Shawarma

In Syria, shawarma is sold at small kiosks, not any larger than the cooking area itself. The kiosks open as evening starts. Shawarma is the only thing on the menu and every shawarma stand uses its own recipe that the ‘teacher’ (that is what the malem, or head cook, is called) guards with their life. Not even their own staff know what goes into it. You might stand in line for 45 minutes to get a good shawarma. And then, finally, shawarma in hand, you find a front stoop or some stairs close by to sit down and eat it on the spot. The pre-packaged shawarma strips that you can sometimes buy in supermarkets don’t even come close to Syrian shawarma. Not only is the ready-made stuff dry, some of it is made from pork. Authentic shawarma is made from chicken or beef. The layers of fat in between the meat fibres are what keep the meat juicy as it is hung on the vertical spit. I serve my shawarma rolled up in a flatbread with biwaz and tarator.