Homemade Doner Kebab

FrenchTart · 23 Feb 2012 at 00:20

Normally I wouldn't touch this kind of thing with a bargepole but this homemade recipe looks really nice. Any thoughts?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandst...ake-a-doner-kebab#/?picture=385573540&index=0

whitecrook · 23 Feb 2012 at 00:29

looks nice bit of a hassle though, havening no mincer and all that

FrenchTart · 23 Feb 2012 at 00:36

whitecrook said:
looks nice bit of a hassle though, havening no mincer and all that

That's not a problem for me, though lamb breast is extremely hard to mince so my machine struggles with it a bit iirc.

One · 23 Feb 2012 at 01:01

Is that what these kebab shops do? Heat it up in water so the bacteria is dead first? Or do they rely purely on the spit?

robfosters · 23 Feb 2012 at 01:05

Not for me i'm afraid. If that is supposed to be authentic, I don't think I will be visiting his local kebab shop in a hurry.

I think doner meat is one of those things that should be left to a kebab house. Yes kebab house doner is unhealthy, but anything is OK in moderation. And the for the messing about involved, I would rather grab a large doner from my local kebab house (which is amazing), for a fiver and be done with it.

FrenchTart · 23 Feb 2012 at 01:07

robfosters said:
Not for me i'm afraid. If that is supposed to be authentic, I don't think I will be visiting his local kebab shop in a hurry.

I think doner meat is one of those things that should be left to a kebab house. Yes kebab house doner is unhealthy, but anything is OK in moderation. And the for the messing about involved, I would rather grab a large doner from my local kebab house (which is amazing), for a fiver and be done with it.

Your average kebab shop will be using mass produced horrible food. I personally never eat doner kebabs (I did when younger but I've got more refined tastes now). Very high quality places that do proper lamb kebabs rather than 'doner' can produce nice stuff, however...so if that's what you've got nearby then that's great.

As this is the la cuisine forum I didn't think a bit of hassle in terms of food preparation would be a big deal

FrenchTart · 23 Feb 2012 at 01:10

desires said:
Is that what these kebab shops do? Heat it up in water so the bacteria is dead first? Or do they rely purely on the spit?

I don't know tbh. I'd imagine that they buy these sort of things pre-made and probably frozen. I assume that they've been cooked in a similar way to this but in a factory on a much larger scale.

Van Hellseek · 23 Feb 2012 at 04:48

You can get miniature doner machines for your kitchen if you really want to cook them at home. I'm sure there have been threads on ocuk about such things years ago (if not more recently).

I've seen better examples than that pic. But you get the idea....

Glaucus · 23 Feb 2012 at 07:55

I love donners, I've always wanted to try hair bikers and meat shouldn't be minced.

http://greetings-condolencences.blogspot.com/2011/09/monster-doner-kebab-recipe-hairy-bikers.html

Van Hellseek said:
You can get miniature doner machines for your kitchen if you really want to cook them at home. I'm sure there have been threads on ocuk about such things years ago (if not more recently).

....

I've looked at kebab machines before and never seen anything like that before, that's awesome. Got a link?

Stretch · 23 Feb 2012 at 10:01

So basically a large kofta singed with a blow torch?

Isn't a doner made with a meat slurry not really mince?

Gilly · 23 Feb 2012 at 10:28

I'm pretty sure that's not a bain marie.

DanTheMan · 23 Feb 2012 at 10:32

FrenchTart, have you been to Cafe Istanbul in Manchester city centre? They do 'proper' donner meat that is by far the best I have ever had.

FrenchTart · 23 Feb 2012 at 10:46

DanTheMan said:
FrenchTart, have you been to Cafe Istanbul in Manchester city centre? They do 'proper' donner meat that is by far the best I have ever had.

Ah.. No. I may have to give that a try. I haven't had decent Turkish food in a long time

Col_M · 23 Feb 2012 at 10:49

I seem to remember seeing a segment on the F-Word or something about lamb donor kebabs being made, they were using really good quality lean meat IIRC. However I suppose that really depends on your local kebab shop and their supplier, there is probably a large spectrum of donor meat quality.

FrenchTart · 23 Feb 2012 at 11:15

Col_M said:
I seem to remember seeing a segment on the F-Word or something about lamb donor kebabs being made, they were using really good quality lean meat IIRC. However I suppose that really depends on your local kebab shop and their supplier, there is probably a large spectrum of donor meat quality.

I don't tend to hold to the whole "lean meat = good quality" thing, though I guess it can be true in some cases. If the meat is being minced and then double-cooked like this I imagine fattier meat would give a nice final product than something lean, which would become extremely dry.

NathWraith · 23 Feb 2012 at 11:38

Thosee mini doner machines look awesome. Would be up for making my own doner though

monkeyspank · 23 Feb 2012 at 12:13

Bit easier to just BBQ some koftas tbh, but looks fun

Van Hellseek · 24 Feb 2012 at 05:14

Glaucus said:
I've looked at kebab machines before and never seen anything like that before, that's awesome. Got a link?

Got that pic just by googling "miniature doner machines". As I said though, I've seen better ones on here before. Pretty sure I saw a mini gas-powered one which looked amazing.

Glaucus · 24 Feb 2012 at 07:33

I tried googling that, seems they used to be sold in gadget type shops. But all seem to be discontinued now.
I so want one.

Kezmo · 25 Feb 2012 at 16:30

Got,The Takeaway Secret: How to Cook Your Favourite Fast-food at Home [Paperback]
for xmas and the chicken kebabs are awesome, will report back on the lamb