Jessica busted out the skewers, but she wasn’t grilling. She whipped up some oven-roasted chicken shawarma.

Yes, at home!

This Middle Eastern dish perfectly combines delicious seasonings and juicy chicken.

Jessica stacked the seasoned raw chicken onto the skewers atop an onion and placed it on a baking sheet with a cooling rack before placing it in the oven.

She popped it in the oven and once it was done, she enjoyed it wrapped in lavash bread with some fresh vegetables and tahini, or yogurt.

This segment of California Cooking aired on Episode 170.

Homemade Chicken Shawarma

  • Boneless Chicken Breasts
  • Boneless Chicken Thighs
  • Large Onion 
  • Cumin
  • Garlic Powder
  • Cayenne Pepper
  • Coriander
  • Smoked Paprika
  • Olive Oil
  • Lemon
  • Lavash Bread
  • Labne
  • 2 garlic cloves chopped
  • Romaine lettuce
  • Tomatoes
  • Red Onion
  • Tahini

Instructions:

  1.  Remove all the racks in your oven except for one and move that one rack to as low as it can go so the vertical spit will fit. 
  2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
  3. Season your chicken with garlic powder, cumin, a dash of cayenne pepper, coriander, smoked paprika and drizzle with olive oil and squeeze a half of a lemon.
  4. Using tongs, toss the chicken with the marinade to coat evenly.
  5. Place chicken in the fridge and marinate for a few hours.
  6. Using 2 metal skewers or wooden depending on what you have, create a vertical split by threading a halved onion through and use that as the base of the skewer to keep it upright. Place your vertical spit on a parchment-lined cookie sheet with a rack.
  7. Skewer up the chicken pieces on top of the onion, alternating between the chicken breasts and the chicken thighs.
  8. Add other onion half at the top if you’d like
  9. Place the vertical spit with the chicken shawarma in the oven for 60-90 minutes.
  10. While the chicken is cooking, prepare the toppings for your sandwich.
  11. To create the yogurt sauce, mix 1 cup of labne, salt, chopped garlic cloves and a squeeze of lemon juice.
  12. Heat lavash bread in the oven for just a few minutes.
  13. Dice your cucumbers, cut your cherry tomatoes, cut your romaine lettuce and thin slices of red onion.
  14. After your chicken rests, use a sharp knife to slice the meat making vertical cuts.
  15. Spread yogurt sauce on your lavash bread, add chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion and top with tahini ( hot sauce and pickles is a great addition too)
  16. Roll your bread to make a sandwich.
  17. Enjoy!