Kiroan Skewers

"The origin of the meat is of less consequence than what you do with it. Cut it into pieces large enough to fit into a closed fist, and skewer them on a wooden stick. For best results, soak the stick with fresh water before doing this to prevent the wood from burning..."

— Excerpt from "Imperial Legionnaire's Cookbook"

Across the Rhyliss Empire, there are few places considered more remote and inhospitable than the Kiroan Desert. It is a land of hot winds, incessant sun, and shifting sands. And yet the Imperial Legion has kept a presence in the area since discovering there were creatures dwelling in the sands which were a serious threat to travelers and merchants on the Imperial roads. With a lack of usual food sources, Legionnaires who were assigned to the region had to adapt and develop recipes which used less variety. Locals who lived near the desert, and nomads who would live in the desert helped inspire a few ideas.

Among these recipes was a type of unleavened bread which remained soft and pliant when warm, which served as a basis for many variations of the same idea: a seasoned meat or paste wrapped with whatever greens were at hand. When the authors of the Imperial Legionnaire's Cookbook were interviewing veterans for their input, there were many conflicting answers to what sort of meat or spices were used, but many agreed the greens used had a strong flavor meant to pair with the heavily-seasoned meat.

The different types of meats involved were almost always cooked with inventions made by necessity. Most important among these was cutting down the meat into smaller bite-sized pieces when necessary, as this made the cooking time brief in the hot climate and also made it possible to use meats which weren't necessarily available in larger pieces. Legionnaires often used spare arrow shafts to serve as something to put the meat over the fire to cook on, as there were almost always spares - and they could be made into arrows later without much trouble. Seasoning was often a use of strong herbs or spices, though salt was rather sparingly used in most recipes of note. Most of the herbs used were easily cultivated at the Legion's fort or local settlements, and often kept in the form of dry powders. For a balance of flavor and source of nutrition, a thick paste of specially-fermented goat milk was employed to cling to the meat as it cooked and also as a base for sauces added after the cooking was finished.

After the publication of the cookbook, this meal became quite popular for street vendors to sell due to the ease of preparation and cooking. It is said to be available in at least four places within a Rhyliss city, with qualities ranging from "it's tolerable" to "I can't believe this is even edible". Modern versions of this meal often make use of ingredients which were not available to the Legionnaires who lived in the region, such as savory fruits or broad leafy greens with milder flavors. "Authentic" recipes stick to using goat meat, despite Legionnaires being emphatic the goats were used more for milk than meat, while more popular iterations use slaughtered cattle or game fowl. The sauces have changed to be made from reduced cream, or even fresh cheeses melted over the meat. About the only thing which has not been changed in modern iterations is the bread - attempts to use more common bread loaves have been unsuccessful. A few enterprising cooks would use steamed grains as a basis, but the necessary inclusion of a bowl breaks the "spirit of the dish" enough for people to consider it a separate recipe entirely.