Döner kebab

Meat stacked on a vertical spit, roasted in front of a grill as it turns and shaved off in thin slices as the outer layer browns: that is döner kebab, and the word döner means turning. The upright spit is generally credited to Bursa in the 1860s or 1870s, and the Turkish original is made from whole slices of lamb or beef layered with tail fat, not from mince. From there the dish split into families: the Bursa plate with butter and tomato sauce known as İskender, the Istanbul ekmek arası döner in half a loaf with onion and tomato, the Greek gyros with pork and tzatziki, the Levantine shawarma with its garlic toum, and the German döner built in Berlin in the 1970s, a flatbread pocket stuffed with salad and sauces that has since become the most eaten version in Europe. On BiteCritic you rate the one in front of you, so it helps to know which family it belongs to.