Chicken Shawarma
Warm-spiced marinated chicken roasted and sliced for wraps.
Ingredients
- 800 g Chicken thighs
- 100 g Yogurt
- 5 cloves Garlic
- 1 tbsp Ground cumin
- 1 tsp Coriander seeds
- 1 tsp Allspice
- 1 Lemon
- 4 Pita
- 3 tbsp Extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp Salt
Method
- Slice the chicken and toss with yoghurt, garlic, spices, lemon, oil, and salt.
- Rest at least 20 minutes.
- Roast the chicken in a hot oven, then char briefly until the edges crisp; rest and slice.
- Warm the pita and fill with the sliced chicken.
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About Chicken Shawarma
Chicken shawarma belongs to the Levantine street-food tradition, where seasoned meat is stacked on a vertical spit, roasted as it turns, and shaved off in crisp-edged slices to order. This home version trades the rotisserie for a hot oven but keeps the two things that matter most: a warm-spiced yogurt marinade and a hard char at the end. The yogurt does double duty, its acidity and enzymes tenderizing the chicken thighs while carrying cumin, coriander, allspice, garlic, and lemon deep into the meat during at least a twenty-minute rest.
The flavor is aromatic and savory rather than fiery — earthy cumin and coriander rounded out by the sweet warmth of allspice, brightened with lemon. Thighs are the right cut here because their fat stays juicy through the roasting and crisping, and the deliberate char on the edges is where the caramelized, faintly smoky notes live. Traditionally it's tucked into warm pita or flatbread with garlic sauce, pickles, and salad, eaten out of hand. Slicing the rested chicken thin and piling it into warmed pita, as this recipe does, gives you a wrap that's fast to assemble and easy to scale up for a crowd.
Chicken Shawarma: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Chicken Shawarma?
A serving has about 746 calories — 40.6g protein, 40.1g carbs, 46.6g fat, 2.6g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is it high in protein?
Each serving has about 40.6g of protein, roughly 22% of its calories.
Is Chicken Shawarma gluten-free?
As written, no — it contains Pita. You'd need a certified gluten-free swap for that ingredient to make it gluten-free.
Is Chicken Shawarma dairy-free?
Not as written — it uses Yogurt. Swapping it for a plant-based alternative makes it dairy-free.
How long does Chicken Shawarma take to make?
About 45 minutes start to finish, but only around 12 of those are hands-on — the rest is largely unattended cooking time you can step away from. In the Homecooked app the timers and parallel steps are sequenced for you so the hands-on part feels even shorter.
How many servings does Chicken Shawarma make?
This recipe makes 4 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.