Chicken

Crispy Chicken Shawarma Wrap

Yogurt-marinated chicken thighs loaded with warm shawarma spices, seared and wrapped in pita brushed with spicy red sauce, garlicky toum and crunchy pickles — then pan-crisped until golden and shattering. The viral wrap that tastes like your favorite shawarma spot.

Crispy Chicken Shawarma Wrap

Prep

30 min

Cook

25 min

Total

55 min

Serves

4

Ingredients

Crispy Chicken Shawarma Wrap ingredients

Chicken & marinade

  • 2 lbs chicken thighs
  • 3–4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
  • 2 tbsp hot pepper paste or tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup yogurt
  • 1 tbsp white vinegar (or lemon juice)
  • 2 tbsp olive oil

Shawarma spices

  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp coriander
  • 1/2 tsp allspice
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1/2 tsp cardamom
  • 1/2 tsp clove
  • Salt, to taste
  • 1/2 tsp ginger (optional)
  • 1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
  • 3 tbsp beef tallow or neutral oil, for cooking

Red sauce

  • 1/4 cup oil
  • 1/4 cup tomato paste
  • 2 tbsp ketchup
  • 1 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 cup water
  • Salt, to taste

To assemble

  • Large pita or flatbreads
  • Toum (garlic sauce)
  • Thinly sliced pickles

Method

  1. 1

    Whisk the garlic, pepper paste, yogurt, vinegar, olive oil and all the shawarma spices into a marinade. Coat the chicken thighs and marinate at least 1 hour (overnight is best).

    Crispy Chicken Shawarma Wrap — step 1
  2. 2

    Simmer the red sauce ingredients together for a few minutes until slightly thickened. Set aside.

  3. 3

    Sear the chicken in tallow or oil over medium-high heat until deeply browned, cooked through and crispy at the edges. Rest, then slice thin.

  4. 4

    Lay out a large pita, spread with red sauce and toum, pile on the sliced chicken and pickles, and roll tightly into a wrap.

  5. 5

    Brush the outside lightly with oil and pan-toast the wrap seam-side down until golden and crispy on all sides.

  6. 6

    Slice in half and serve hot with extra toum and pickles.

  7. 7

    close up shot ..

    Crispy Chicken Shawarma Wrap — step 7

Tips

  • Chicken thighs stay juicy where breast dries out — don't substitute.
  • Marinate overnight for the deepest shawarma flavor.
  • Crisping the rolled wrap in the pan is THE step — don't skip it.
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