The ultimate guide to the perfect Kebab choice! – Yeknaz T
Many of you may be wondering what the ultimate kebab choice is for you. If so this is my perfect description of kebab options in an ultimate guide to what your heart desires (a delicious kebab). These hearty and flavoursome foods taste even better when they’re lined up artistically on a wooden skewer and cooked over an open flame and this method of cooking meats and vegetables dates back to the 17th-century Greek culture. Adopting this cooking technique in the 18th century, Turkish recipes delivered unmistakably unique flavours of the region. Read on to discover some of these mouthwatering dishes…
In first place we have Mr Hodson’s favourite Beyti kebab. Beyti is a Turkish dish consisting of char-grilled minced lamb with light seasoning, wrapped in thin home made bread topped with butter, tomato sauce and yoghurt served with rice. This dish can also be made using ground beef or chicken. Beyti Güler, the know owner of the popular restaurant Beyti in Turkey, Istanbul was inspired to create his own dish in 1961 after witnessing Swiss butcher Möller’s method of preparing meat, when he was visiting Switzerland. When he returned home, he introduced a dish consisting of roasted lamb fillets wrapped in strips of lamb cutlet fat. It came to be named after him, as Beyti kebab.
In second place we have the ultimate Kebab choice, the chicken/lamb Shish kebab. A Turkish shish kebab can contain a number of different ingredients. It’s made in a variety of different ways and using a large selection of different meats. Popular choices for dishes include lamb, chicken, beef, goat, fish, or pork. These meats are then either pounded flat or hand minced and formed around a metal rod. This rod of meat is then either roasted or grilled over an open flame. The fire source of wood or charcoal also lends to the unique taste of these kebabs. This exclusive taste is also due to the spices and herbs that are used in the process which typically consist of onion, garlic, paprika, sumac, oregano, hot red pepper flakes, mint, allspice, cumin, cinnamon, sesame seeds, nigella seeds and yogurt. Combining these Turkish inspired spices results in a delightful culmination of flavour and aroma. Compared to other kebabs the shish kebab is a healthier option it’s made with whole cuts of meat or fish and is usually grilled. Shish kebab’s are eaten directly from the skewer only if served as an appetiser. However, if you are eating shish kebab as a main course, steady the skewer in the tines of your fork and pull the meat and vegetables of the skewer with your free hand.
In third place we have the all time favourite doner kebab, the Turkish doner kebab has evolved from an ancient Middle Eastern cooking technique to a fast-food sandwich beloved around the world. Doner kebab is the Turkish name for meat cooked on a vertical spit or rotisserie; the caramelised outer layer of meat is shaved off and served over rice or in a flatbread sandwich. This style of cooking first emerged in the Ottoman Empire (present-day Turkey) in the nineteenth century and spread throughout the Middle East. Turkish immigrants brought doner kebab to Berlin in the 1960s, where, wrapped in pita bread and sold as a sandwich, it became one of Germany’s most popular street foods. The sliced meat of a doner kebab may be served on a plate with various accompaniments, stuffed into a pita or other type of bread as a sandwich, or wrapped in a thin flatbread. Since the early 1970s, the sandwich or wrap form has become popular around the world as a fast food dish sold by kebab shops, and is often called simply a “kebab”. The sandwich generally contains salad or vegetables, which may include tomato, lettuce, cabbage, onion with sumac, fresh or pickled cucumber, or chilli, and various types of sauces.
In fourth place we have the not so well known but equally delicious Adana Kebab. This signature dish of Turkey’s Adana City (the fifth largest city in Turkey) contains the spices of red hot chilli flakes, onion, garlic, and paprika. The beef or lamb mixture is hand minced and formed into a large log shape around a thick flat iron skewer. The spices infused in this meat cause it to be one of the spiciest kebabs on this list. This large flat paddle of meat is then grilled over open charcoal heat. The cooked kebabs are often served over warm flatbread to catch the drippings and are accompanied by roasted tomatoes, green or red peppers, sliced onions and rice. Other typical side dishes (mezes) served with the kebab include red pepper ezme which is a salad made with pomegranate molasses, fresh mint and tarragon leaves, braised shallot hearts with olive oil and pomegranate molasses, pickled small green chilli peppers, green shallot stems with slices of biter orange, lime, citron and lemon. Many restaurants will also bring hot hummus with butter on the side.
I hope you have enjoyed reading about my take on the best Kebab dishes, look out for my other food articles coming up!
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