2015 Cooking Club Week 10: Lamb doner kebabs with salad and sauces

Let’s face it, most people love a nice, messy, doner kebab! But how to replicate the experience at home – surely a rotisserie grill would be needed? Here’s how! Adapted from Kenny McGovern’s The Takeaway Secret - a genuine must if you want make homemade fast food. This method bakes rather than grills the meat but it gives an excellent result – IMHO the taste of the meat is nicer than that from many kebab shops, and close to even the best. You also have the added advantage of knowing exactly what’s in your kebab (the FSAI did a survey in Dublin last year which found several kebab shops were passing off chicken and beef as lamb - link) and it isn’t even particularly unhealthy – the only fat is in the lamb mince, and a lot of it comes out during cooking. I’ve also included recipes from the same book for a salad to stick in your kebab, and red and white kebab sauces for total authenticity! I had also intended to include a recipe for taftoon bread (instead of pittas) for the 100% Zaytoon experience, but unfortunately didn’t get beyond one recipe which didn’t work great. However, there are plenty of recipes online if you wish to do this also.

Lamb doner kebabs
Ingredients
1 teaspoon plain flour
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon dried Italian herbs (I just use Herbes de Provence with some basil)
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
500 g/1.1 lb lamb mince
Pitta breads


Preheat the oven to 180°C (160C fan). In a large bowl, combine the plain flour, dried oregano, dried herbs, garlic powder, onion powder, chilli powder, salt and black pepper.


Add the lamb mince and mix thoroughly by hand for 2–3 minutes. Make sure you really get in there; punch and knead until the kebab meat is extremely smooth with no air pockets remaining.




Shape the mixture into a small loaf and place on a baking tray.




Bake in the middle shelf of the oven for 1 hour, turning the loaf half way through the cooking time to ensure even browning.
Once cooked, remove from the oven and cover with foil. Allow to rest for 10 minutes. Slice the doner kebab as thinly as possible.




Serve in pitta breads with the salad and sauces below.




Kebab salad
Ingredients
2 red onions, finely sliced
1 carrot, grated
¼ cucumber, thinly sliced
4–5 red cabbage leaves, finely sliced
1 large handful of shredded lettuce
1 tomato, sliced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3–4 tablespoons or to taste Red Kebab Sauce (below)
1–2 jalapeno peppers

Place the sliced onions in a bowl of cold water for around 30 minutes. Drain well through a sieve and pat the onion dry with kitchen paper.
In a large bowl, combine the sliced onion, grated carrot, sliced cucumber, sliced cabbage leaves, shredded lettuce and sliced tomato. Add the lemon juice and mix well. Dress with the Red Kebab Sauce and garnish with the jalapeno peppers.

Red kebab sauce
Ingredients
6 tablespoons tomato ketchup , 4 tablespoons water , teaspoon mint sauce , chilli powder to taste, pinch of salt.

In a bowl or serving tub, combine the tomato ketchup, water, mint sauce, chilli powder and salt. Add chilli powder sparingly at first until the desired heat is obtained. Add a little more water until the sauce reaches the desired consistency.

White kebab sauce
Ingredients
3 tablespoons mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon natural yogurt, 1 teaspoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, pinch of salt, pinch of dried mixed herbs, 1 tablespoon water.

In a bowl or serving tub, combine the mayonnaise, natural yogurt, olive oil, garlic powder, salt and dried parsley or mixed herbs. Mix thoroughly until well combined. Add the water and mix thoroughly again until the sauce reaches the desired consistency. Chill for 1–2 hours before serving.