In France the döner sandwich is oddly nicknamed 'le grec' (the Greek) after the Greek-run shops that first sold it in Paris's Latin Quarter. The defining local touches: fries stuffed inside the bread and a ladle of 'sauce blanche', a garlicky yogurt-mayo.
Also known as: kebab-frites, grec, sandwich grec, kébab, kebab sauce blanche, Kebab-frites (French kebab), kebab frites, galette kebab, kebab galette, french kebab
Watch it made
Ingredients
- 700 g boneless chicken thighs (or turkey escalopes), sliced thin
- 2 tsp sweet paprika, 1.5 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp dried oregano
- 3 garlic cloves, grated, plus 45 ml olive oil
- 150 g fromage blanc or Greek yogurt (sauce base)
- 60 g mayonnaise
- 1 small garlic clove, lemon juice and chopped chives (for the sauce)
- 4 large pitas or galettes
- Tomato, onion and shredded lettuce
- Hot fries, to stuff inside (very Paris)
How to make it
- 1
Toss the sliced thighs with paprika, cumin, oregano, garlic, oil and salt; marinate 2 hours.
- 2
Stir the fromage blanc with mayonnaise, garlic, lemon and chives into a loose sauce blanche and chill it.
- 3
Sear the meat on a ripping-hot plancha or wide pan, undisturbed at first, until the edges frizzle and crisp, about 8 minutes, then chop roughly.
- 4
Warm the breads, swipe sauce blanche down the middle, and pile on meat, tomato, onion and lettuce.
- 5
Tuck in a handful of fries, roll in paper, and add another ribbon of sauce through the opening.
Pro tip: Sauce blanche is the whole identity of le grec, and every Paris shop guards a ratio: the trick is a spoon of mayonnaise whipped into fromage blanc, enough for body but never so much that it tastes of mayo.
The story of French Kebab
In France the döner sandwich is nicknamed le grec — the Greek — after the Greek-run shops that first sold it in Paris's Latin Quarter in the 1970s. The name stuck even as the trade became overwhelmingly Turkish and Kurdish, which makes it one of the more persistent misnomers in European food.
The French version diverged in two specific ways: fries go inside the bread, and the default sauce is sauce blanche, a garlicky yoghurt-mayonnaise emulsion that exists nowhere else in the kebab world. Between them these two additions make a French kebab immediately identifiable and considerably heavier than its German cousin.
The technique that defines it
Fries inside the bread is not laziness — it is a structural decision that changes the sandwich. The fries absorb sauce and meat juices and provide starch that keeps the whole thing from becoming a wet handful. They must go in hot and crisp, though, because fries added lukewarm turn to paste immediately.
Sauce blanche is a stable emulsion of mayonnaise, yoghurt or fromage blanc, garlic, lemon and herbs, and it is thinner than a Turkish garlic sauce so it coats rather than sits. It goes on generously and in two stages, on the bread and over the filling, which is how French shops do it and why the sandwich is as rich as it is.
Choosing your ingredients
Galette or a thin flatbread for the wrap version; a pain pita for the sandwich version. Doner meat prepared as anywhere — loaf method at home, shaved and crisped. Fries cooked properly crisp, ideally twice-fried, and added at the last second.
Sauce blanche is worth making: mayonnaise, thick yoghurt, crushed garlic, lemon, salt, and a little chopped parsley or dill. Salad is lettuce, tomato, onion. Harissa or sauce samouraï for those who want heat.
Mistakes that ruin it
Soggy fries
They must go in hot and crisp. Lukewarm fries turn to paste under the sauce and ruin the texture the dish depends on.
A thick garlic sauce
Sauce blanche is thinner than a Turkish toum and coats rather than sitting in a blob. Thin it with a little lemon and water.
Over-filling
With fries inside, the sandwich is already substantial. Too much salad and it will not close.
Cold bread
Warm or toast it. The French galette in particular is unpleasant cold.
How it is served
In paper, with more fries on the side because the ones inside are never enough. A cold drink. It is eaten late and it is student food as much as anything else — the price point in French university towns is a genuine part of its cultural position.
Questions about French Kebab
Why is the kebab called 'le grec' in France?
Because the first shops selling it in Paris's Latin Quarter in the 1970s were Greek-run. The name persisted even after the trade became largely Turkish and Kurdish.
What is sauce blanche?
A garlicky emulsion of mayonnaise and yoghurt or fromage blanc with lemon and herbs. It is the default French kebab sauce and is thinner than a Turkish garlic sauce.
Why are fries inside the sandwich?
They absorb the sauce and juices and give the sandwich structure. They must go in hot and crisp or they turn to paste.
What is the difference from a German doner?
The fries inside, the sauce blanche, and lettuce rather than cabbage. The French version is richer and softer.
