Shawarma-Spiced Grilled Chicken

I’ve got a yummy new dinner recipe to share with you from my friend Gina’s brand new cookbook, Skinnytaste One & Done (out now)!

This new book offers recipes for a variety of appliances such as your Slow Cooker, Instant Pot, Dutch Oven and more. I flipped through and quickly landed on this Shawarma-spiced grilled chicken recipe in the grill pan section. Although, we actually cooked it on the outdoor grill because it was a nice evening outside (and I also don’t own a grill pan!). I chose this recipe because I recently tried and enjoyed a Shawarma sandwich at a newer restaurant in town and was excited to make something similar at home!

The recipe was easy to make, and the flavor was really good—I’ll definitely be making it again! Next time I might even try substituting already made hummus for the tahini sauce as a time saver. It won’t be exactly the same, of course, but I think it could work. We each ate this meal in different ways… I wrapped up all the goodies inside my whole-wheat pita, one of my daughters opened up the pocket in her pita for the chicken, and my husband said the chicken was too good by itself, so he just ate everything separately. Thank you, Gina, for the Shawarma recipe and congrats on your new book!

Shawarma-Spiced Grilled Chicken Thighs with Tahini

5 from 5 votes

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Keyword: shawarma, shawarma chicken

Dietary Restriction: Dairy Free, Egg Free, Peanut/Tree-Nut Free

Servings (Adjust to suit): 4

From Skinnytaste One & Done Cookbook

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Ingredients

CHICKEN

• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 juiced lemon
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon cumin, ground
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 Pinch crushed red pepper
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• black pepper, freshly ground
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of fat

TAHINI SAUCE

• 1/4 cup tahini
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil, extra-virgin
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

FOR ASSEMBLY

• 1 head butter lettuce, leaves torn
• 2 Persian mini cucumbers, sliced on an angle
• 1 large heirloom tomato, sliced
• 1/4 cup Kalamata olives, sliced, pitted
• olive oil, for the grill
• 1 medium red onion, cut into 8 wedges
• 2 pocketless pitas, whole wheat recommended
• parsley, fresh, chopped (for garnish)
• 4 lemon wedges

Instructions

For the chicken:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil and lemon juice. Whisk in the garlic, cumin, paprika, curry powder, turmeric, cinnamon, pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper to taste. 

2. Pour the marinade into a zip-top plastic bag and add the chicken, massaging it to coat evenly. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight.

For the tahini sauce:

1. In a small bowl, combine 3 tablespoons water, the tahini, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, and salt. The consistency should be smooth enough to pour; add more water to loosen if needed.

2. Arrange the lettuce, cucumbers, tomato, and olives on a platter.

3. Preheat a grill pan over medium-high heat (or preheat a grill to medium-high). Spray the pan with oil (or rub the grates with oil). Grill the chicken until cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes per side. Transfer to the open half of the platter and tent with foil.

4. Wipe the grill pan clean and spray it with more oil (or just rub the grates with oil again). Grill the onion wedges until they have grill marks, about 3 minutes per side. Grill the pitas until heated through, about 1 minute per side. Cut the pitas in half and transfer them to the platter. Garnish the tahini sauce with the parsley. Serve with the lemon wedges.

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Recipe Notes

We recommend organic ingredients when feasible.

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