A method and apparatus for injecting fuel and oxidant into a combustion burner. At an exit plane of a nozzle, fuel is discharged in a generally planar fuel layer which has an upper boundary and a lower boundary. Also at the exit plane, oxidant is preferably discharged in both a top layer along the upper boundary of the fuel layer and a bottom layer along the lower boundary of the fuel layer. In a downstream flow direction, the fuel and oxidant preferably converge in a generally vertical plane and diverge in a generally horizontal plane. The discharged fuel and oxidant form a fishtail or fan-shaped flame configuration. A refractory manifold can be used to further enhance the fishtail or fan-shaped flame configuration.