A small food processor is ideal here, but if you have a larger one that manages small amounts of food, use that. Or just chop the onion/shallot very finely with a large knife.

If you are using a food processor, place the onion or shallot in it, along with the garlic, and process to a paste. Or chop very finely.

Scrape the paste into a large bowl.

Wash the processor.

Now add the lamb to the oniony paste in the bowl. Add the pomegranate molasses, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Blend everything with either your clean hands or a large spoon. Cover the bowl and refrigerate, 2-24 hours.

Remove lamb from fridge about an hour before cooking.

I do not skewer it, as John cannot manage skewers and I’d just have to remove the skewers.

So,

You can cook the lamb either stove-top or in the oven.

If you are using the oven, preheat it to 325F/160C.

Cover a large baking sheet with tinfoil or a silpat, or get out a heavy frying pan. You won’t need fat, as lamb is fatty enough by itself.

Form the lamb into palm-sized patties and lay them on the baking sheet. I get10-12 out of 1 pound.

Either cook the lamb over medium low heat, about five minutes a side, until cooked through–this is a matter of personal choice, but be sure the lamb is pink, not underdone.

Or cook the lamb in the oven, 25-40 minutes, depending on your oven and how done you want the lamb.

Serve with flatbreads, to be authentic–though this cooking method is inauthenic–or rice, with sliced cucumber, fried potatoes dusted with salt and/or cayenne, and/or a green salad, and please spare a thought for those  Xinjiang Province.

Notes:

The original recipe calls for lamb shoulder, cut into kebabs. Feel free to do this.  I had ground lamb in the house, so used it.

My husband loathes onion but likes shallot–go figure–so I used one lobe of shallot in the recipe.

The original recipe calls for pomegranate juice or fresh lemon juice mixed 1/4 teaspoon sugar. As pomegranate molasses is widely available today, I used it.