Adana Kebabı

Adana kebabı is a dish that consists of long, hand- minced meat. It is similar to or synonymous with a dish called kabab koobideh from Iranian cuisine. Mounted on a wide iron skewer and grilled on an open mangal filled with burning charcoal. The culinary item is named after Adana, the fifth largest city of Turkey and was originally known as the "Kıyma kebabı" (lit: minced meat kebab) or Kıyma in Adana-Mersin and the southeastern provinces of Turkey.

History

Kebabs are usually made out of ground lamb meat and tail fat, though there are many regional variations. Kebabs are fairly common in the area from Mersin in Turkey to Kirkuk in Iraq, and includes Aleppo in Syria. According to many authors, this kebab was born out of a fusion of Turkish and Arab cultures. Birecik, once an important locality in the Eyalet of Aleppo, is said to be the creator of this very kind of kebab. The version prepared and consumed today in the province of Adana also has a history rooted in the modern Turkish culture, only to receive a " Controlled Designation of Origin" in February 2005, after subsequent legal trials.

Geographical distribution

Original geography

According to the Patent Registrar, an original ''Adana kebabı'' is made only by a vendor who has successfully passed an inspection conducted on the spot by the Adana Chamber of Commerce.

The ''Kıyma kebabı'' is still prepared in its historical location. Similar dishes are prepared in neighboring zones of Turkey, Syria and Iraq, where the meat is hand-ground with the addition of tail fat and occasionally a non-spicy capsicum. Please refer to the "Variations" section of the same article for a more extensive list of the original Pan-Aleppan variants.

Recent geography and misconceptions

New variants of the Kıyma kebabı, not protected under the same patents, have been enjoyed since the 1950s, in communities in the former Ottoman Empire territories, including Istanbul, Baghdad, and Damascus. These versions are adapted to the local tastes and cannot be considered the original Kıyma kebabı:

*In Istanbul, and other Turkish communities outside of Adana and Aleppo, a ''Kıyma kebabı'' is either an "''Adana kebabı''" (the spicy variant) or an ''Urfa kebabı'' (the non-spicy one). The original ''Adana kebabı'' was not spicy at all, and ''Urfa kebabı'' did not exist, even in Urfa.

Preparation

Mincing and kneading

According to the Designation of Origin, Adana kebabı is made from the meat of a male lamb that is younger than one year of age. The animal has to be grown in its natural environment and fed with the local flora.

The meat should then be cleansed of its silverskin, nerves and internal fat. After the cleansing, it should be cut into rough shanks and, along with tail fat at a proportion of one to five, be laid to rest for a day.

The next day, the rested meat and fat must be ground by hand, using a crescent-shaped iron cleaver known as the "'' Zırh''". Only sweet red peppers (also hand chopped with the Zırh) and salt should be added. The Designation of Origin also authorizes, "under certain circumstances", the addition of spicy green capsicum and fresh garlic cloves.

The meat will then be thoroughly kneaded together with the fat, the salt and the additional ingredients until reaching a homogenous consistency.

Impaling

After reaching homogeneity, the mixture is placed on iron skewers that are 0.5 cm thick, 3 cm wide and anywhere from 90 to 120 cm long. One portion of ''Adana kebabı'' is typically 180 grams of meat on one skewer. A "''portion-and-half"'', impaled on slightly wider skewers can not include less than 270 grams, as per the designation label.

A little water allows the minced meat to adhere better to the skewer, which is the hardest step in the making of this kebab. If not done properly by an ''Usta'', the meat will separate from the skewer during roasting.

Cooking

The impaled skewers are roasted over flame-less coals of oak wood. When the meat turns dark brown, it is ready. The skewers are frequently turned during this process. The melting fat is collected on flatbread by pressing pieces of flatbread against the meat as it roasts; this also serves to heat the bread.

Serving and eating

The kebab is commonly served on a plate, as a ''"Porsiyon"'', or wrapped in flatbread, as a ''"Dürüm"''.

Porsiyon

The kebab is served over the flatbread used to catch the drippings. It is accompanied by roasted tomatoes, green or red peppers and julienned onions with parsley and sumac. Other typical mezes in Adana-Mersin served with the kebab include red pepper ezme with pomegranate molasses, fresh mint and tarragon leaves, braised shallot hearts with olive oil and pomegranate molasses, pickled small green chili peppers, and, around Mersin, green shallot stems with slices of bitter orange, citron, lime and lemon. Many restaurants around Adana will also bring hot hummus with butter topped with pastırma on the side.

The way to eat ''"Porsiyon"'' is to skin and crush the charred tomatoes and peppers into a paste, to put them in a piece of flatbread with part of the kebab, topped by a generous pinch of the onion-sumac-parsley mixture, and to wrap the whole thing into a few small thick dürüms.

Ayran and Şalgam are two staple beverages consumed with kebab in daytime. On hot summer evenings, ice-cold Rakı alongside Şalgam is often preferred.

Dürüm

The browned kebab is taken out of the mangal, removed from the skewer and placed on top of a large loaf of flatbread (mostly lavaş or tırnak pidesi), topped by a pinch of julienned onions, small diced tomatoes, some parsley, then sprinkled with a little salt, cumin