When you think of Vietnamese food, you probably think of pho and freshly rolled spring rolls. Not the döner kebab - a meaty, German-Turkish late-night snack. But, over the past decade or so, mobile kebab stands have been popping up all over Vietnam's cities. They're now a ubiquitous part of the street food.

Doner Kebab and its journey to Vietnam

Photo: Quoc Khanh

Late afternoon at the gate of Hanoi Foreign Trade University, a group of students lined up in front of a Doner Kebab cart. In the car, the most prominent thing is the golden meat that radiates an attractive aroma. The pieces of meat are skewered on a stainless steel post, rotated, and placed next to an electric oven. Ngo Gia Phong – the owner of the food cart – used a sharp knife to slice each piece of meat less than 1mm thin.

The juicy and moist slices of meat are put inside the bread, along with vegetables such as cabbage, onions, herbs, carrots, and cucumbers. A mixture of mayonnaise sauce with ketchup and chili sauce also helps improve the flavors of the dish.

“Rotating meat is cooked from the outside, and cut into slices while it is still hot to retain the aroma and sweetness. When cutting, you need to pay attention not to cut into the raw part inside. This special style of grilling made the name of the dish: ‘Doner Kebab’. ‘Kebab’ means grilled meat and ‘Doner’ means spinning.”

Photo: Quoc Khanh

Doner Kebab bread was recognized by the Turkish Doner Manufacturers Association as the invention of Kadir Nurman in 1972. In the early 2000s, Doner Kebab became more famous and started to spread to other countries in the world, including Vietnam. It soon captured people’s hearts for its wonderful taste and affordable prizes. Doner Kebab carts began to appear on the streets and alleys, from school gates to densely populated urban areas in all parts of Vietnam.

Vietnamese’s favorite street meal

Ngo Gia Phong - the owner of Doner Kebab cart in Hanoi. Photo: Quoc Khanh

According to Phong, ever since Doner Kebab was introduced in Vietnam, the crust of the bread was kept the same. Over time, the fillings have been changed and improved to suit the taste of Vietnamese people.

According to the original, this traditional food comes from a Muslim country, so the barbecue usually uses lamb, beef, and chicken. However, lamb has a strong smell and is not commonly used in Vietnam, and beef is expensive, so only chicken remains the same. The only disadvantage of the chicken meat when cooking is that it can become dry after being cooked, that’s why the chef has to find a way to soften it by alternating layers of chicken skin and a thin layer of butter. Finally, the Doner Kebab bread carts gradually switched to using pork.

Photo: Menu Online

The marinating method is also changed when not using the typical Turkish aromatic leaves, but the meat is marinated in Vietnamese style with five spices, cinnamon, anise, and other spices. Each street vendor has its own secret and spice ratio, but all make the Vietnamese version of the Doner Kebab somewhat different from the original.

The 28-year-old Vu Xuan Tuong, a Hanoian said he used to have a chance to eat Doner Kebab in Turkey, “Apart from the difference in the meat, the taste of the Turks is also much saltier than that of Vietnam. Even the type of melon served is also a salty pickle, which is not sweet or easy to taste like in Vietnam. Another difference is that the sauce in Turkey is made from yogurt and in Vietnam it is mayonnaise.”

Photo: Banh Mi Kebab

Thanks to those variations, the triangular bread has a flavor that is more suitable to Vietnamese tastes and culinary culture. It now becomes one of the most famous foods that you can find on every corner of the streets in Vietnam.

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