Cevapi are grilled finger-shaped minced beef-lamb skewers, the Serbian Balkan icon. Served in a half-lepinja bread with raw onion, kajmak cream cheese and ajvar relish.

Cevapi reach Belgrade through Ottoman lineage, then sharpen into the Sarajevski style of the 19th-20th century Yugoslavia and travel as economic-migration cuisine across the Balkans. The Sarajevski cut (smaller, denser, beef-lamb without seasoning visible) is the canonical form on Belgrade grills; Walter Sarajevski cevap has been the Belgrade benchmark for decades.

Where to eat Cevapi in Belgrade

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Make it at home

Serves 42 hr 30 minEasy

Ingredients

  • 500g minced beef (80% lean)
  • 300g minced lamb
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon sparkling water
  • 4 lepinja flatbreads
  • 1 raw white onion, finely chopped
  • 200g kajmak (or thick clotted cream)
  • Ajvar pepper relish for serving

Method

  1. Combine beef and lamb mince in a bowl with baking soda, salt, pepper and sparkling water. Mix by hand for 5 minutes until tacky.
  2. Cover and rest in the fridge for at least 2 hours, ideally overnight, to let the mixture cure.
  3. Heat a charcoal or cast-iron grill until very hot. Lightly oil the grates.
  4. Roll the meat into 8 cm finger shapes about 2 cm thick, 8 per person. Grill 2 minutes per side, turning twice for even char.
  5. Warm the lepinja bread briefly on the grill until soft.
  6. Open the lepinja, spread with kajmak, place 6 to 8 cevapi inside, top with raw onion and ajvar.
  7. Serve immediately with extra ajvar on the side.

Editor tip. Use the sparkling water trick to keep the cevapi tender; flat water makes them dense. Don't season heavily, the lepinja and kajmak carry the seasoning.

Common allergens: Gluten.