Arrosticini

Arrosticini

Origine: Abruzzo

Arrosticini are perhaps the most successful Abruzzo specialty in recent times. They are basically skewers made from sheep meat. The well-cleaned and boned sheep meat is arranged in layers, alternating fatty and lean parts, forming a rectangle approximately 10 cm deep. Then it is skewered with wooden skewers arranged in a mesh pattern, with a length that varies between 25-30 cm. Finally everything is cut into many skewers corresponding to each individual skewer. Once upon a time this operation was performed by hand, today production has increased significantly thanks to specific machinery.

The alternation of lean and fatty parts guarantees the melting of the fat in the heat of the flame, flavoring and softening the lean parts. This is one of the secrets of preparing kebabs.

The roast is mainly cooked on the grill or rather on the fornacella, a brazier specialized in cooking roasts. It is a metal channel suitable for containing the embers, very long in shape but only about ten centimeters narrow: precisely the width of the part of meat in the roast. In fact, the kebabs are practically placed in a row on the oven and thanks to its shape, the part exposed to the flame (or embers) is practically only the meat part, while the wooden part remains external and therefore does not burn. Furthermore, the oven makes it very easy to rotate the kebabs directly with your hands, cleanly and quickly. Rotating the kebabs makes cooking uniform.

The kebabs must be served as soon as they come out of the grill and in bundles, that is, in groups of dozens and wrapped in foil. In fact, it is very important that this dish is consumed hot and immediately after cooking if we want to fully appreciate all its flavours. In fact, it is not customary to prepare them first and then serve them, but to consume them directly at the moment.