Shawarma

Yalla Sawarma! I’m not here pretending to replace the street food superstar; I would not dare compete with such enchanting powers. Sometimes, I wish I owned a vertical rotisserie to satisfy my outrageous culinary cravings :)) Until then, let me tell you about making homemade Lebanese Shawarma.

After multiple trials, various meat cuts, seasoning ratios, and cooking techniques, I found the best way to achieve intense, distinctive shawarma flavors at home. There are a few secrets: an overnight marinade to infuse the meat with deep, rich aromas like cardamom, miskeh (mastic), nutmeg, apple cider vinegar, cayenne pepper, etc… some real patience for a slow beef chuck roast along with a delightful array of condiments to complete the feast!

A gorgeous, fatty piece of meat, slowly roasting for four hours. I know, I know, it sounds like a commitment, but don’t be intimidated! This slow roast is where the magic happens—the meat melts in your mouth, transforming every bite into a hug.

Picture this: Lebanese bread, shredded chuck roast, tomatoes, parsley sumac salad, crunchy radishes, a few pickles, and a generous drizzle of tarator. Roll up your sleeves, bend over the table to minimize the imminent mess, and enjoy this heavenly bite. You got sauce dripping down your elbow? Congratulations! You’re doing it right! :))

Raf’s Shawarma

Recipe credits: Rafaella Sargi
Serves 4

EVENING of DAY 1
You will need a medium bowl, a large bowl, food-safe gloves, and plastic wrap. Optional: one freezer ziplock bag (gallon size).

Marinade Ingredients
2 tablespoons Apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon of Miskeh** (tiny pearls, ground in a small bowl, then added to the mix.)
Pinch of ground cinnamon
Pinch of freshly ground nutmeg
2.2 pounds (1 kg) beef chuck

Marinade Directions
In a medium bowl, mix all the marinade ingredients.
Using food-safe gloves, rub the meat with the marinade mixture and set aside.

Ingredients
2 teaspoons freshly grated garlic
Generous handful of fresh parsley leaves
2 cups sliced white onion
6 small tomatoes sliced
4 bay leaves

Please see note on bowl size.

Take another bowl, large enough to hold the meat and vegetables tightly (not too big). Add the freshly grated garlic, parsley, onions and tomatoes. Wearing food-safe gloves, smash/break these ingredients as if squeezing the tomatoes slightly to extract their juices. The same goes for the onions… Yalla! Have fun with your hands—they're the best tool ever! Set aside.

Place the meat (already rubbed with the spices) between the tomato, onion, and parsley mixture. Tuck it in and let the vegetables surround the meat. Add any leftovers from the spice mixture, oil, and vinegar rub…

Tuck 4 bay leaves around the meat.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it spend some time in the fridge, preferably overnight.

DAY 2
You will need a large oven-safe pot with a lid.

Additional Ingredients for Day 2
Sea salt
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups sliced white onions
1 1/2 cups roughly chopped tomatoes

Heat the oven to 325F (160C).
Remove the meat from the fridge.

The first step happens on the stovetop while the oven is heating…

Remove the bay leaves. Localizing them before you start cooking is essential because you might break them into small pieces, making it impossible to remove them later on, and no one wants to eat small broken parts of bay leaves. Nope.

Remove the meat from the marinade and place it on a plate. Sprinkle generously with sea salt, and prepare for the next step.

Keep the marinade and vegetables in the bowl; you will need them in a few minutes.

Place the pot on the stove with two tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, sear the piece of meat. You’re looking for a nice sear with lightly brown / caramelized spots. This is how you are building flavor… Once the meat is seared on all sides, you can transfer it to a plate set aside. (If you have more than one piece of meat, you must work in batches to sear each piece separately, specially if you are making a larger quantity)

In the same hot pot, over medium-low heat, add the marinated vegetables and cook them a little bit. Mix and let the tomatoes and onions release their juices as they soften. Use a wooden spoon to scrape the stuck pieces of meat from the bottom of the pot. This is flavor building 101!

Once you’re at that point, turn off the heat and put the seared meat back on top of the soft vegetables. (If you are making more than 1 piece of beef, put ALL the seared meat pieces in the same pot.) Add 1 1/2 cups of sliced onions and 1 1/2 cups of roughly chopped tomatoes.

Close the lid and put the pot in the hot oven for 4 hours. What I like to do is to set the timer every hour and to flip the meat.

After 4 hours, the meat is super tender.

Remove from the oven. Break pieces of the cooked meat into medium and smaller chunks and place them in the shallow serving dish (everyone can shred them on their plate or sandwich). The meat is so tender that you won't need a knife to do so; a fork or a spoon is enough. Discard the big pieces of fat and connective tissue.

Tuck some of the cooked vegetables between the meat pieces. Add a little bit of the cooking liquids, not all. This will keep the meat moist.

The remaining cooking liquids and cooked vegetables can be served in a separate bowl as a “rustic sauce.” You can also use an immersion blender to puree the vegetables in their cooking liquid and create a smooth sauce. This is really up to you…

Serve with:
Tarator
Parsley + Scallion + Sumac (salad)
Radishes: freshly and thinly sliced
Fresh tomatoes
Lebanese bread or Pita bread

*About the meat cut: you can use leg of lamb, but we tried many versions, and the beef chuck had the best texture once cooked and shredded.

**Miskeh / Mastic tip: Keep the Miskeh “pearls” in the fridge. It will be easier to grind them when needed. The cold pearls crack effortlessly into a fine powder when using with a mortar and pestle.

Note about the recipe: This recipe is based on 1kg of beef chuck. You can easily prepare larger recipes, just keep in mind to multiply the marinade ingredient list accordingly, but scale the vegetables.

Note about bowl size: The size of the bowl matters because the meat will be marinating in it, and you want it to touch the marinade and soak up the flavors…. The marinade won’t correctly infuse the meat if the container is too big. (You can also use a ziplock bag (freezer type) and squeeze the air out. It will be great for this marinade step).