Name: Chicken shawarma with easy flatbread
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 75 min
Ingredients: 1 cup plain yogurt; 4 garlic cloves (crushed); 2 tbsp lemon juice; 2 tbsp olive oil; 2 tsp paprika; ½ tsp chilli/red pepper flakes; 1 tsp ground coriander; 1 tsp ground cumin; 2 tsp salt; 1 tsp black pepper; 1 kg boneless, skin-on chicken thighs; 3 cups flour; 1 tsp baking powder; 1 tsp salt; ½ tsp garlic powder ((optional)); ½ cup plain/Greek yogurt; ½ cup vegetable oil; ¾-1 cup milk; 1 cup plain/Greek yogurt; 2 tbsp chopped parsley; 1 tbsp chopped mint; 2-3 garlic cloves (crushed); 1-2 tbsp lemon juice; salt and pepper (to taste); Pickles of your choice; fresh vegetables of your choice ((tomatoes, cucumber, avocado work well) )

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Juicy chicken shawarma marinated in spiced yogurt then grilled is a delicious dinner served wrapped in easy flatbread with crunchy vegetables.

Shawarma is one of our favorite things to eat. When we were still dating, my husband and I would often go to the local schwarma-place where he lived to indulge in giant wraps stuffed with the juiciest grilled meat, pickles, garlic sauce and crunchy vegetables. To this day, I know the way to treat him his to get him a really good shawarma. I decided to make my own a while ago and I have to say, this chicken shawarma ticks ALL the boxes.

What is Shawarma?

Shawarma is meat (most often beef, lamb or chicken) stacked on a vertical spit and grilled low and slow, often all day long. The meat is carved off the side of the spit and served in pita bread or flatbread with your choice of vegetables, sauces, pickles, etc.

As I didn’t have the option to cook the chicken for long on a vertical spit, I wanted to replicate the juiciness and flavor in a simple way. Something we could all do at home. And so I decided to marinated the chicken in spiced yogurt. I used boneless, skin-on chicken thighs and baked them in a really hot oven with the top grill/broiler on to really caramelize the skin.

The end result was chicken SO juicy and delicious, we all ate our fair-share before the slices even made it into our shawarmas.

How to make chicken shawarma

Marinate the chicken: Place boneless, skin-on chicken thighs in a large bowl. Combine Greek yogurt, spices, garlic, lemon and olive oil and add to the chicken. Allow to marinate for 30 minutes – 1 hour. (The longer the better but even as little as 30 minutes will work wonders.)
Cook the chicken: Pre-heat your oven to its hottest temperature, turning the top element/grill on if needed. Place the chicken onto a large baking sheet/oven dish. Bake until cooked through with the skin nicely caramelized. Remove from the oven and slice.
Assemble the shawarma: Serve the charred chicken in flatbread or warmed pita bread. Top with garlic sauce, pickles and fresh vegetables of your choice.

What’s the difference between pita bread and flatbread?

Flatbread is a thin, flat bread (usually unleavened) cooked on a hot cooking surface/pan until charred and blistered. Pita bread is soft, leavened bread that often has a pocket which can be stuffed with grilled meat and vegetables.

What to serve with shawarma

Chicken recipes16

Chicken shawarma with easy flatbread

Juicy chicken shawarma marinated in spiced yogurt then grilled is a delicious dinner served wrapped in easy flatbread with crunchy vegetables.

4.88 from 24 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Keyword: Chicken schwarma, Chicken Shawarma, Easy flatbread

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Servings:

Calories: 669kcal

Author: Alida Ryder

Ingredients

For the chicken shawarma

1 cup plain yogurt
4 garlic cloves crushed
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp paprika
½ tsp chilli/red pepper flakes
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 kg boneless, skin-on chicken thighs

For the easy flatbread

3 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
½ tsp garlic powder (optional)
½ cup plain/Greek yogurt
½ cup vegetable oil
¾-1 cup milk

For the garlic yogurt sauce

1 cup plain/Greek yogurt
2 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tbsp chopped mint
2-3 garlic cloves crushed
1-2 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

For serving

Pickles of your choice
fresh vegetables of your choice (tomatoes, cucumber, avocado work well)

Instructions

Mix all the marinade ingredients together then pour over the chicken and allow to marinate for 30 mins - 1 hour.
In the meantime, mix together the dry ingredients for the flatbread then add the yogurt and oil. Add the milk, a little at a time, and mix until a rough dough starts to form. You might not need all the milk. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until it just comes together in a smooth ball. Cover in plastic wrap and allow to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Pre-heat the oven to 240ºC/460ºF (or as hot as your oven goes) with the top element/grill to caramelize the skin on the chicken.
Place the chicken in a baking dish/baking sheet in a single layer then place in the oven. Allow the chicken to bake/grill until fully cooked with the skin crisp and caramelized.
While the chicken is baking, roll tennis-sized balls of dough out onto a floured surface (to around ½cm thick) and cook in a hot pan until golden and bubbling then flip and cook for another minute or two on the other side. Remove from the pan, brush with melted butter (optional) and keep wrapped in foil.
Make the sauce by combining all the ingredients and mixing well.
When the chicken is cooked, remove from the oven and slice.
Serve the chicken shawarma in the flatbread with vegetables and pickles of your choice drizzled with the garlic sauce.

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