Marinated in lemon juice and a flavorful spice blend, Chicken Shawarma is an easy and delicious weeknight dinner. Serve the tender chicken on flatbreads with a garlicky yogurt sauce and top with your favorite fresh veggies.
Chicken Shawarma recipe is absolutely perfect for anyone looking for an easy dinner recipe that packs a flavorful punch. You'll only need about 20 minutes of hands-on time to make the chicken, and it can easily be prepped ahead of time.
If you love recipes like this one that bring the flavors of worldwide cuisines to your home kitchen, you'll also enjoy my Instant Pot Butter Chicken, Slow Cooker Mongolian Beef, and Greek Salmon.
What is Chicken Shawarma?
Shawarma is a popular Middle Eastern street food made from seasoned meat that is cut into thin slices, stacked, and then slow roasted on a vertical spit.
As it cooks, the meat is sliced thinly and served as a sandwich or wrap along with yogurt or tahini sauce and toppings such cucumbers, onions, diced tomatoes, and more.
Lamb is the traditional for shawarma. It can also be made with beef, chicken, turkey, and even falafel.
This Chicken Shawarma recipe takes all of the flavors that you'd find in the popular street food and packs them into a dish you can easily make at home.
Ingredients
Chicken Shawarma starts with a flavorful homemade spice blend. The recipe makes twice as much of the spice mixture as you'll need for one batch of chicken, so be sure to save the rest to use another time!
Most of the spices needed are ones you may already have in your pantry, but they're also easy to find at most supermarkets. You'll need cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, paprika, dried oregano, ground ginger, ground turmeric, ground coriander, and ground cumin.
You'll also need za'atar. This one may be harder to find at some grocery stores, but is easy to find online.
You can use boneless/skinless chicken breasts or thighs for this recipe.
I like serving my Chicken Shawarma with a tangy yogurt sauce. You'll need plain yogurt and a clove of garlic; regular or Greek yogurt works fine.
Make sure you also have lemon juice, olive oil, and salt and pepper. You'll use these throughout the recipe.
To serve this Chicken Shawarma in the traditional way, you'll want flatbreads or pita, along with toppings such as shredded lettuce, diced tomato, thinly sliced red onion, and feta cheese.
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Making this Chicken Shawarma is so easy, you'll find yourself adding it to your dinner menu on a regular basis! Here's how you do it:
- Step 1: Mix the spices for the shawarma blend in a bowl. Set aside half (2 tablespoons) to use now, and store the rest in an airtight jar for another time.
- Step 2: Mix the chicken with 2 tablespoons of the spice blend along with the olive oil and lemon juice. If you can, cover tightly and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours for the best flavor.
- Step 3: Mix the yogurt, garlic, cumin, a pinch of salt and pepper, and lemon juice in a bowl. Taste and adjust seasoning as you'd like.
- Step 4: Preheat an air fryer to 390°F. Spray lightly with oil, then add chicken in an even layer. Spritz with a bit more oil.
- Step 5: Air fry for 8-10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Step 6: Serve as a wrap in flatbreads with yogurt sauce, lettuce, diced tomato, sliced red onions, feta, and a pinch of fresh cilantro.
If you don't have an air fryer, cook the chicken using a nonstick grill pan or skillet over medium heat. Cook the chicken on the first side for 4-5 minutes, then flip and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
Be sure to check that the chicken is cooked through before serving. The center should read 165°F on an instant-read thermometer.
Substitutions
Chicken Shawarma is a great recipe to make when you're serving folks with a variety of dietary needs.
- Gluten free: The chicken and yogurt sauce are naturally gluten free; just be sure to purchase certified gluten-free ingredients if necessary. Serve with gluten-free wraps or skip the wrap and serve the chicken over a salad or with rice.
- Dairy free: Use your favorite plain dairy-free yogurt for the sauce. Alternatively, serve the shawarma with tahini sauce.
- Sesame free: If someone in your family has a sesame allergy, be sure to omit the za'atar, buy sesame-free za'atar, or make homemade za'atar blend and omit the sesame seeds for use in the shawarma blend.
Serving Suggestions
Serving Chicken Shawarma as a wrap is the most traditional way to enjoy it, but that doesn't mean it's the only way!
Take inspiration from my Chicken Gyro Bowl and serve the chicken over rice with your preferred toppings.
Use the chicken to make a delicious green salad, such as Green Cauliflower Rice Salad, or add it to Mediterranean Chickpea Salad.
You can also enjoy the chicken on its own, with or without the yogurt sauce, alongside your favorite roasted veggies, such as Roasted Broccolini or Seasoned Roasted Sweet Potatoes.
Recommended Equipment
Shawarma is traditionally cooked on a vertical rotating spit, but most home cooks won't have that on hand.
To make this Chicken Shawarma easy to make at home, cook it in in a nonstick grill pan, large nonstick skillet, or in an air fryer.
Check the internal temperature of the chicken with an instant-read thermometer to make sure it is fully cooked before serving.
Storage
Cooked and cooled Chicken Shawarma can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month. Allow the chicken to thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
If you want to assemble a wrap to enjoy for lunch or dinner later, wrap tightly in foil and store in the fridge for up to 1 day.
Top tip
Marinating the chicken for at least 3 hours imparts tons of flavor and helps keep the chicken from drying out during cooking.
FAQ
Chicken Shawarma is rich and a little bit earthy thanks to the spices used in the marinade. You also get warm notes from the cinnamon and a hint of brightness from lemon juice. Serve it with yogurt sauce for a tangy flavor, too!
The biggest differences between shawarma and gyros are where they're from and the spices used. Shawarma originates in the Middle East and is flavored with earthy spices, such as cumin, coriander, and turmeric.
Gyros are Greek and are flavored with herbs such as oregano and thyme.
Shawarma is also typically served with garlicky yogurt sauce or tahini sauce, while gyros are usually served with tzatziki.
Yes! Coat the chicken with the oil, lemon juice, and spices, then store in an airtight container or tightly sealed zip-top bag in the refrigerator for up to overnight.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Chicken Shawarma
Ingredients
For the shawarma blend (Makes 4 tablespoons)
- 1 ½ teaspoons za'atar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¾ teaspoon ground cardamon
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika or ½ teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon flakey salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons cracked black pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin
For the chicken
- 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts OR 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil plus 1 tablespoon if cooking in a skillet
- 1 to 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons shawarma blend
For the yogurt sauce
- ½ cup plain yogurt
- 1 small garlic clove minced
- ⅓ teaspoon ground cumin
- Good pinch of salt and pepper
- ½ to 1 teaspoon lemon juice to taste
For serving
- 4 flatbreads
- 1 cup shredded lettuce
- 2 large tomatoes diced
- ⅓ small red onion thinly sliced
- ⅓ cup feta crumbled
- 1 tablespoon fresh cilantro finely chopped
Instructions
- Mix all spices for the shawarma blend in a bowl. Set aside 2 tablespoons to use now and store the rest in an airtight jar in the pantry for another time.1 ½ teaspoons za'atar, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ¾ teaspoon ground cardamon, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, ¼ teaspoon flakey salt, 1 ½ teaspoons cracked black pepper, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon ground turmeric, 1 teaspoon ground coriander, 1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- In a large bowl or a gallon-size zip-top storage bag, combine chicken, olive oil, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons of the shawarma blend. Stir to coat the chicken well. Cover the bowl or seal the bag tightly and marinated in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours. Chicken can be cooked immediately but the flavor will not be as flavorful.3 boneless skinless chicken breasts , 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil, 1 to 2 teaspoons lemon juice, 2 tablespoons shawarma blend
- While chicken marinates, make the yogurt sauce. Mix the yogurt, garlic, cumin, a pinch of salt and pepper, and ½ teaspoon of the lemon juice in a small bowl. Taste and add more salt, pepper, and/or lemon juice as desired. Cover and refrigerate if not using immediately.½ cup plain yogurt, 1 small garlic clove, ⅓ teaspoon ground cumin, Good pinch of salt and pepper, ½ to 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- When ready to cook, heat a large non-stick griddle pan or skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. When the oil and pan are hot, add the marinated chicken to the pan in an even layer. Allow to cook undisturbed for 4 to 5 minutes, or until the first side is nicely charred. Flip the chicken pieces and cook on the other side for 3 to 4 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center reads 165°F.
- Alternatively, preheat air fryer to 390°F. Spray with olive oil; add chicken and spray the top of the chicken with a little more oil. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center reads 165°F.
TO SERVE
- To make a wrap, smear flatbread with yogurt sauce and top with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, onion, chicken, feta and a sprinkle of cilantro. Roll up and enjoy.4 flatbreads, 1 cup shredded lettuce, 2 large tomatoes, ⅓ small red onion, ⅓ cup feta, 1 tablespoon fresh cilantro
Equipment
- Air Fryer
- Fry skillet
- Instant-read thermometer
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
All nutritional information provided is an estimate. For specific dietary needs or concerns, we recommend consulting a nutrition calculator or a qualified expert.
Tell Us What You Think