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Levantine · Lebanese

Chicken shawarma

Non-vegetarian

شاورما دجاج · shawarma djej

Chicken thighs marinated in yogurt, lemon, garlic and warm spices, roasted hot and sliced into crisp-edged strips, then wrapped in flatbread with tahini sauce, pickles and salad.

Chicken shawarma is a Levantine wrap, ready in about 50 minutes and made with chicken thigh and allspice. It serves 6 and is rated easy to cook.

Start cooking
Close-up of raw chicken shawarma being grilled on a skewer, ready for cooking.
Photo: RDNE Stock project / Pexels · Pexels License
Prep
15 min
Cook
30 min
Rest
5 min
Total
50 min
Serves
6
Level
Easy
Calories
528

Plus at least 4 hours (ideally overnight) marinating.

Ingredients

6 servings

Marinade

To serve

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Mix the yogurt (opens in a new tab), lemon juice (opens in a new tab), garlic (opens in a new tab), oil, spices, salt and pepper (opens in a new tab). Add the chicken, turn to coat and marinate in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight.

    • 10 min

    Food safety: Marinate raw chicken in the fridge, never at room temperature.

    Meat coated in a spiced marinade in a bowl
    How it looks · Photo: Ip Photographer on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Heat the oven (opens in a new tab) to 230 °C. Spread the chicken in a single layer on a lined tray and roast until cooked through and charred at the edges.

    Food safety: Chicken must reach 74 °C in the thickest part.

    A tray of food roasting in the oven
    How it looks · Photo: locrifa on Pexels

  3. Step 3

    Rest for 5 minutes, then slice thinly. For extra crispness, return the slices to the hot tray under the grill for 2–3 minutes.

    • 5 min
    Food cooking over a grill
    How it looks · Photo: Malte Luk on Pexels

  4. Step 4

    Warm the flatbreads, spread with tahini sauce (opens in a new tab), add chicken, tomato (opens in a new tab), pickles, onion and parsley (opens in a new tab), and roll up tightly.

    • 5 min

About this dish

Origin
Not attributed to one place · Commonly attributedDeveloped in the Levant from the Ottoman tradition of vertical-spit roasting that also produced Turkish döner; this is a home oven adaptation.Also popular in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Palestine, Israel, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Wraps & rolls · Street food · Main courses
Cooking method
Roasted, Marinated / cured
Taste
aromatic / warmly spiced, garlicky, savoury, tangy
Diet
No nut ingredients · High-protein
All labelsNon-vegetarian · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · High-protein
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Street food · Meal-prep friendly · Child-friendly · Make-ahead
Cook more with
Chicken thigh · Allspice · Yogurt · Lemon juice · Garlic · Cumin
Techniques
Roasting · Grilling · Broiling · Marinating · Pickling

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom yogurt
  • Contains: Wheatfrom pita bread
  • Contains: Glutenfrom pita bread
  • Contains: Sesamefrom pita bread, tahini sauce
  • May contain: Mustardfrom dill pickles

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

528 kcal per serving

Estimated

1 serving ≈ 306 g · recipe makes 6

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 30%
  • Carbohydrate 32%
  • Fat 39%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy528 kcal172 kcal
Protein39.1 g12.8 g
Carbohydrate42.1 g13.7 g
Net carbohydrate38 g12.4 g
Sugars3.2 g1 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre4 g1.3 g
Fat22.7 g7.4 g
Saturated fat4.3 g1.4 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol144 mg47 mg
Sodium1078 mg352 mg
Salt equivalent2.7 g0.9 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
688 mg
Calcium
175 mg
Iron
5.2 mg
Magnesium
79 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
52 µg
Vitamin C
10 mg
Vitamin D
0 µg
Vitamin B12
1 µg
Folate (DFE)
129 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: dill pickles, red onion, parsley.
  • Tahini sauce: Plain tahini (FDC 170189). Prepared sauce is diluted with water and lemon, so actual values are lower.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Thigh meat stays juicy at high heat; breast dries out easily.

Common mistakes

  • Crowding the tray — the chicken steams instead of charring at the edges.

Serve with

  • As a plate with fattoush, hummus, garlic sauce and chips, or wrapped as a sandwich.

Storage

  • Cooked chicken keeps 3 days in the fridge.

Reheating

  • Reheat slices in a very hot pan until sizzling.

Variations

  • Beef or lamb shawarma: Thin slices of beef or lamb marinated with vinegar, baharat and onion, served with tahini sauce.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Sauces, chutneys & dips for this dish

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in step 1

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