Today is my 3rd year marriage anniversary. It's like a normal day to us, really. My husband went to work, and I stayed home with the kids and even babysat for a friend.
It's no biggie to me as we worked the day we married as well. I went to work, on my lunch, got married and went back to work, ha.
I was 8 months pregnant with my daughter and I was exhausted. Not only because I was big and pregnant, but because I spent a good 2 months fighting hard for us to get married. Since we were getting married under German law, we needed paperwork up the ying yang and it didn't help that my husband was married twice before! We also had to get every single document translated and the translator we hired took her sweet ass time doing so. To make matters more annoying, the translator talked our ears off whenever we'd see her. I know more about her than I do my own mother! Not to mention it all cost me over 1500 dollars!!!
We also were on a very crucial time-limit. I was separating from the military and in order for me to stay here in Germany we had to get married, which we planned on anyway. So that day, I was just happy for it all to be over. No photos were taken, unfortunately, and we ate a doner kebab at the stand or what the Germans call Imbiss. It was a delicious doner, our favorite stand in fact!
Quick history of doner kebabs from Wiki: Doner kebab (Turkish: döner kebap or döner kebabı, literally "rotating roast", often abbreviated as döner, also spelled donair, donar, doner, or sometimes donner), is a Middle Eastern dish made of lamb meat (mainly) cooked on a vertical spit and sliced off to order. Two similar dishes are called shawarma in Arabic and gyros in Greek,[2] although ingredients and sauces differ. The English term kebab in some countries refers specifically to doner kebab. There are many variants in the composition of the meat, the ways of serving it, and the garnishes.
A while back I watched a show on the Good Food Channel on UKTV and there was a chef, Simon Rimmer competing against a Doner Kebab takeout/takeaway shop to see who makes the best food quicker, tastier and cheaper. The dish he created looked AMAZING. Light refreshing and just damn good. The doner shop doner looked like your standard messy doner, but won in the end as the customer wanted a spicier taste. When I saw that I HAD to try it. So I did tonight.
This tasted delicious and was quick to whip up. Everything is fresh and homemade...well except the ketchup used, but even Gordon Ramsay keeps ketchup in his pantry, so I am not ashamed! This recipe can be easily changed. Use whole wheat flour for the flatbread (our went bad in the pantry oops), use pork or traditional lamb fillets. Add loads of veggies, make it meat free, JUST TRY THIS!
For the chilli sauce
- 1/3 cup white wine vinegar
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 jalapenos, chopped or to taste
- 1/3 cup tomato ketchup
- 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
For the chicken
- Boneless skinless chicken breast, about 3
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- about 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ½ lemon, juice only
For the flatbread
- 2 1/4 cups bread flour, plus extra for dusting
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- about 1/3 cup hot water
For the onion rings
- vegetable, enough to one-third fill a deep, heavy-based pan
- 1 cup all-purpose
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ½ tsp salt
- about 1/2 cup cold water
- 1 medium onion, sliced into 1cm/½ in-thick rings
For the dressing
- 1- 1/2 cup Greek-style yogurt
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh mint, plus extra to garnish
- ½ lime, juice only
Preparation method
1. For the chilli sauce, place the vinegar and sugar into a non-aluminium pan. Bring to the boil over a medium heat. Add the chillies and cook for five minutes to reduce the liquid by half. Add the ketchup and Worcestershire sauce, stir and simmer for five minutes.
2. For the chicken, slice each chicken breast into 5-6 long strips and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
3. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and fry the chicken breasts over a medium heat for 3-5 minutes, turning occasionally, until lightly browned.
4. Pour the stock over the chicken. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 3-5 minutes. Add the butter and lemon juice and stir. Simmer for 5-7 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. (No pink should remain when the meat is cut into. If any pink remains, cook further.) Keep warm.
5. For the flatbread, place the flour into a bowl. Add the olive oil, cracked black pepper, salt and hot water and bring together to form a dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until it is smooth and elastic.
6. Divide the dough in half. Using a rolling pin lightly dusted with flour, roll half the dough out to form a circle7-8in in diameter. Repeat with the remaining dough to create a second circle.
7. Heat half of the vegetable oil in a frying pan and place a dough circle into the pan. Cook for 1-2 minutes on each side, or until golden-brown all over. Remove and keep warm. Heat the remaining oil and cook the second dough circle as before.
8. For the onion rings, heat the oil in a deep, heavy-based pan until a breadcrumb sizzles and turns brown when dropped into it. (CAUTION: hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended.)
9. Place the flour into a clean bowl and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add the water and whisk to form a smooth batter.
10. Dip the onion rings into the batter to coat completely. Carefully place into the hot oil in batches. Cook for 3-4 minutes, or until crisp and golden. Carefully remove with a slotted spoon and drain onto kitchen paper.
11. To serve, divide the chicken pieces between the flatbreads. Drizzle with the chilli sauce and place a dollop of the yogurt dressing on top. Top with a few onion rings and garnish with extra chopped fresh mint.
Hope you love this as much as my husband and I did!
Sneaky baby!
