Souvlaki: Smoke and Sizzle

ATHENS —  The craving for souvlaki comes over me about once a month. I am usually in the center of town when that irresistible waft--the scent of grilled meat (either pork or lamb), garlic and oregano, coupled with the smell of warm, doughy pita bread--hits. The Greeks have a word for it: tsikna, the meaning of which encompasses both sound (i.e., the sizzle) and smell (that of pleasantly charred meat).

I usually give in to temptation at one of several favorite holes in the wall. These are places where the atmosphere is decidedly minimal but where some inevitably gruff yet skilled grill man turns out beautiful pita wraps filled with coal-roasted meat and dripping with tzatziki (the yogurt-cucumber-garlic sauce), warm tomatoes, thinly sliced onions and the juices of all of them combined. In Greece, they say that you can learn to cook but that you have to be born with the talent to grill.

There is no other street food that casts its spell on me like good--and, yes, greasy--souvlaki. What hot dogs are to the streets of Manhattan and fries and mayo to Amsterdam, souvlaki and its equally tempting sister, gyro, is to Athens.

Gyros, which are frequently mistaken for souvlakia, are made by stacking thin sheets of various meats on an upright skewer about 2 feet high and grilling the whole thing in a sort of vertical rotisserie for hours until all the meats meld indistinguishably together. Gyros don’t come in cubes, like souvlaki. Rather, the browned meat is masterfully sliced off so that it falls like shards into the pita wrap. The tomato-tzatziki-onion accompaniments are the same for both.

Prosaic but satisfying, souvlaki is probably the best-known Greek dish. It is certainly one that has been exported the world over. In the process, both at its source and abroad, it is sometimes transformed from hand-held, stand-up street food to a full mounded platter overflowing with cubes of tangy, tender skewered and grilled meat set over soft pita and served with fries, Greek salad and tzatziki.

It is a dish indelibly tied to the remotest past, to the tradition of roasting whole animals skewered on a spit, the stuff of mythic heroic feasts. Spit-roasting is a custom that survives to this day, in the form of the whole lamb savored throughout the country at Easter.

The word “souvlaki” is the diminutive of “souvla,” skewer. The “little skewers” were traditionally made from a kind of reed but nowadays are more likely to be made from metal or wood. The metal skewers, often complete with a heat-proof handle for serving, are usually used to make larger meal-size portions in which the cubed lamb or pork is interspersed with slices of green peppers, onions and tomatoes. The small wooden skewers are for individual, hand-held snacks.

The meat can either be removed and wrapped in a pita with all the preferred accompaniments or savored alone, plucked bite by bite straight off the little skewer, which usually is proffered with a slice of bread stuck onto its pointy tip.

Souvlaki has evolved to include not only lamb and pork, but also chicken, turkey, veal and beef, and certain types of fish, those that are meaty enough to be threaded and to hold up over a grill. Swordfish souvlaki has been a longtime favorite in Greek fish taverns and restaurants. In recent years, Greek chefs have presented skewered and grilled octopus, too. In light of all the meat scares in Europe, vegetarian souvlaki is also beginning to appear here.

Tradition dies hard among Greeks, though, so pork and lamb still remain the favorites. Some grilling aficionados prescribe marinating the meat first, especially if lamb is being used. Olive oil, fresh lemon juice, garlic and oregano make the most typical marinade, although sometimes wine is used too.

There are variations on all the trappings as well. For example, the traditional tzatziki might be replaced with a more esoteric recipe of thick, strained yogurt mixed with shredded carrots as opposed to cucumbers. In any event, garlicky tzatziki is always optional, and raw onions are not to everyone’s liking either.

If the souvlaki cook happens to hail from the north of Greece, or from the Greek diaspora around the Black Sea, he is more than likely to sprinkle a hearty dose of cayenne over the meat once it is grilled and wrapped, or to serve up a long metal skewer of marinated lamb or pork, without any vegetables but topped with a heap of paper-thin slices of raw onion. Cumin is another spice that sometimes finds its way into either the marinade or the end product just before serving it. More than a few souvlaki stands also fit four or five thin French fries between the pita, the meat and the vegetables.

The pita itself is also part of the art. In Greece, hand-held souvlaki is wrapped in a doughy kind of pita bread, not in the thin kind of pita bread with a pre-cut pocket. The bread can be grilled over coals with or without any fat or it can be cooked on a griddle, in which case it turns out slightly more cushiony.

As all the elements come together, the souvlaki should be assembled with lightning speed, the pita filled and rolled and then swaddled in pre-cut sheets of wax or parchment paper, so that all those savory juices stay safely within. When it is made to be served as a whole meal, though, the meat is sometimes removed from the skewer and placed over a piece of warm pita on a large plate. The tzatziki and fries are on the side.

All of this, of course, can more or less be replicated at home, provided that you have that innate knack for grilling. A good barbecue or a broiler will work. The only requirement is that it will get hot enough. While souvlaki may be simple to make, real tsikna doesn’t come easily.

*

Diane Kochilas is a food journalist for Ta Nea, a major newspaper in Greece, and the author of several books on Greek cuisine, most recently “The Glorious Foods of Greece” (William Morrow, 2001).

*

Lamb-and-Vegetable Souvlaki

Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 40 minutes plus 1 hour marinating

You should have about 32 cubes of lamb for this recipe. Use 8 flat metal skewers, about 10 inches long. Fresh bay leaves are available at gourmet supermarkets and farmers markets.

1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1/3 cup strained lemon juice

2 tablespoons minced garlic

2 tablespoons dried oregano, preferably Greek

2 tablespoons coarse salt

Freshly ground pepper

2 1/2 pounds boneless lamb leg or shoulder, cut into 1 1/2- inch cubes

2 green bell peppers, cored, seeded and cut into eighths

2 red onions, cut into eighths

4 firm tomatoes, cored and cut into quarters

16 whole fresh bay leaves, soaked in warm water for 15 minutes

8 round pita breads

Combine 1/2 cup of the oil, the lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper to taste in a bowl and toss in the lamb cubes. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 3 hours.

Heat the grill to medium-high or the broiler.

Alternately thread the meat, peppers, onions, tomatoes and bay leaves onto the skewers. Brush the skewers with the marinade. If broiling, place the skewers on a rack over a pan to keep the juices from dripping into the oven and broil about 4 inches from the heat source or place the skewers on the grill. Brush occasionally with a little of the marinade. The souvlaki will need about 6 to 7 minutes per side for rare, about 8 to 10 minutes for medium, and about 12 for well-done.

While the skewers are cooking, lightly brush the pita bread with some of the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil and either pan-fry lightly, preferably in a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat, or place on a cast-iron griddle or directly on the grill rack. Turn, brush the other side with the oil and grill lightly, 1 to 2 minutes total. The bread should not toast, but rather should be soft and pliant.

Serve the souvlaki on the skewer over the bread, accompanied if desired with Tzatziki and Greek Pan-Fried Potatoes.

8 servings. Each serving: 357 calories; 813 mg sodium; 88 mg cholesterol; 15 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 23 grams carbohydrates; 32 grams protein; 2.25 grams fiber.

*

Northern Greek Pork Skewers With Cayenne and Raw Onions

Active Work Time: 20 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 40 minutes plus 4 hours marinating

PORK

1 1/2 cups dry red wine

1/3 cup olive oil

2 bay leaves, cracked

2 tablespoons minced garlic

Coarse salt

Freshly ground pepper to taste

2 1/2 pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes

Combine the wine, olive oil, bay leaves, garlic and salt and pepper to taste in a bowl and let the pork cubes steep in the liquid, covered and refrigerated, for 4 hours.

Heat the broiler or grill to medium-high heat. Thread the pork along 4 flat metal skewers, patting dry slightly with paper towels. Grill the pork about 4 or 5 inches from the heat source for about 4 to 5 minutes per side (for a total of 16 to 20 minutes). Remove.

RELISH

1 1/2 cups yogurt

Cayenne to taste

1 large red onion, sliced into paper-thin rings

Strain the yogurt through a fine mesh strainer set over a bowl for 2 hours. It should be thick like sour cream.

Place the pork skewers on a platter. Dust generously with cayenne and top with the raw onions. Serve the yogurt on the side.

8 servings. Each serving: 331 calories; 139 mg sodium; 100 mg cholesterol; 21 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 5 grams carbohydrates; 28 grams protein; 0.44 gram fiber.

*

Tzatziki

Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 15 minutes plus 2 hours standing and 1 hour chilling1 (16-ounce) container plain, preferably full-fat, yogurt

1 small cucumber, preferably organic, peeled and

seeded

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Salt

Place the yogurt in a large double cheesecloth and tie together like a pouch. Hang this over the kitchen sink and let it strain for about 2 hours. Or, strain the yogurt through a fine mesh sieve set over a bowl. The yogurt should be the consistency of sour cream. Place the yogurt in a bowl.

Grate the cucumber. Take a handful at a time and press the cucumber between the palms of your hands until most of the liquid is squeezed out. Add to the yogurt. Toss together with the garlic and olive oil, and season to taste with salt. Chill 1 hour and serve as an accompaniment to either of the souvlaki dishes.

2 cups. Each 1/4-cup serving: 60 calories; 64 mg sodium; 7 mg cholesterol; 4 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 3 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams protein; 0.12 gram fiber.

*

Greek Pan-Fried Potatoes

Active Work Time: 35 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 45 minutes

Greek kefalotyri or kefalograviera cheese can be found at Greek markets.

Olive oil

8 large white boiling potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled

Salt

1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano, preferably Greek

3 to 4 tablespoons grated Greek kefalotyri or kefalograviera cheese, optional

1 lemon, cut into quarters, optional

Cut the potatoes into 1/8-inch-thick slices and pat dry.

Heat about 1/2 inch of olive oil in a large, preferably cast-iron, skillet over high heat. The oil should be hot but not smoking. Test it by dropping in one potato slice; it should “boil,” as the Greeks say, throwing off lots of bubbling foam. Add just a handful of potatoes at a time, no more than can fit in one layer in the skillet.

Cover the skillet and reduce the heat to medium. This is a particularly Greek home-cooking technique. The potatoes fry and “boil” in the oil, thus cooking on the inside thoroughly.

After about 6 or 7 minutes, carefully lift the lid, and with a two-pronged long fork check the bottom of the potatoes. They should have begun to acquire some color. Gently turn the potato slices, one by one if possible, to fry on the other side. Fry until deep golden-yellow and just lightly browned. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain in a colander or on paper towels and continue, adding more olive oil to the skillet if necessary, until all the potatoes are fried.

To serve, place the potatoes on a large platter and toss with salt to taste, the oregano and grated cheese, if using. If you like your potatoes crunchy, do not squeeze lemon over them; if you don’t mind a soft fry and like the tang of lemon, then douse them according to taste.

6 servings. Each serving: 286 calories; 59 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 9 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 48 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams protein; 4.41 grams fiber.