Meorav Yerushalmi – Jerusalem Mixed Grill

Meorav Yerushalmi – Jerusalem Mixed Grill is one of the most popular street foods in Israel. The dish is a grilled mixture of different types of beef or poultry cuts or innards that are then stuffed into a pita or served on a dish.

Jerusalem Mix(ed Grill) is called Meorav Yerushalmi (or just Meorav) in Hebrew. Any combination of at least 2 different types of poultry, or 2 different cuts of the same type of poultry is enough to qualify as Jerusalem Mixed Grill.

Here are examples of mixtures you could choose from:

Skinless, boneless chicken:

• breast and spleen
• breast and hearts (Hearts need to be handled in a certain way to be considered Koshered.)
• legs and breast
• legs and spleen

Turkey and/or chicken:

• Breasts of each type
• legs of each type
• legs of one and the spleen of the other

These are just examples. The combinations are endless.

At eateries, you would probably be served some kind of inner organ to be considered a Meorav dish.

For this recipe I advise to parboil the chicken spleens in water before mixing them in with the boneless and skinless chicken legs and thighs, and chicken breast.

At eateries, the heat source is so intense that all organs are grilled together with no pre-cooking.

Why Pre-Cook Chicken Spleens

You can toss the spleens into a skillet with a bit of oil and give it a few minute fry before adding the rest of the ingredients instead of cooking the spleens in some water. If you choose to fry and not pre-cook the spleens, know that if they are Kosher, they have a lot of salt in them, in which case I don’t add salt to the Meorav dish.

For a more moist and balanced texture, pre-cooking spleens is a smart move for three reasons:

1. Kosher spleens are salty — boiling them briefly removes excess salt (discard the water).
2. They cook slowly — despite their size, spleens take longer to become tender.
3. They contain white strands — pre-cooking makes it easier to remove them, if you choose to.

Ingredients of Homemade Jerusalem Mix

So, what goes into this Jerusalem Chicken Mixed Grill recipe?

As mentioned, Jerusalem Mixed Grill can be a dish of poultry (including turkey) cuts, beef cuts, or lamb cuts.

Oil

A nice amount of neutral oil will often go into any Israeli dish. It just makes them much more flavorful.

You can always try to cut back on oil if you’re just cooking for your immediate family, and providing that they aren’t overly fussy as far as flavor and texture go.

Seasoning

• Sliced white (yellow) onions – Pre-saute them in oil for 3 minutes, or mix them in with everything else while they are fresh.
• Fresh garlic cloves
• Fresh parsley and/or cilantro leaves
• Spices:
  • Hungarian (sweet), smoked, OR spicy paprika
  • cumin powder
  • turmeric powder
  • black pepper
  • Optional: a fraction of a pinch of cinnamon
  • cardamom, or Ras El Hanout (both are optional). If you’re not familiar with Ras El Hanout, don’t worry about it.

Protein Options for Homemade Jerusalem Mixed Grill

You can mix and match any of the following poultry cuts for your own version of Jerusalem Mixed Grill. Cut into strips or cubes and grill to your liking:

• Boneless, skinless chicken thighs or legs – juicy and flavorful
• Lamb or lamb fat – rich and traditional
• Chicken spleens – intense flavor, often pre-cooked
• Chicken hearts – chewy and bold
• Chicken liver – best grilled with fresh parsley
• Turkey legs/thighs (female preferred) – darker, more tender meat
• White turkey breast – leaner option

Utensils

Here’s what your going to need:

• Cutting board
• Chef’s knife
• Large or extra-large heat source that is capable of reaching a high heat
• Mixing bowl
• Wooden spatula – preferably
• Non-stick sauté pan

Preparation of Jerusalem Mixed Grill

Step 1 –

Toss raw spleens into a pot of boiling water for a few minutes, then strain them and discard the water. Remove some of the cooked white strands.

Step 2 –

In a mixing bowl, combine the par-boiled spleens with the cuts of chicken you choose. Add fresh parsley, sliced onions, and 1/2 of the amount of spices (the rest of the spices are added later on). Pour in some neutral oil.

Step 3 –

Shallow-fry the mixture in a wok, or large skillet.

FAQ –

Can I add water to the cooking mixture if it starts to seem dry?

No. Never add water to the mixture or skillet.

Note:

For Kosher purposes, follow the links if you want to read up on pre-Koshering chicken hearts and livers before adding them to the skillet.

So, why is it called ‘Jerusalem’ Mixed Grill?

As the anecdote goes, one late night, around closing time in the popular Jerusalem steakhouse ‘Stekiyat Hatzot’ in the Machane(h) Yehudah area, a hungry famous person appeared in the doorway.

Not wanting to turn him away, the owners concocted a delicious dish, which included chicken innards, which was not you’re typical ingredient, as they were always discarded of.

The incident occurred in 1968 and the rest is history: Jerusalem Mixed Grill became an iconic Israeli street dish.

Sautéing Grilled Mix at Steakhouses

Cooking Surface:

At steakhouses, Jerusalem Mixed Grill is cooked on a large, smooth stainless steel plate called a plancha, which delivers intense, direct heat — perfect for getting tender results quickly, with no need to pre-cook any of the poultry.

At home, we usually don’t have access to a plancha or that kind of heat, so many recipes try to mimic the restaurant version. Personally, I make it a little differently each time — but this is one version I managed to document.

Turkey for Jerusalem Grilled Mix

• I usually have chicken breasts or boneless, skinless chicken in the freezer. So, in accordance with ‘keeping it simple’, it’s not necessary to use any additional ingredients, other than fresh parsley leaves, and onions.

That being said, you can use red turkey, and/or white turkey breast.

Just fry it a bit first to make sure it’s almost completely edible before adding the chicken breast.

I hope you’ve enjoyed going over this Jerusalem Grilled Mix recipe.

Enjoy!