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Moorish Lamb Espadas with Recado Rojo and Lemony allioli

This is a Mexican/Spanish fusion dish. The Mexican part is the recado rojo, a Yucatecan sauce made with ground annatto seeds. Chef Norman Van Aken uses it to season lamb, which he grills on skewers, like shish kebab. The lamb, and the lemony mayonesa he serves it with, comprise the Spanish element of this dish. You can find sour oranges for the orange juice in specialty produce markets, or you can substitute a mixture of half orange juice/half lemon juice. You’ll need to begin this a day ahead to marinate the meat. Adapted from a recipe by Norman Van Aken. Serves 8

For the recado rojo
½ cup finely ground annatto seeds
1½ teaspoons dried, ground oregano
1½ teaspoons ground cumin
1½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon ground allspice
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon puréed roasted garlic
1 cup sour orange juice
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup canola oil
2lb (900 g) lamb loin, sliced ½ inch (1 cm) thick
For the lamb skewers
Eight (9- to 10-inch or 23- to 25-cm) skewers
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup Lemony Allioli

1. Make the recado rojo. Whisk together all of the ingredients for the recado rojo. Toss with the lamb in a medium bowl and cover, or place in a zip-close plastic bag, and refrigerate overnight. If using bamboo or wooden skewers rather than metal ones, soak them in water overnight.

2. Make the lamb skewers. Drain the excess marinade from the lamb. Thread 5 pieces of the marinated lamb onto each of the skewers. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Preheat a charcoal grill to medium-high heat, or build a fire with coals and let it burn down until the coals are glowing red with a thin coating of white
ash. Spread the coals out in a single layer.

3. Grill the skewers on both sides until dark and a char crust forms, 5 to 8 minutes. Serve each skewer with a generous tablespoon of the lemony allioli.