Shawarma is a popular street food in the Arab countries and around the world, rolled into a large bun or pita cake, much like our spring rolls, originating from Greek gyros and Turkish döner kebabs. While it may seem simple at first glance, it actually takes 2 days to prepare. The first step is a marinade that mixes garlic, olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice and a range of spices, usually a special blend of shawarma called the 7 spices, which include coriander, black pepper, cinnamon, turmeric, cloves and nutmeg, among others. Meat, usually beef, veal, lamb or chicken, but not pork, is marinated overnight, which not only makes it rich in flavor, but also softens it due to the acidity of vinegar and lemon juice.
Shawarma is eaten in two ways: one is served on a plate with rice, vegetables and flat bread on one side, and the other is sandwiched in a pita bread with onions, tomatoes, parsley, pickled vegetables and sometimes even French fries, and can be drizzled with a sauce based on yogurt or tasini sauce.
Here are the materials and practices.
1 kg of beef or lamb
4 cloves of garlic, mashed
1/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup vinegar
1 tablespoon seasoning mixture
1 tablespoon dried coriander, ground
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1 tomato, sliced or diced
1/2 green pepper, cut into strips
1 large onion
1 cup chopped parsley
Kimchi, sliced
Bread
Sauce material
1 cup Tahini
3 tablespoons yogurt
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed cumin
Shawarma, Lebanon
1: Cut the meat into long, thin strips. Combine garlic, oil, vinegar, savama condiment mixture, coriander, black pepper, turmeric, cinnamon and salt to prepare the marinade. Knead the marinade into the meat, cover with a lid and refrigerate overnight or at least for a few hours.
2. At the same time, prepare the sauce. Mix all the ingredients until the mixture becomes homogeneous. If the sauce is too thick, add some lemon juice.
3: Put the meat in a pot and cook over high heat until the marinade evaporates. Then, pour in 1 cup of water and continue cooking until the meat is soft. Add the tomatoes and pepper flakes and stir until they are loose. Set aside.
4: Spread the sauce over the pita bread. Top with sliced onion, kimchi, sumac and parsley, and finally to shawarma. Roll the serve.