International Street Food Dinner Inspiration: Doner Kebab

Brought to you by Food Network Australia

I like food. I like watching shows about food. And I like eating food. When it comes to cooking: not so much. The reality is I have to cook a lot…because my children expect to be fed every day! Since I was made aware of the Food Network channel (free-to-air Ch 33), I’ve discovered something. Street food from around the world is the best inspiration for easy family meals.

I was watching Andrew Zimmern’s Driven by Food the other day, where Andrew taps into local taxi-knowledge to find the best places to eat in Berlin. During the program, he visited Baghdad Bistro in Kreuzberg, Berlin and enjoyed a doner sandwich/kebab.

As Zimmern describes it: “A doner kebab is your choice of lamb or chicken on a delicious flat bread with your choice of fillings. And when it’s done right, it’s one of the best sandwiches on earth.”

Doner Sandwich – Baghdad Bistro in Kreuzberg, Berlin

My first thought was…um, isn’t that more of a Turkish food? Well, it turns out, the doner sandwich, as we know it, was created by Mahmut Aygun. Sixteen year old Mahmut moved to Germany from Turkey where he opened a snack stall. Kebab meat was traditionally served with rice, and Mahmut had the genius idea to serve the meat in pita bread. So while the kebab meat has its origins in the Middle East, it was in Germany where doner sandwich was born. There you go!

I could see our family enjoying a doner sandwich for dinner, so I did a bit of experimenting to see if I could do the meat easily enough…and OH MY! The kids smashed this! They absolutely loved it!! Plus it was super easy. This is going to be one of my repeat favourites (like this Mexican inspired one pot nachos I shared on Facebook the other day).

Ingredients

• 1 kilogram of lamb mince
• 2 tsp plain flour
• 2 tsp of dried oregano
• 1 tsp of dried Italian herbs
• 1 tsp of garlic power
• 1 tsp of onion powder
• ½ tsp of cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp of salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• Pitta bread

Notes:

1. This makes enough for 6-8 people. It’s easy to half the amount to feed fewer people.
2. It’s not hot (spicy), but the cayenne pepper does give it a nice hit, which is balanced when you have it in the sandwich with toppings. All my children absolutely loved it; however if you have kids who are very sensitive to spice, just use a little less cayenne pepper/pepper.

Choice of fillings

Whatever the family likes. This time, I used what I had in the fridge which was cheese, cream cheese, hummus, tomato, lettuce, tabouleh and BBQ sauce. I put it all on a board and everyone made their own.

• Tabouleh
• Cabbage
• Cheese
• Hummus
• Sour cream
• Grated carrot
• Tomato
• Onion
• BBQ Sauce

Method

1. Measure the spices and flour in a large bowl.

2. Add lamb mince and combine thoroughly (best to do this with your hands).

3. Line a loaf tin with baking paper.

4. Press the meat into the tin firmly.

5. Cook in a preheated 180°C oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cover in alfoil and rest for 10 minutes.

6. Remove the loaf from the tin and place on a board. Shave the loaf into thin strips.

7. Cut the pita bread in half and serve a variety of toppings.

8. Fill the pita and enjoy!

Hooray for easy food inspiration. So good.

For more cab-driver assisted local food knowledge, from Berlin to Kashmir, watch Andrew Zimmern: Driven by Food – Wednesdays, 8:30 pm, on Food Network Australia, free to air channel 33, or catch up via the Food Network page on SBS On Demand. 

More

Easy Family Dinner Ideas