Stranger Foods

Photograph of Black lime beef skewers with sumac onions.

BahamianBlack lime beef skewers with sumac onions

Serves 4 | Prep 30 mins | Cook 10 mins

Black limes act as both a flavour enhancer and a tenderiser in this marinade, softening the meat but also giving it an edgy tang. This dish is native to Bahrain and is locally called ‘tikka’, but is not really tikka as we know it to be. Grilled to order, the tikka comes wrapped up in a little flatbread bundle with raw onion, local rocket (called ‘jarjeer’) and lime wedges to squeeze on top. Be sure to source meat with some fat attached – this truly adds to the whole authentic eating experience. We urge you to give this marinade a go, if not with beef then with lamb, chicken, tofu or meaty mushrooms. Serve this with the roasted potatoes with aïoli (see recipe).

Source: Ottolenghi Test Kitchen: Shelf Love

Ingredients

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Imperial

x0.5

4 sirloin steaks, with some fat attached (about 1kg)
5-6 dried black limes, roughly chopped, then finely ground in a coffee or spice grinder to get 3 tbsp
2 lemons, finely grate the zest to get 2 tsp and then juice to get 2.5 tbsp
1 tbsp ground cumin
6 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tbsp olive oil
sunflower oil, for greasing
4 naan or pita breads, shop-bought of homemade
1 tsp Aleppo chilli, or ½ tsp regular chilli flakes
5 g picked parsley leaves
5 g picked mint leaves
salt and black pepper

Sumac onions

1 red onion, thinly sliced
1½ tsp sumac
¾ tbsp cider vinegar

Instructions

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Place the steaks between two pieces of baking parchment and use a mallet or the bottom of a saucepan to bash them until they’re about 2 cm thick. Cut the steaks, fat and all, into 2 cm cubes and place them in a bowl with the ground black lime, lemon zest and juice, cumin, garlic, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1½ teaspoons of salt and a good grind of pepper. Leave to marinate for at least , or refrigerate overnight.
For the sumac onions, mix the onion, sumac, vinegar and 1 teaspoon of salt together and leave to soften for at least .
Thread the beef on to the skewers, packing the cubes closely together.
Heat a well-greased griddle pan on a high heat. Once smoking and very hot, cook the skewers in batches for about per batch, until charred but not overcooked, turning as necessary. Transfer to a baking tray and cover with foil to keep warm.
Warm the bread in the hot griddle pan for about on each side.
Lay the bread out on a platter and top with the skewers, brushing them with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkling with the chilli. Nestle the herbs to one side and serve with the sumac onions.

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