Arrosticini di Ovino su Canale con Brace di Legna

Abruzzo (Gran Sasso area), central Italy

The defining emblem of Abruzzo: tiny skewers of castrato (castrated male sheep) or mutton, cut into 1.5 cm cubes of alternating lean and fat — never a single piece of pure lean — threaded onto flat wooden skewers and cooked directly over a channel-shaped charcoal or wood-fire grill (the canale or furnacella). The arrosticini are placed perpendicular to the canale, touching or nearly touching each other, and cooked in a single turn without moving them — typically 3–4 minutes total over very hot coals. The fat renders and drips into the fire, creating flares that char and perfume the meat. Eaten immediately off the skewer, with nothing but salt and grilled crusty bread to absorb the fat.

Charred, funky sheep fat rendered into the lean; smoke from the fat drips; the meat itself is almost secondary to the fat flavour and char aromatics; salt is the only seasoning.