Turkish Doner
It is pretty easy to prepare this authentic dish at home. Although it is cooked on stove top and lacks the crispiness of the grill , the taste is pretty close to the original one. Use a lean cut of the beef, without any nerves and leave it to freeze one night in the fridge. The next day, either take it out and slice with a sharp knife as thin as possible or use this practical way below:
prepare the cuts to fit to your kitchen processors “mouth”. Leave the meat to soften a little in the outer parts, otherways it will force the processor unnecessarily. Using the thicker blade of the machine, slice the meat. The result will be “thin leaves” as we say for the best quality döner. A nonstick pan with a lid will be the best tool to use but a stainless steel one is also ok. For 3 persons:
500 grs of lean cut meat
1 big onion
half a bunch of parsley
salt and freshly ground blackpepper
Heat a nonstick pan with a little olive oil inside. You may use butter, which gives an irresistible flavour but is not suitable for sauteéing we need here. When oil heats, add sliced meat and sauteé until it releases its juices. Prevent them from sticking to each other by stirring frequently first 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper and close the lid. Lower the heat to minimum and leave the meat to cook in its own juices for about 30 minutes. Check the pan every once in a while and add small amounts of water if necessary. In the meantime, slice the onion in rounds and finely chop the parsley. When the meat is done, open the lid and add a little more olive oil. On medium heat sauteé the meat until it turns golden brown. I was in a hurry and mine remained a little pale but I recommend you to be patient. Be bold while using olive oil; since the meat is lean, it needs some healthy “fat”. After reaching the colour you prefer, add onions and parsley to the pan, close the lid and turn off the heat. Leave the pan to rest for 10 minutes. The heat of the pan will soften the onions and the meat will absorb all the flavour. Stir once more and serve over pilav or as a filling inside sandwich bread as the original döner.
