Good Karma Schawarma

swissms's Note:

From Food Network, Guy's Big Bite, Nomadic Dishes. I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts. [Sometimes I cheat and marinate the chicken as the recipe calls for but then just bake the chicken. I then make wraps with the chicken, Tzatziki sauce, fresh spinach leaves, chopped tomato, thinly sliced onion and store bought flat bread.] The Tzatziki sauce is very good. You can substitute 1 1/2 - 2 t. garlic powder if you do not have fresh garlic cloves. I also sometimes use fresh dill or 1/2 t. dried dill in place of the fresh mint leaves.

• Total Time: 15 hrs 15 mins
• Prep Time: 14 hrs
• Cook Time: 1 hrs 15 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 8

• 2 cups plain yogurt
• 1/4 cup minced garlic
• 3/4 cup minced onion
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 4 tablespoons freshly chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano leaves
• 1 tablespoon salt (original recipe calls for 2 tablespoons)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon red chili pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon fresh sage
• 4 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs (cut or pounded 1/8-inch thick)
• 1/2 cup frozen spinach, thawed and chopped
• 1 cup roasted red pepper, cut into strips

Tzatziki sauce

• 1 cup Greek yogurt
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 English cucumber, chopped into 1/4-inch dice
• 1/4 cup freshly minced mint leaf (I substitute 1/2 t. dried dill for the mint)
• 3 tablespoons minced garlic or 1 1/2-2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Flatbread

• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour, plus extra for kneading and rolling out dough
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup water

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine yogurt with garlic, onion, vinegar, parsley, oregano, salt, cumin pepper, red chili flakes, and sage. Add chicken and marinate in the refrigerator for 12 to 24 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F with oven rack in center.
3. Fit a 9 by 13-inch baking sheet with a cooling rack. Remove chicken from marinade, taking off excess marinade. Place meat randomly on top of each other on the aluminum foil tray, creating 1-inch of meat. Add spinach, spreading evenly, and repeat with another 1-inch layer of meat. Add a layer of red bell peppers, and finish by covering with another inch of meat.
4. Press layers firmly together. Remove foil tray with chicken to the baking sheet. Poke holes in bottom of foil to allow excess liquid to drain. Bake in center of oven for 45 minutes until chicken is firm and holds together. Cut corners of tray and push the sides of foil down, to expose meat to brown. Continue to cook for another 30 minutes or until the meat registers an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. using an instant-read thermometer.
5. Let rest for 10 minutes. Remove Schawarma to a cutting board, discarding foil. Slice into 1/2-inch thick pieces.
6. Serve sandwiched in flatbread and drizzled with Tzatziki Sauce.
7. Flatbread:.
8. In a medium bowl, combine flour and salt. Using a wooden spoon, slowly stir in water, until dough forms. Lightly flour a clean board and knead dough until smooth, about 10 minutes. Rest dough in bowl, covered with damp towel for 20 minutes.
9. Preheat a griddle over medium heat.
10. Divide dough into 8 equal balls. Using a rolling pin, roll balls out on floured board to 7 inches in diameter, about 1/4-inch thick. Place the rolled out dough onto griddle. Flip when raised bumps appear on the surface of the dough, about 1 to 2 minutes. Cook second side until it turns golden. Do not cook too long or flatbread will become brittle. Cover flatbread with a towel up to 20 minutes before serving.
11. Yield: 8 (7-inch) flatbread rounds.
12. Tzatziki sauce:.
13. In a medium bowl, mix all ingredients together well. Refrigerate at least 1 hour.
14. Yield: 2 1/2 cups.

Reviews

[Smilyn]

We are going to try this out tomorrow and let you know how it is. Thanks for posting! We saw the show and it looks fabulous! I promise to give you feedback soon :) **Update: We made this the other night and it turned out great! I did do a couple changes. I forgot to pickup spinach -- so no spinach. We mixed 1/2 breasts with 1/2 thighs, turned out good. Instead of sour cream, I used the rest of our greek yoghurt... turned out good. I wasn't fond of the flat bread. With leftovers, I eventually picked up some whole wheat flat bread. Thanks so much for posting! This is a keeper! Left over ideas can be for salad or paninis. Yum!