Cevapi, also known as ćevapčići

Cevapi, also known as ćevapčići are a grilled, hand-made minced meat dish that is a traditional food in Balkan countries.

They can be found in restaurants and as street food in the Balkans where people enjoy them served in lepinja/somun which is a circular flatbread along with onions, ajvar and kajmak. Ajvar is a sweet red pepper sauce that pairs well with this mini kebab and an explanation of kajmak is that it is a creamy dairy product that can be compared to clotted cream or sour cream.

Ćevapi has its origins in the Balkans during the Ottoman period and represents a regional speciality similarto the köfte kebab. The ćevapi can be traced and based on the traditional pljeskavica, which is a meat patty - think of a burger! This pljeskavica meat was then formed into smaller pieces and rolled into ćevapi. In 1933, the first street food vendor appeared in Maribor, Slovenia, who came from Leskovac a well-known BBQ city in Serbia and served the infamous ćevapčići.