New Zealand's Turkish-run kebab shops, established from the 1990s in Auckland and Wellington, evolved a local style: the filled tortilla-like wrap of doner lamb or chicken is folded flat and toasted in a press, and the default sauce order is yoghurt plus sweet chili rather than garlic-and-chili. Many shops also plate the same doner meat over rice, a Kiwi-specific menu fixture.
Also known as: Kiwi kebab, NZ kebab, toasted kebab wrap, kebab on rice
Watch it made
Ingredients
- 600 g lamb leg steaks or chicken thigh, sliced thin
- 150 g yogurt plus 2 tsp each cumin, paprika and dried mint
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed, and 1.5 tsp salt
- 4 large flatbreads or tortillas
- 150 g hummus
- 2 cups shredded iceberg lettuce, 1 tomato and 1 red onion, sliced
- grated cheese (optional, very NZ)
- yogurt-garlic sauce
- sweet chili sauce
How to make it
- 1
Marinate the meat slices 4 hours in the spiced yogurt, garlic and salt.
- 2
Sear in a ripping-hot dry pan 2-3 minutes per batch until browned at the edges, kebab-shop style.
- 3
Spread each flatbread first with a full layer of hummus — the NZ-shop signature move — then load with lettuce, tomato, onion, meat and cheese.
- 4
Sauce generously with yogurt-garlic and a zigzag of sweet chili.
- 5
Roll tight, tucking one end, and press seam-down on the hot pan or a sandwich press 2 minutes until the outside crisps and the parcel fuses shut.
Pro tip: The final press is what separates an NZ kebab from a floppy wrap — the toasted shell holds the trademark overstuffing together one-handed.
