Yang Rou Chuan (羊肉串) — Uyghur Lamb Skewers: The Cumin Technique

Yang rou chuan (羊肉串, literally lamb meat skewers) are the most internationally recognisable preparation of Xinjiang's Uyghur cuisine — small cubes of lamb (with fat attached) skewered on thin metal skewers, seasoned with cumin (zi ran, 孜然) and chilli powder, then grilled over charcoal. Yang rou chuan stalls appear at night markets across China; the sizzle of lamb fat on charcoal, the fragrance of cumin, and the visual spectacle of hundreds of skewers grilling simultaneously are one of the defining sensory experiences of Chinese street food culture.

• Turkish shish kebab uses identical technique — fatty lamb alternated on skewers, grilled over charcoal, seasoned with cumin and chilli — reflecting the Central Asian common ancestry of Uyghur and Turkish food cultures
• Moroccan brochettes de kefta are a related North African expression of the same lamb-cumin-charcoal tradition