GRILLED CHICKEN SHAWARMA SKEWERS
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Grilled Chicken Shawarma Skewers is tender chicken breasts cut and coated in a flavorful marinade, then grilled to golden brown perfection.
WHAT IS CHICKEN SHAWARMA?
Shawarma is a Middle Eastern dish flavored with a savory yogurt sauce. It’s prepared from thin cuts of seasoned marinated lamb, mutton, veal, beef, chicken, or turkey. The slices are stacked on a skewer about 20 inches high. The skewers turn and cook on the spit for hours and are shaved off to serve. Traditionally, shawarma is served with tahini or garlic sauce. Whereas, gyros are served with tzatziki sauce.
HOW DO I MAKE GRILLED CHICKEN SHAWARMA SKEWERS?
It’s easy! The longer you let the chicken marinate, the more flavor it’ll have. Therefore, this is a great recipe to prep early in the day or before work and let it chill in the fridge soaking up the spices.
I like to cut the chicken into chunks before marinating. This way, it has more surface area to grab those spices.
Furthermore, the spices and marinade are good on beef, turkey, or lamb.
After marinating, you can either roast the chicken in the oven or grill it. Most often, I grill it. Grilling adds another layer of flavor. Grill the chicken on high heat on all sides. The cooking time will depend on how large your chicken chunks are and the temperature of your grill so keep a close eye on it. Mine most often cooks in 15 to 20 minutes.
HOW DO I SERVE SHAWARMA?
If you want to go traditional, serve your chicken shawarma in a pita with tomato, cucumber, onions, and tahini sauce.
Otherwise, serve your shawarma in a wrap, with Mandarin Cajun Shrimp Salad, or in a hoagie bun. If you follow a keto diet, this flavorful chicken is tender, juicy, and very flavorful all by itself! This chicken is just so good. It’s tasty with anything or all by itself!
Although traditionally, shawarma isn’t served with tzatziki sauce, I enjoy the light-flavored sauce on it.
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Grilled Chicken Shawarma Skewers
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon coriander
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon cardamon
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 pounds chicken breasts boneless, skinless (or chicken thighs)
- ⅓ cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1 – 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Mix together cumin, coriander, garlic, paprika, cloves, cardamom, turmeric, ginger, black pepper, cinnamon, Greek yogurt, olive oil, and lemon juice.
- Cut chicken into cubes. Coat chicken in seasoning mixture and marinate 4 to 24 hours in the refrigerator.
To cook
- Oven method: Preheat the oven to 425°F. Place chicken in a large skillet or sheet pan. Cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until cooked through.
- Grill method: Place chicken chunks on skewers (if you're using wood skewers, soak them in water 20 minutes first)
- Grill both sides of the skewered chicken on high heat until fully cooked through (about 10 minutes per side).
- Serve as is, in pita bread, salad, or bowls.
I’ve made this recipe a few times and it’s been a hit! The only reason for 4/5 stars is because it definitely needs salt. The first time I made this, I followed the recipe as written and you could tell the salt was missing. I pair the dish with basmati turmeric rice, and homemade tzatziki sauce!
This was amazing. On the grill with bell peppers, onions and mushrooms. Vegetables in foil. Put extra sauce on the grill on the side. Put it all over brown rice. Fabulous!