Shashlik, or shashlyck ( shashlyk), is a dish of and grilled cubes of meat, similar to or synonymous with shish kebab. It is known traditionally by various other names in the Caucasus, Eastern Europe and Central Asia,
Etymology and history
The word
shashlik or
shashlick entered English from the
Russian language , of
Turkic languages origin.
[ American Heritage Dictionary Entry: shashlik] In Turkic languages, the word
shish means skewer, and
shishlik is literally translated as "skewerable". The word was coined from the
('spit') by the Zaporozhian Cossacks and entered Russian in the 18th century, from there spreading to English and other European languages., from
, 'spit'.
Shashlik did not reach
Moscow until the late 19th century.
[Владимир Гиляровский. Москва и москвичи, гл. Трактиры. 1926 (Vladimir Gilyarovsky. Moscow and Muscovites. 1926)] From then on, its popularity spread rapidly; by the 1910s it was a staple in
St Petersburg restaurants and by the 1920s it was already a pervasive street food all over urban Russia.
Preparation
Shashlik was originally made of lamb, but nowadays it is also made of
pork,
beef, chicken or
venison, depending on local preferences and religious observances.
[ Шашлык. In: В. В. Похлёбкин, Кулинарный словарь от А до Я. Москва, Центрполиграф, 2000, (William Pokhlyobkin, Culinary Dictionary. Moscow, Tsentrpoligraf, 2000; Russian)] The skewers are either threaded with meat only, or with alternating pieces of meat, fat, and vegetables, such as
bell pepper,
onion,
edible mushroom and
tomato. In Iranian cuisine, meat for shashlik (as opposed to other forms of
shish kebab) is usually in large chunks,
while elsewhere the form of medium-size meat cubes is maintained making it similar to
brochette. The meat is marinated overnight in a mostly acidic marinade like vinegar, dry wine or sour fruit/
vegetable juice with the addition of onions, garlic, herbs and other spices.
[ Marinade recipes for shashlik at RusslandJournal.de]
While it is not unusual to see shashlik today listed on the menu of restaurants, it is more commonly sold in many areas in the form of fast food by street vendors who roast the skewers on a mangal over wood, charcoal, or coal. It is also cooked in outdoor environments during social gatherings, similarly to barbecue in English-speaking countries.
Despite the simplicity of preparing shashlik, the process of frying meat over an open fire can cause inconvenience for residents of apartment buildings.
See also
