Shawarma

Name: Shawarma
Ingredients: 1 lavash (~150g); 2 chicken thighs (~400 g); 2 cucumbers; 2 tomatoes; 40 g green cabbage, parsley, salt; 1 tbsp vegetable oil; spices to taste (I used cumin, coriander, paprika, turmeric); salt, pepper; 4 tbsp sour cream; 4 tbsp kefir; 2–4 cloves garlic; 2 tsp wine vinegar; salt, pepper

It's time to take a break from the sweet recipes and make something savory — and today that something is shawarma. Delicious, filling, and completely safe)) homemade shawarma! It's probably one of the most popular dishes that came to us from the East, and it goes by many names — shaverma, shawarma, döner kebab, or simply döner. But the idea is always the same: thin lavash or pita wrapped around spiced grilled meat, sauce, and a fresh vegetable salad. Of course, there's no single classic shawarma recipe — everyone makes it differently — and today I'm sharing my own version)) A lot of people have a bit of a squeamishness about shawarma as street food, but good homemade shawarma is nothing more than fragrant pan-fried meat, juicy fresh cucumbers and tomatoes, a delicious sauce, and flatbread — which is also yeast-free, for those who care about that. Give it a try! It's so good! This recipe made two large shawarmas.

Ingredients:

Makes 2 large shawarmas:
1 lavash (~150g)
2 chicken thighs (~400 g)
2 cucumbers
2 tomatoes
40 g green cabbage, parsley, salt
Marinade:
1 tbsp vegetable oil
spices to taste (I used cumin, coriander, paprika, turmeric)
salt, pepper
Sauce:
4 tbsp sour cream
4 tbsp kefir
2–4 cloves garlic
2 tsp wine vinegar
salt, pepper

How to cook shawarma

Remove the chicken meat from the bone and cut it into small pieces. I used chicken thighs — they're the juiciest part of the chicken — but you can also use chicken breast. As long as you don't overcook it (i.e., don't dry it out), it'll be just as tasty.

Add the vegetable oil, season generously with salt and pepper, and add the spices. I used 1/2 tsp each of ground cumin, coriander, mild paprika, and 1/4 tsp turmeric. Stir everything together well and let the chicken marinate for 20–40 minutes, or longer if you like.

To make the sauce, combine the sour cream, kefir, minced garlic, wine vinegar, salt, and pepper in a bowl. If you don't have wine vinegar, you can substitute apple cider vinegar or a little lemon juice — or leave it out entirely. Just don't use plain white vinegar.

Mix well. You can adjust the thickness of the sauce by changing the ratio of sour cream to kefir. The sauce should be fairly thick but just slightly pourable.

Shred the green cabbage very finely, add a little chopped parsley, season with salt, and knead firmly with your hands until the cabbage softens. By the way, you can use napa cabbage instead — no kneading needed. If you'd like, you can also add some sliced onion.

Cut the cucumbers and tomatoes into thin, elongated strips.

Heat a little vegetable oil in a skillet, add the chicken, and cook for about 4–6 minutes (no lid, heat above medium, stirring constantly).

Now assemble the shawarma. Spread the lavash out flat and coat it generously with sauce, leaving the edges uncovered. Leaving about 7–8 cm from the left edge (a bit more than what I have in the photo), lay out the cucumbers and tomatoes.

Add a layer of the cabbage on top.

Place the meat on top of the cabbage.

Drizzle with more sauce. If you'd like, you can also add a second sauce — ketchup or another tomato-based sauce. I skipped it, since fresh cucumbers and ketchup together isn't really my thing)), but those combinations are popular too, so go with whatever suits your taste.