The Grand Tour Story
Leaving Sarajevo behind, the Grand Tour winds east through thick forests, rolling farmland and mountain passes
before crossing into Serbia. The scenery changes, but one thing doesn't—there's smoke rising from almost every
garden grill. This is a country that knows exactly what to do with meat, paprika and open fire.
We arrive in Belgrade just as the evening grills are coming to life. Families gather around huge platters of roasted
meat while the smell of sweet paprika, garlic and charcoal hangs over the streets. A grill master called Milan
smiles as he turns a row of chicken drumsticks and says, "Good paprika doesn't hide the chicken—it makes it taste
more like chicken."
After dinner, nobody argued.
You’ll Need
For the Chicken
8 chicken drumsticks
1 tbsp sunflower oil
2 cloves garlic, finely grated
2 tsp sweet Hungarian-style paprika
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp sea salt
½ tsp cracked black pepper
½ tsp chilli flakes
1 tsp dried thyme
Juice of ½ lemon
Serbian Pepper Glaze
2 tbsp ajvar
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp Dijon mustard
To Finish
Fresh parsley, chopped
Lemon wedges
Optional but dangerous
Roasted peppers
Warm flatbreads
Crumbled feta
Cold Serbian lager
Method
Preheat your air fryer to 190°C.
Pat the drumsticks dry thoroughly with kitchen paper.
In a large bowl, mix together the sunflower oil, garlic, sweet paprika, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion
powder, sea salt, black pepper, chilli flakes, thyme and lemon juice.
Coat the drumsticks thoroughly until every piece is evenly covered.
Place the drumsticks into the air fryer basket in a single layer.
Air fry for 22–25 minutes, turning halfway through, until the skin is crisp and beautifully coloured.
Meanwhile, mix together the ajvar, honey and Dijon mustard.
Brush the glaze generously over the drumsticks during the final 4 minutes of cooking.
Give them a final 2-minute blast at 200°C until the glaze becomes sticky, glossy and lightly caramelised.
Scatter with fresh parsley and serve immediately with lemon wedges and roasted peppers if using.