A skewered kebab from the Selçuk and Germencik area near Ephesus in the Aegean region, built from small pieces of marinated lamb threaded onto very thin wooden skewers. The meat is cut fine and includes some fat, so the little skewers cook fast over charcoal and stay tender. They are typically served wrapped in or piled onto thin flatbread with grilled vegetables.
The dish is associated with the towns around Selçuk and Germencik in Aydın province, beside the ancient site of Ephesus, where it is a well-known local specialty served at roadside grills. The name literally means twig skewer, a reference to the slender wooden sticks used rather than the broad metal şiş of other kebabs. Beyond this regional attribution the dish has no documented single inventor, and it is best understood as a local Aegean grill tradition.
Because the pieces are small and the skewers thin, the meat takes on char quickly and arrives smoky-edged but juicy, with the included fat keeping it from drying. Slid off the wood into warm flatbread, it eats soft and savory, the bread catching the rendered juices. The flavor is straightforward grilled lamb rather than heavily spiced.
The thin skewer and small cut are the point: a slender stick lets heat reach the center of each piece almost as fast as it sears the surface, so the lamb cooks through before the outside dries. Mixing in fat or fattier cuts bastes the lean from inside as it renders. A marinade of onion, oil and pepper both seasons the meat and tenderizes it during the rest, so the quick grill needs no long cooking.
Variations
Most versions are lamb, though some grills offer a chicken çöp şiş cut and skewered the same way. It is served either rolled inside lavaş as a wrap or laid over flatbread with grilled tomato and pepper alongside. Marinades vary by shop, with some adding milk or a little tomato to the lamb.
On the Palate
Where Çöp Şiş sits in the Turkish flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
6 steps · 40 min
- 1240 min
Cut lamb into small pieces, keeping some fattier trimmings, and marinate with grated onion, oil, salt and pepper for several hours.
Watch outKeep some fatty trim in the mix — all-lean lamb on a thin skewer dries out before it colors.
- 230 min
Soak the thin wooden skewers in water so they do not burn.
- 315 min
Thread the small pieces of meat and fat closely onto the skewers.
- 412 min
Grill over hot charcoal, turning often, until charred outside and just cooked through.
Watch outTurn often over hot coals — the thin skewer cooks the center fast, so it's charred outside and just-done inside in minutes.
- 52 min
Warm thin flatbread on the edge of the grill.
- 63 min
Slide the meat off into the flatbread and serve with grilled tomato, pepper and raw onion.
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