Fine quality mutton of a free-range organic sheep and dry-aged for 12 days in the butcher’s fridge. This meat will be the basic material for our spit-roast mutton “kontosouvli”. It’s always the high quality of the meat that is the basis of a unique and tasty dish. This unique flavor will be enhanced with the marinade and we should not cover it by any means.
That’s why we always pay attention to the marinating process and it’s important to add the ingredients in the right quantity, as listed in the recipe. The precision of ingredients’ measurements, proper selection of spices and the proportions among them are playing a key role. The essential ingredient in this marinade is the pomegranate juice. All the others were selected to match this ingredient of the marinade.
The first step is to get the meat boneless (it is better to ask your butcher doing this for you) and remove most of the fat. Keep the fat aside, not for the marinade but for using it on the spit where you will skewer it in between the meat’s pieces. Cut the lean boneless meat into small pieces or larger pieces, in case you grill a mutton spit-roast on the large spit. Then, prepare the spice mixture by adding the spices seeds in a mortar and finely grinding to bring out their essential oil. Add the salt with the spices to get a scented salt. The scented salt will penetrate deep into the meat and flavor it.
Spread out the meat’s pieces into a large cooking vessel and pour the pomegranate juice. It’s very important to distribute it evenly. Then, mix well by rubbing the meat and leave it for 20 minutes to absorb the pomegranate juice. Also, mix during this time. After that, add the diced tomatoes, the sliced onions, and the finely chopped garlic, and mix well as you adding the tomato paste. The next step is to add the spices and make sure to spread evenly and mix gradually. Lastly, add the sunflower oil.
Put the meat with the marinade in a sealed food bag and refrigerate for 18-24 hours. The more the better. So, the whole process should be done the day before grilling.
Pile up the charcoals inside the fire cabin of your charcoal grill. Place alcohol soaked cotton on the top and light the charcoals. This way, the lighting will be easy, quick and without smoke. When they are fully lit, spread the charcoals inside the fire cabin. If they release too much heat, throw some charcoal ash on the pile and grill at medium to high temperature. It will take about 20 minutes for small pieces of meat, roasted in small spits, while in a large spit with a thicker cut of meat, it will take about 1 hour and 20 minutes. Along with the mutton roast “kontosouvli”, you can grill some tomatoes, green hot peppers, and some sweet Florina peppers too. After removing the spits from the grill, cover them with aluminum foil for 7-8 minutes.
It is served warm and accompanied by grilled vegetables and season salads. Good wine and good company are essentials because grilling is communication.
Happy grilling everyone!