kebabs; Serves 4
Cuisine: Turkey
Ingredients: 3 tablespoons minced onion; 1 clove garlic, minced; 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill, or 1½ teaspoons dried dill (optional); 1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste; ½ teaspoon ground cumin; ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or more to taste; 2 Asian eggplants or other long slender eggplants (about 10 ounces each); 1 to 1¼ cups whole-milk yogurt; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or more to taste; Pita bread; ½ teaspoon salt, or more to taste; 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley; 1 cup whole-milk yogurt; 1 pound ground lamb

Preparation info

Makes 4 Kebabs; Serves
4

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

The Barbecue Bible

By Steven Raichlen

Published 1998

About

This is one of the most popular kebabs in Turkey—a glory of smoke and fire featuring two of the best ingredients ever to hit a barbecue grill: lamb and eggplant. Legend credits its invention to a kebab maker named Ali Nasik (“Gentle Al”) from the city of Bursa. Gentle Al’s brainstorm was to serve grilled, spiced ground lamb kebabs over a tangy puree made from fire-charred eggplant and yogurt. Today, you find these kebabs all over Turkey. For the sake of convenience, the eggplant puree can b