Amazing Homemade Shawarma (Lettuce Wraps) – Paleo/Gluten-Free

 

I love shawrma, especially made at home. Don’t get me wrong, the Middle East has great shawarma stands on just about every corner but the taste for me is too commercialized and if they don’t have khubz saj (mountain dome bread), I just can’t eat it. Khubz saj seems to be the only form of gluten that I can tolerate in small amounts.

Anyhow, on to this amazing recipe which is adapted from Mamas Lebanese Kitchen…

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs of fatty beef cuts (roast cut/steak cuts/butter steak…)

Marinade Ingredients

• 5 cloves of garlic
• ½ cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice
• ¼ cup of apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup of olive oil
• 1 teaspoon clove powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon cumin powder
• ½ teaspoon powdered caraway (or fennel)
• ½ teaspoon powdered cardamon
• ½ teaspoon of dried oregano or thyme
• ½ teaspoon powdered cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon powdered nutmeg or allspice
• ½ teaspoon crushed peppercorn
• ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon ground ginger

Sandwich Toppings:

• Mix of: ½ cup of finely cut Italian parsley, 1 purple onion sliced thin, 1/2 tsp sumac spice.
• Fresh or  Grilled tomatoes
• Lettuce

Click Here for Tahini Sauce Ingredients 

Instructions:

Shawarma Marinade

1. Mix the spices along with the lemon juice and apple cider vinegar in a blender for a couple of minutes. Don’t mix in the olive oil yet.
2. Cut the beef into chunks of 4 inches long by no more than ⅔ inch in thickness.
3. In a bowl, rub the meat with the marinade, sprinkle a bit of olive oil then rub again, cover and let marinate overnight in the fridge or at least 4 hours.

Grilling Shawarma Method 1: Panini Grill

1. Lay the marinated shawarma chunks on a panini or George Foreman grill and cook for 10-15 minutes on medium-high heat.
2. Once cooked, shred the meat on a cutting board and serve hot.

Grilling Shawarma Method 2: Oven Roasting

1. Lay the shawarma chunks in a Pyrex tray with a bit of marinade, cover the trap tightly with aluminum foil, then gently bake at 270-300F for 2 hours.
2. Once cooked, shred the meat on a cutting board and serve hot. This roasting method will make the meat very tender and juicy and will almost fall apart.

Stove Top Method 3

1. place the meat in a pan with a lid on medium heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally and when you see the liquid evaporating, take off the lid and toast the meat.

To Assemble the Shawarma

1. Place about 4-6 ounces (to taste) of shredded shawarma in a lettuce wrap along the diameter, sprinkle some Tahini sauce, add fresh or freshly grilled tomatoes, a garnish of  onion and Italian parsley mix.

Alternately, you can assemble as a salad by chopping the lettuce then layering the rest of the ingredients.

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