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April 26, 2009
My Kitchen, My World: Turkey
So, for Turkey day (*grin*), I decided to pull out a meal that I haven't made in ages. Shwarma. Or Shewarma. Or any variation of the same general transliterated sounds. I made flat bread, baba ghanoush, and chicken schwarma
It's like a heavily spiced, Middle-Eastern take on gyros. So good! You can use ground beef, lamb, chicken, etc. I used chicken breasts. You can also use a variety of sauces with it--from a garlic yogurt sauce, to a garlic mayonaisse based sauce, to my own take on it, baba ghanoush. It sounds complicated here, but it really can be a very easy meal (especially with ground beef or turkey, and using regular tortillas--no harder than making burritos).
I decided to try to make my own flat bread. I found a recipe that suggested using a regular bread recipe, not letting it rise, rolling it out and cooking it on a pan/griddle. It turned out something between pita bread and naan.
Flat bread
3 c. bread flour
1 c. whole wheat (next time I would use more white and less wheat)
2 tsp. salt
1 1/3 c. water
5 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. yeast
1) Mix together and knead by hand or in bread machine (I used a bread machine)
2) I let it rise, and then divided it up into 8 balls (which deflated it)
3) Cover and let rest for 10-15 minutes (I think it would have been more resilient with less whole wheat)
4) Heat large pan to medium high/high.
5) Roll out one ball into a thin round
6) Add a little oil (optional if non-stick) to skillet, add flat bread, cook until brown and blistered on one side, turn over and cook that side. It only takes 2-3 minutes at the most
7) Wrap flatbread in towel, and continue with others
8) Eat fresh, or put in bag, and warm up later (I found a little cooking spray before warming it up made it nice and soft)
Baba ghanoush (okay, I cheated on this one)
1) Take one can baba ghanoush (about 14 oz., sometimes at a grocery store, but definitely at any kind of Middle-Eastern store). Mix (or blend) in:
2 minced garlic cloves
1/4 tsp. smoked paprika
1/4 tsp. chipotle pepper powder (or just cayenne pepper to taste
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. olive oil
Salt to taste
Chicken Schewarma
1) Take 1 lb. of chicken breast, very thinly sliced
2) Marinate for at least one hour up to 24 hours in:
1 tbsp. schewarma spice or Middle Eastern mixed spice or make your own (something like: 1 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp. coriander, 1 tsp. all-spice, ground chilis to taste)
3 tbsp. lime juice
2 tbsp. olive oil.
3) Stir fry in medium-hot pan until chicken is cooked through
4) Serve on flatbreads with baba ghanoush or other sauce, and your choice of diced tomatoes, cucumbers or onions, shredded lettuce, and dill pickle relish (probably better if using the mayo base),
My Kitchen, My World | By Tim and Jo | 12:10 AM
Comments
That makes me so hungry. I didn't know what you were supposed to combine baba ghanoush with, so when I made some last summer, I made some naan and marinated stew beef and it was so yummy and now I'm thinking about it, and I'm getting so hungry. Mmmmm....
Posted by: Amy at April 25, 2009 11:48 PM
Yum! I loved ordering chicken schwarma wraps at places in Scotland, but haven't tried to make it. Thanks for this!! (just had dinner, but this is making me hungry!)
Posted by: ashley at April 26, 2009 11:08 PM
I'm glad you posted this! I had something similar at your house once and have been trying to get the flavors right ever since.
Posted by: Carrie at April 27, 2009 9:14 AM
I made the shwarma last night to go with another recipe: http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/middle_eastern_chickpea_platter and it was delicious. I got lots of compliments....
Posted by: Kara Patterson at August 23, 2009 8:43 PM
