History & Origin
The word şiş simply means skewer, and grilling meat on one is among the oldest cooking methods in Anatolia — soldiers on campaign are said to have done it with their swords, a story Turks enjoy and historians tolerate. What makes şiş kebab a dish rather than a technique is the Ottoman-era discipline around it: a specific cut, a short marinade, and coal that has stopped flaming before the meat goes on.
Ingredients
Lamb leg or shoulder cut into even cubes, onion juice, olive oil, black pepper, oregano, salt added late. Some kitchens add a spoon of yoghurt or a little milk to tenderise. Threaded with nothing else on the skewer — vegetables cook at a different speed and are grilled separately.
Traditional Preparation
The lamb rests in its marinade for several hours, never overnight with salt, which would draw out moisture. Cubes go onto flat or square skewers with a small gap between them so heat reaches every side, then over coal that glows without flame. Turned two or three times only; a şiş that is fussed over dries out.
Regional Variations
Tavuk şiş uses chicken thigh and a yoghurt-based marinade. Kuzu şiş is the lamb original. In eastern Turkey the cubes are larger and the marinade almost bare; in Istanbul restaurants they are smaller and more heavily seasoned.
Pairings
Grilled tomato and long green pepper, sumac onion, bulgur pilaf or rice, ayran, and a glass of black tea to finish.
How It Is Served
Slid off the skewer onto flatbread that soaks the juices, with grilled vegetables and sumac onion alongside.
Did You Know
Şiş and Adana are often confused on menus abroad, but they are opposites in method: şiş is whole muscle cut into cubes, Adana is minced by hand. One tastes of the cut, the other of the seasoning.
Şiş Kebab at SkaZka Bali
Cut and marinated in-house each morning, grilled to order over charcoal, served with sumac onion, grilled vegetables and warm flatbread from the stone oven.