OVEN-BAKED SHAWARMA-INSPIRED CHICKEN

I’ll say it before you do – this is not an actual shawarma recipe.

Just getting that out first before there is any confusion. Not confusion on your end, but I just want to know that you know that I know that this isn’t a traditional shawarma. And why? Because a traditional shawarma requires a massive, rotating vertical pole on which it is cooked, and if I had a spinning pole in my house, I’d be using it for more than just cooking a chicken.

But otherwise, actual spit cooking requires a lot of meat, hours of time, and knife skills I do not, will not, and should not posses, you see.

So this is a happy compromise.

I’m not a shawarma expert, but a quick Google tells me that this is a beloved Middle Eastern dish where meat is cooked on a spit in order to cook in its own juices, which has become a beloved street food staple. The word shawarma comes from a Turkish term which means ‘turning’ or ‘rotating’, so technically, I should not call this a shawarma at all as a shawarma indeed refers to the method it is cooked – hence ‘inspired’ in the title.

But the flavour profile, the idea of meat cooking in it’s own juices, the burnished finished product, and the style through which it’s served, seems to me that a shawarma is the closest way for me to describe the essence of this recipe while also rooting it squarely within the method that inspired it. So is it a shawarma? No. Is this a shawarma-inspired chicken you can make at home? Yes.

In the absence of a spit, I have opted for creating a spicy, lemony marinade for the chicken which is then cooked in a tight foil package. This allows the marinade to not only cook in a thick spice blanket, but also retain all of its natural moisture and cook in its own juices, much like the essence of the traditional shawarma. This method produces tender meat which is braised, but then opened and blasted in searing hot heat to give it the famed charcoal caramelised exterior.

So while this recipe does not at all replicate the traditional methods, it offers a more accessible way for me to enjoy the spirit of shawarma at home.

I serve the cooked chicken in warmed flatbreads which have been decorated with shredded lettuce, cut cucumbers and tomatoes, whole pickled peppers (the longer and fierier the better), the pink pickled onions here, chopped coriander, and a mint and dill yogurt sauce.

I make this by combining:

a handful of finely chopped mint

a handful of finely chopped dill

2 tbs natural yogurt

1 tbs sour cream

… in a bowl and then thinned with a tiny bit of milk to create a runny consistency. Salt and pepper as needed, of course.

Serves 4

6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 onion

3 cloves garlic

2 lemons

2 tbs olive oil

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cardamom

1. Add the chicken thighs to a Ziplock bag, but if you don’t have any to hand, a big bowl you can cover and fit into the fridge will be fine.
2. Peel and slice the onion into fine slivers. I do this with a mandolin when I have the nerve, but you’d be fine with a knife, of course. Just cut them as thin as you have the energy for, and then add to the bag.
3. Grate in the garlic cloves with a fine grater (mind your fingertips) and then squeeze in the juice of the lemons (mind the pips).
4. Now add the oil, and all of the spices along with some salt and pepper.
5. If using a bag, zip it closed and smush the chicken around with your hands (so satisfying) and ensure the pieces are as coated as possible. If you’re not using a Ziplock, of course, stir the chicken in the bowl until evenly coated and then cover. Keep in the fridge for 4 – 6 hours, but I always prefer overnight.
6. When you’re ready to cook, preheat the oven to 200°C, and grab a small roasting tin. I use a small square one, say for brownies, but any small one will do, it’s just for ease of taking a foil parcel in and out of the oven without the risk of spillage.
7. Line the small tin with foil, ensuring there is enough overhang to be able to create a tightly sealed bag for the meat and its marinade. I just line the tin with two long pieces of foil to create a cross, that I then press into the corners, keeping lots of overhang that I will scrunch together over the meat.
8. Now tip all of the chicken, and it’s marinade, into the foil parcel and seal it tightly to form a foil bag, making sure no marinade is leaking out.
9. Place the tin into the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
10. Remove from the oven and turn the oven up to 220°C and carefully open the foil packet, returning it to the oven for a further 8 – 10 minutes, uncovered, for the chicken to burnish and catch slightly on the surface.
11. Remove the tin from the oven once again, and remove the chicken to a wooden board to rest for 5 – 10 mins. In this time, pour the leftover juices in the foil into a saucepan and put on a medium heat, bringing to a boil. Drop to a simmer and allow the juices to thicken slightly.
12. In this time, cut your chicken into thin slices and pop them in a bowl (or back into the foil parcel, as I like to do). Once the juices have thickened slightly, pour them back over the chicken to keep them moist.
13. Serve as you see fit, but see the intro for my preferred approach.