Grilled Meats
"Kebab"
is another category of food which, like the börek, is typically Turkish
dating back to the time when the nomadic Turks learned to grill and roast
meat over camp fires. Given the numerous types of kebabs, it helps to realize
that they are categorized by the way the meat is cooked. The Western world
knows the "shish kebab" (Sis) and the "döner" introduced to them mostly
by Greek entrepreneurs, who have a good nose for what will sell! Shish
kebab is grilled cubes of skewered meat. Döner kebab is made by stacking
alternating layers of ground meat and sliced leg of lamb on a large upright
skewer, which is slowly rotated in front of a vertical grill. As the outer
layer of the meat is roasted, thin slices are shaved off and served. The
home town of döner kebab is considered as Bursa. There are numerous
other grilled kebabs including those cooked in a clay oven. It should be
noted that the unique taste of kebabs is due more to the breeds of sheep
and cattle raised in open pastures by loving shepherds than to special
marinades and ways of cooking. Therefore, you should stop at a kebab restaurant
in Turkey to taste the authentic item. "Kebapci" is by far the most common
and the least expensive type of restaurant, ranging from a hole in the
wall to a large and lavish establishment. Kebab is the traditional Turkish
response to fist food and at the same time is not unhealthy for you. 
A
generic kebapci will have "lahmacun" (meat pide that is the single type
of food the other nations can not imitate) and "Adana" (spicy, skewered
ground meat, named after the southern city where it was born), salad greens
with red onions and baklava to top it all off. Beyond that the menu will
tell you the speciality of the kebapci. The best plan is to seek out the
well-known ones and to try the less spicy types if you are not used to
kebab. Once you develop a taste for it, you can have inexpensive feasts
by going to the neighborhood kebabci anywhere in the city. "lzgara" (grilled),
is how the main course meat dishes are prepared at a meat restaurant. Mixed
grills are likely to include lamb chops, "köfte", or "shish". The
way of preparing ground meat will be the "köfte." These are grilled,
fried, oven-cooked or boiled, after being mixed with special spices, eggs,
and grated onions and carefully shaped into balls, oblongs, or round or
long patties. Another popular dish is raw meat balls, inspired by the nomadic
Turks who carried spiced, raw meat in their saddles, and is known to Europeans
as "steak Tartar." It is made of raw, twice-ground meat, by kneading it
with thin bulgur and hot spices vigorously for a few hours. Then bite-size
patties are made, and served with cilantro, known for its stomach-protecting
qualities. Some restaurants specialize only in (grilled meats, in which
case they are called meat restaurants. The fare will be a constant stream
of grilled meats served hot in portions straight off the grill, until you
tell the waiter that you are full. The best one is Beyti in Florya, Istanbul,
and the best way to get there is to take the commuter train from Sirkeci,
the main train station on the European side, rather than negotiating the
highway traffic. This way you can also see the local folk, especially the
kids who seem to use the train to the fullest, out for their summer holiday
adventures of fishing and possibly some variety of mischief.
