flipCaucasian Shashlik, Marinated Lamb Skewers
Caucasian Shashlik, Marinated Lamb Skewers
Why this dish? During his grand journey to Russia and the Caucasus (1858-1859), recounted in *Le Caucase*, Dumas discovered and described shashlik, these lamb skewers grilled over a campfire. This souvenir dish embodies Dumas the globe-trotter, curious about all tables.
Lamb pieces marinated with onion and vinegar, skewered and grilled over embers — a bivouac flavor discovered by Dumas in the Caucasus mountains.
Ah, the Caucasus! There, no tablecloth or silver fork: you cut the mutton, let it bite into onion and vinegar, then thread it onto an iron rod to roast it right over the embers. I ate that shashlik squatting by the fire, among men I only half understood, and I swear that no dinner at the Porte-Saint-Martin ever seemed so good. That is what travel means: bringing back tastes that no Parisian salon knows!
- •Lamb shoulder or leg — a fine piece cut into cubes (meat)
- •Onions — several, sliced (marinade)
- •Wine vinegar — a good glass (tenderize and flavor)
- •Salt and pepper — generously (seasoning)
Caucasian Shashlik, Marinated Lamb Skewers
Lamb pieces marinated with onion and vinegar, skewered and grilled over embers — a bivouac flavor discovered by Dumas in the Caucasus mountains.
Why this dish? During his grand journey to Russia and the Caucasus (1858-1859), recounted in *Le Caucase*, Dumas discovered and described shashlik, these lamb skewers grilled over a campfire. This souvenir dish embodies Dumas the globe-trotter, curious about all tables.
Ah, the Caucasus! There, no tablecloth or silver fork: you cut the mutton, let it bite into onion and vinegar, then thread it onto an iron rod to roast it right over the embers. I ate that shashlik squatting by the fire, among men I only half understood, and I swear that no dinner at the Porte-Saint-Martin ever seemed so good. That is what travel means: bringing back tastes that no Parisian salon knows!
Ingredients (period version)
- Lamb shoulder or leg — a fine piece cut into cubes (meat)
- Onions — several, sliced (marinade)
- Wine vinegar — a good glass (tenderize and flavor)
- Salt and pepper — generously (seasoning)
Ingredients
- Boneless lamb shoulder — 800 g, cut into 4 cm cubes (meat)
- Onions — 3 large, sliced (marinade)
- Wine vinegar — 100 ml (tenderize)
- Salt, cracked black pepper — generously (seasoning)
- Oil — 2 tbsp (marinade)
Method
- Mix the lamb with the sliced onions, vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper.
- Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight.
- Thread the cubes onto skewers, not too tightly.
- Grill over hot embers (or on a very hot grill) for 8 to 12 minutes, turning, until the meat is golden outside and pink inside.
- Serve immediately with raw onions and flatbread.
How it was made : In the 19th-century Caucasus, shashlik was grilled at the bivouac on iron spits over a wood fire, with no other preparation than salt, onion, and an acid. Dumas describes its rustic preparation in his travel impressions.
The contemporary twist : Serve the skewers on a bed of red onions marinated with sumac for a nod to today's Caucasian flavors.
Sources : Alexandre Dumas, Le Caucase, 1859 · Alexandre Dumas, Impressions de voyage en Russie, 1858-1859
Alexandre Dumas · Charactorium
