Kebabs are the fourth most popular takeaway in the UK, according to the Kebab Alliance, with Doner and Shish varieties being the go-to for most Britons.
But while the novelty of seeing the meat cooked on a rotating vertical spit is part of the charm of getting a kebab, few people know what happens to it at the end of the night.
A former kebab shop worker has taken to social media to reveal exactly where the leftover doner goes when it’s time to close up.
Writing on the popular online forum, Reddit, a member asked: “What happens to the doner kebab at the end of the night? Does it get binned? Does it get reused the next day? What action would health and safety demand?”
One user joked that it “gets left where it is” and the outer layer is simply shaved off the following day before the first customer arrives.
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What happens to the doner kebab at the end of the night?
byu/IsDinosaur inAskUK
To this, another Reddit member who goes by the name u/Due-Resource4294 claimed: “I worked in a kebab shop for years. You’re not far wrong.”
They continued: “I’m sure anyone who’s ever got a kebab where it seems half warmed, all scraggy bits that look like they’ve been chopped up, diced, sliced all sorts will wonder what they’ve got.
“But that’s when it’s running low and they use the edges, the top and bottom.”
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According to the former kebab shop employee, “most places” are careful not to replace the doner meat towards the end of the night but instead, use up the existing one until it’s gone.
However, when it is kept overnight, they claimed that it tends to be left to cool, then wrapped with several bags to ensure the meat is covered.
The Reddit user continued that the following day, the meat will then be reheated before “shaving off about two layers”.
They said: “The most you’re ever gonna need to reheat it for is one more day the next day. It won’t last much longer before being sold!”
With some 17,000 kebab shops across the UK, the notion of reused meat hasn’t completely put people off the popular doner dish just yet.
One person commented on the Reddit thread: “Knowing this and sober, I will still buy it. I even gauge on the time of day to work out if there’s likely to have been a few punters before me who’ll have eaten the worst of it…”
A second kebab-lover agreed: “Found myself doing the same waiting half an hour at least before phoning a takeaway when they open in the hope they get the leftovers.”
Official guidelines on safe storage, preparation and cooking of doner kebabs can be found on several council websites, including North Yorkshire Council, which suggests: “If you do have leftover meat on the doner ensure that it is cooled as quickly as possible (ideally within 90 minutes) before being stored in the fridge (below +8C), or in the freezer (below –18C).
“Consider slicing and storing enough cooked meat to serve customers in the last hour of the trade, and turn off the heat of the spit to commence the cooling process earlier.”
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