The word "grill", for most people, evokes gas-cylinder or electric units. For us, it is one thing:oak charcoal embers. Not coal, not briquette, not gas — only oak or pine charcoal.
Flame vs. ember
When you light a grill you first seeflame— a fast-rising, restless, blue-yellow heat source. Place meat over the flame and the outside burns while the inside stays raw. An Adana master never does this.
When the flame dies down and the charcoal turns to red-orangeembers, the grill is ready. Unlike flame, embers emitradiantheat: still, even, penetrating.
How we thread the skewer
Adana kebab is traditionally threaded onto aflat skewer at least 1cm wide. Round skewers are never used: a round skewer lets the meat rotate, but a flat one fixes it — so each side is cooked in turn. This is what allows both faces to brown evenly without the meat falling.
Distance and time
The meat sits about 15–20cm above the embers. Closer and it burns; farther and it does not cook. Total cooking is 4–6 minutes — longer dries it, shorter leaves it raw.
The master watches the colour of the coal: when a whitish layer of ash forms, the embers are pushed away; when the coal stays clearly orange, they are brought closer. This is a dance no machine performs — only experience teaches.
Service: hot to hot
The moment the kebab leaves the grill, it is wrapped in hand-rolledwarm lavash. The bread absorbs the juices; two flavours unite. The kebab is served with lavash, grilled tomato and pepper, onion, sumac and parsley.
Every minute past serving costs flavour. So please:eat the moment your plate arrives.
