Who knew it was this easy to make oven-roasted chicken shawarma at home? You don’t need a shawarma machine or spit to make juicy, crisp Middle Eastern shawarma. I have developed a simple marinade and cooking technique that results in a delicious batch of chicken shawarma. My Mediterranean recipe can easily be made in the oven or on the grill. I’ve cracked the homemade chicken shawarma code, and it’s awesome! I’m excited to share it with you.
What Is Chicken Shawarma?
Shawarma is a delicious meat dish that is popular throughout the Mediterranean and Middle East. True shawarma is cooked with stacked, spice-marinated meats– lamb, turkey, chicken, beef, or a mix of meats– on a vertical rotisserie machine or spit. The shawarma turns and slowly roasts for hours and hours, basted in fat and its own juices. Thin slices of meat are shaved from the surface and served, either on their own or tucked inside a warm flatbread, topped with tahini or garlic sauce.
Shawarma-Style Chicken might be a better name for this recipe. It doesn’t cook on a spit. However, it’s got all the flavor that you might expect from your local Middle Eastern restaurant!
How to Make Shawarma at Home
I’ve been trying to replicate the flavor of chicken shawarma at home for months, playing with different spice combinations and cooking methods. At first I tried buying pre-made shawarma spice blends from the Middle Eastern markets. None of them made my mouth happy. I needed more spice, more flavor, more oomph. So I began to experiment. Then finally, I nailed homemade shawarma!
You have two choices for cooking this Mediterranean recipe– in the oven or on the grill. To be honest, both cooking methods taste great – there really isn’t a big difference between the two. I use boneless skinless chicken meat (a combination of dark and light meat) in the recipe. Chicken shawarma gets a lot of its flavor from basting in its own fat. I’ve replaced the flavor of that skin fat with olive oil, including a final sauté in olive oil prior to serving.
It may seem strange to sauté meat that has already been cooked. However, you’re going to have to trust me on this one. The extra sauté adds a ton of flavor, giving a shawarma-like texture that can’t be replicated in the oven or on the grill. I’ve shared the whole process below, and the video in this post will also show you the method in great detail!
Can Shawarma be Made Healthy?
This Mediterranean preparation of chicken shawarma is lighter than one you might find at a local restaurant. Skinless chicken is key here. Consequently this shawarma recipe is a pretty healthy, lean protein option!
You can actually lighten up this chicken shawarma recipe even further. If you’re trying to cut down on your oil intake, you don’t need to do the extra sauté. That will save you two tablespoons of olive oil… it won’t taste exactly like shawarma, but it will still be tasty.
But please, don’t replace the chicken thighs with breast meat. This dish really needs some dark meat in it to make it taste great. You can make it with all chicken thighs, if you prefer (I actually love it that way), but don’t sub all chicken breast. Pretty please.
What Do You Eat Chicken Shawarma With?
This homemade shawarma recipe goes great with hummus and toum or tahini sauce, over a salad for a boost of protein, or in a pita pocket or wrap. It stores well in the refrigerator, so you can make a large batch and enjoy it for several days afterwards– just reheat before serving. The best part? It’s ridiculously easy to make! You’re welcome.
Recommended Products:
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Video by Entice Films
Chicken Shawarma
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (2 large breasts)
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs (4 large thighs)
- 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil divided
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- 3/4 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 pinch cayenne
- Salt and black pepper
- Nonstick cooking oil spray
You will also need
- Grill or baking sheet, tongs, skillet, spatula, plastic wrap.
Instructions
Prepare Marinade
- Slice the chicken breasts into 5-6 pieces each and the thighs into 3-4 pieces each. Place them in a marinating dish or large plastic zipper bag.
- In a small bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup olive oil, the spices, 3/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper (if you are salt sensitive, use 1/2 tsp of salt). Pour the spice marinade over the chicken pieces. Stir with a spoon till all the chicken pieces are evenly coated in the marinade.Cover the marinating dish with plastic wrap, or close the zipper bag. Place chicken in the refrigerator and let it marinate at least 1 hour, up to overnight.
Oven Cooking Method
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray the baking sheet with nonstick cooking oil. Place the chicken pieces on the sheet, evenly spaced.
- Place the chicken in the oven. Let it roast for about 15 minutes until cooked through, turning the chicken pieces once with tongs halfway through cooking.
- Take chicken out of the oven and let it cool slightly. Use a sharp knife to slice the meat into small, thin shawarma-like pieces.
- Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a skillet on the stovetop over medium. Pour half of the chicken into the skillet and saute for 3-4 minutes till the smallest pieces of chicken turn brown and crisp. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste, if desired.
- Remove the cooked chicken from the skillet. Heat another 1 tbsp of oil and saute the remaining chicken in the same way. Serve warm.
Grill Cooking Method
- Spray the grill with nonstick cooking oil and preheat to medium heat. Thread the marinated chicken pieces onto wooden skewers.
- Cook the chicken for about 20 minutes, giving a quarter turn every 5 minutes, until cooked through (slice into the thickest piece of meat to check for doneness).
- Let the chicken cool slightly, then remove it from the skewers. Use a sharp knife to slice the meat into small, thin shawarma-like pieces.
- Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a skillet on the stovetop over medium. Pour half of the chicken into the skillet and saute for 3-4 minutes till the smallest pieces of chicken turn brown and crisp. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste, if desired. Remove the cooked chicken from the skillet. Heat another 1 tbsp of oil and saute the remaining chicken in the same way.
- Serve warm. Goes great with toum - a creamy Middle Eastern garlic sauce - or tahini sauce. It also makes a great pita bread sandwich, garnished with cucumbers, tomato, lettuce, red onions, and Middle Eastern pickles.
Nutrition
Ive never cooked indian food before this recipe. The local Indian restaurant serves this dish with rice. I made another helping of spices, mixed with a bit of olive oil and jus from the chicken (which i baked in a crock). I poured that over the cooked rice. This was by far the tastiest chicken dish ive ever eaten. Thank you for sharing!
This recipe is wonderful! It has such a great authentic flavor. I used the grill method and cooked more than 40 lbs of boneless thighs & breasts (in two separate occasions). Because of the volume, I only cut the breast pieces horizontally and left thighs whole to put on the grill. When finished, we chopped the hot chicken, bagged and froze it. On the day of our big event, we took the thawed chicken, and proceeded with the « browning » process. We served it with seasoned rice, and had hummus, tzaziki sauce, tomatoes, pita, etc.. We had 200 people served. Many many compliments!! Thank you! (I have also prepared in regular size batch, in the oven version, it too was excellent)
Amazing! My kids eat this by the handful!
Ah-ma-zinggg. I’ve made it 4 times so far. My boyfriend said he could eat it the whole week straight. Thank you for sharing this fantastic recipe!
I like. To. Share this. Shawarma. Recipe. For making At. Home. My self.
Made this yesterday and it was delicious! A thought about the reviewers who said it’s too bland – they may have missed the “divided” comment on the olive oil and put all of it into the marinade. I have made that type of mistake before. I prefer when ingrededients are listed separately by step.
Overall, great recipe. I’m looking forward to have the leftovers for lunch.
with Greek Tzatziki sauce.
Oh my – this is delicious! I will make again.
Jim ate 4 of these pockets (Gyro, pronounced yee-row.) – I preferred it as a salad.
This recipe makes a lot so leftovers for lunch tomorrow. I shared your site on my facebook page and a few other pages. I started a new blog for my boys (who are in college) to help them with ideas for kitchen tools/appliances I buy them (instant pot, air fryer, etc) I put this on their and told my youngest to try it as he loves Shawarma
Thank you for taking the time to share this – the flavors were perfect for us.
Tori, this recipe is just so good, I had to rate it! The spices are absolute perfection, and that double cooking process makes everything crispy and even more delicious! I served it with a sumac yogurt sauce and some marinated cucumbers- it was a big win! Thank you so much for providing these wonderful recipes.
You’re welcome Amy!
I have to agree with Sean, I found it quite bland when I followed the recipe exactly (and my spices are very fresh). However I made it again with half the oil and double the spices, and it is fantastic. It creates a dry rub that I feel more closely resembles the strength of flavour you get on shawarma. That said, the cooking technique is wonderfully simple, and I will be using this for parties!
Glad you found a way to make it work for you! I have to wonder if the issue you and Sean are facing might be the type of olive oil used. Perhaps certain varieties of olive oil dominate the spice flavor too much. I use Bragg’s organic and never have this issue. Next time I make this I’m going to try your suggestion to see if it makes a big difference on my end. Appreciate the detailed feedback!
Made it, ate it, loved it. I cut all the chicken into bits, and baked it until done. Used all breasts, as that is what we had in the freezer. Served with homemade Tzatziki sauce.
Will definitely make this again!
Thank you!
Absolutely adore this recipe, we use it at least once a month so figured it was time to leave you a comment about it. Our whole family loves it. Much cheaper than buying shawarma at the restaurant down the street, and we actually like it better!
Glad your family is enjoying it Lillian!
Surprisingly bland despite all the spices. Olive oil completely dominates all other flavors. Tastes nothing like chicken shwarma.
Surprised to hear that Sean, I feel this recipe is anything but bland. Read through the comments and you’ll see other readers really love it too. Maybe your spices are old? Sometimes older spices lose their flavor over time. If using fresh ones I’m not sure why it would taste bland, it’s really a very flavorful marinade. Sorry it didn’t work out for you!
Hi..my name is Valerie and i love trying new foods. I was familiar with gyros but only at our Annual Fair..My director at local museum told me i must try new restaurant named Dari’s in Delaware. Located in a little strip mall i was not certain what i was facing. Chicken Shawarma was the dish to try. I was hooked and couldnt get enough! I found your website and was shocked to find this recipe. My whole family loves it..even grandchildren! We eat it over salads with garlic aoli dressing or in roasted garlic naan with slivers of red onion, cucumber, tomato and lettuce. We only double or triple recipe..no changes..thanks so much for sharing these amazing recipes. You have reawakened chicken in my home which was getting boring and my husbands helps out with cutting veggies. Thanks again..
Wonderful! So happy to hear it. 🙂
I tried this recipe and it is to DIE FOR! So happy, I’m about to make it for the second week in a row. Seriously listen to her and don’t try to make this with all white breast meat, the thighs were so juicy and delicious. Do remember turmeric can stain so I covered my white cutting board to protect it. I prepped a crapload of this at the beginning of the week and made greek bowls and pita wraps as the week continued (or just took a few pieces out to snack on!). Quinoa, tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, cherry tomatoes, olives, feta, when I’m into it I add beets sautéed with cumin, salt and pepper, and some sautéed brussel sprouts. Top it with some greek yogurt with lemon or Trader Joe’s green goddess dressing and you will never go back to life without this recipe.
I’m so happy I found this article. Literally Chicken Shawarma is one of my favorite things to eat because it’s filling and just so freaking good. I always go out to eat with friends and say let’s go get Shawarma lol. I have always wanted to make it at home but was afraid it would be dry because I don’t have that contraption it’s cooked on obviously in my condo. So thank you for this awesome method and marinade recipe. I have all the ingredients in my fridge so tonight Shawarma it is. Thank you so much can’t wait to enjoy at home.
Enjoy Stefanye!
I made this tonight and it was delicious. I quadrupled the spice blend and marinated the chicken overnight. Definitely making it again.
Tori, we have made this recipe multiple times and it is delicious every time. When the chicken is cooked over a charcoal grill and finished in the pan, the outcome is as close to authentic shawarma as one can make at home. We use your tahini sauce recipe, as well. Thanks for sharing these amazing recipes.
Made this for a family party – absolutely delicious! Exactly the same flavours as the shawarma we know and love. I doubled the recipe and served it with garlic butter jasmine rice with homemade tahini sauce and sriracha drizzle. It was the most popular thing on the buffet table.
Next we are going to try the same recipe with either tofu or tempeh for the vegetarians in the family. I’m sure it will be equally as delicious!
Very easy recipe. Cooked this on the BBQ at the weekend and everyone said the best chicken kebabs they had ever had! Thank you!
A great recipe the whole family loved it ! I did add a bit of vinegar, minced garlic & ginger and turned out great!