What DO they put in the doner meat?

Question

I'm just wondering, I look at all the online recipes about using ground lamb along with onions and pepper.. but it never tastes the same, it's always lacking that special something that is so wonderfully tasty (I like the one that is kind of like a cooked meat paste, not the chunks of meat in gyros). I want to find a real recipe that'll taste exactly like the ones I buy. Is there a special spice they greedily refuse to include in the online recipes?

Answer 1

A question earlier the week asked about mastic and it turns out the stuff is used for donner kebobs to hold the lemon and other flavorings to the surface of the meat.  It is supposed to have a resin kind of flavor, so those delicious Donner Kebobs are more complex that one thinks!

Answer 2

I too love Doner Kabobs. Here's a blurb I found about a spice (Sumac/Soumak) that can be used in this particular dish. I've used it before and it's great. This might be the missing ingredient. You can find it in Middle Eastern Style Markets/Grocery Stores.

"Sumac"- A spice powder much used in Arabic and Persian cooking Sumac is a powdered spice used in many Middle Eastern recipes.The maroon powder is derived from the dried berries of the plant Rhus Coriara, a member of the cashew family, and has a tart, sour, and slightly astringent taste. Along with thyme, sesame and salt, it makes up the popular za'atar or zahtar condiment.

Answer 3

Eurgh, mystery meat!  God knows whats in it, but even worse, who knows how long its been hanging there spinnng round and sweating away!!!! I remember one of the tv chefs making it on a programme and it wasnt pretty!

Answer 4

http://www.drquincy.com/personal/nonfict...

Answer 5

Lamb , Fat , Acid , Fat , Proteen(NOT) , Fat , Fat

Did I Mention Fat ?

Answer 6

AWW i want a doner kebab right now..

I'm not sure what they put in the meat, but theres fat in it, and i think the meat is grounded and then moulded

Answer 7

Eyebrows.....animal eyebrows. Stay away from it, very, very, very bad for you. I heard that if you put doner kebab meat under a microscope it actually moves. Yummy. x

Answer 8

I believe it's Allspice and Ground Mace

Answer 9

Hi there, take it from a Greek  that has been  eating  doner kebabs,adana kebabs, yiros, etc etc for 40 years,   the mince that they all use is  fatty beef or fatty lamb or a combination of the two, the Turks like using  onion juice, salt and pepper,  some butchers like using cumin salt and pepper, some other butchers add yoghurt and salt and pepper, the  Greeks come up with all sort of different  mixes like mince, shredded onions,shredded carrots, bread, minced parsley, salt , pepper , sweet paprika ,  so you see every shop  has or could have different mince with different flavours in it,   your problem in creating that authentic recipe also is that you don't have an upright rotisserie to begin with, fried or grilled mince can not taste the same really,  next comes the condiments do you have all the sauces that they put on your doner ? some like humus,  some like garlic sauce(garlic yogurt cucumber mint in any combination),   etc  but dont let me put you off, where there is a will there's a way really,