Here’s my family recipe for Chicken Shawarma! Juicy and flavorful, bursting with Middle Eastern spices, this recipe turns out delicious every single time. Just read all our 5-star reviews!
My Egyptian father was an incredible cook, and growing up, the smells coming out of our kitchen wafting through the neighborhood were mouthwatering! I always knew when it was time to ride my bike home for dinner. 😉 His chicken shawarma was one of my favorite meals, and it always brought me right back to the streets of Cairo. He had a secret blend of spices that resulted in shawarma that was wildly flavorful and juicy.
As a chef and caterer, I’ve turned to his recipe heavily in our catering business and at home, always with rave reviews! My dad’s recipe is even featured in Men’s Journal; it’s that good!
Chicken Shawarma can be served as a wrap, or over Israeli Salad for a light meal, or skewered and served as a plate with Middle Eastern Rice (or Pita Bread) with a side of Tzatziki, Tahini Yogurt Sauce, Hummus, or Baba Ganoush! The perfect combination of flavors. No grill? Use a grill pan on the stove, or try our Baked Chicken Shawarma!
But, what is chicken shawarma?
Chicken shawarma is a Middle Eastern dish (often served as street food) made by slow-roasting stacked pieces of meat, such as chicken, lamb, or beef, on a vertical spit, and then thinly slicing it for use in wraps, gyros, and mains.
Why You’ll Love it
- Bursting with Flavor: Chicken shawarma is incredibly flavorful and aromatic. The combination of spices like cumin, coriander, and garlic, makes every bite a delight for your taste buds.
- Versatile Serving Options: Chicken shawarma can be served in various ways, giving you the freedom to enjoy it according to your preferences. Whether you prefer it in a sandwich or wrap with tzatziki sauce and fresh vegetables, or over a bed of refreshing Israeli salad, there are so many delicious ways to enjoy chicken shawarma.
- Juicy and Tender: Using boneless, skinless chicken thighs in the recipe ensures that the meat remains moist, tender, and full of flavor. Grilling or baking the chicken adds a beautiful char and smoky flavor, making every bite juicy and satisfying.
- Easy to Make: This grilled chicken shawarma recipe is simple and easy to make at home. With just a few steps and basic ingredients, you can recreate the flavors of the Middle East in your own kitchen. Marinate the chicken, grill or bake it, and then slice it up for a mouthwatering meal.
- Perfect for Gatherings: Chicken shawarma is a fantastic dish to serve when you have guests over or for special occasions. Its vibrant flavors and appealing presentation make it a crowd-pleaser, and you can easily scale up the recipe to accommodate a larger group.
Chicken Shawarma Ingredients
- Chicken thighs: For this recipe, I use boneless, skinless thighs, as thighs are extra tender and juicy. Keep the chicken thighs whole or cut into bite-sized pieces for skewers.
- Shawarma Spices: Cumin, coriander, garlic cloves, kosher salt, cayenne pepper, turmeric, ground ginger, ground black pepper, and allspice are the key spices used to season the chicken.
- Olive oil: Used for marinating the chicken and providing moisture and flavor.
- Optional White sauce: Commonly served with chicken shawarma can be whipped up using garlic, lemon juice, salt and olive oil.
*See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
How to Make Chicken Shawarma
STEP 1: Make the Shawarma marinade, using whole or ground spices- and stir the spices with garlic and olive oil (or pulse in a food processor) to create a flavorful paste. Tip: if making a big batch, I often place it in a food processor.
Step 2: Coat the chicken thighs well with the shawarma marinade, keeping in mind that the longer you marinate, the better the flavor. Marinate at least 20 minutes or up to 48 hours in the fridge!
Shawarma Grilling Tips:
Since most of us don’t own a rotisserie or a vertical turning spit, the next best way to mimic this technique is to grill the shawarma. You can use a gas grill or charcoal grill. We can do this in three different ways:
- Make Kabobs or skewers!
- Grill whole chicken thighs, then slice.
- Use a grill pan on the stovetop- but be sure to turn on the hood fan.
Step 3: Grill the chicken either whole or on skewers over medium-high heat, until good grill marks appear.
Step 4: Once the chicken gets a nice char, either turn the heat down and cover to cook through or place into a 350 F oven until chicken thighs are cooked all the way through (to 170F).
Step 5: Cover the chicken shawarma with foil and let it rest 10 minutes, and thinly slice!
Storage
Leftover chicken shawarma will keep up to 4 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator and can be frozen for up to 3 months. Reheat on the stovetop or in a 350F oven.
Shawarma Serving suggestions
Serve over a salad. Here, I’ve sliced up the whole Chicken Shawarma to place over a big bowl of Israeli Salad. My favorite meal, so light and refreshing! I love the warm grilled chicken over the cool and refreshing salad, so good!
Serve as a plated main. Grill skewers or whole thighs and serve over Middle Eastern Rice with a Lebanese salad , a veggie like our Zaater Zucchini and a sauce like our tahini yogurt sauce.
Serve as a wrap with pita bread, diced tomatoes and cucumbers, and tzatziki!
What to serve with Shawarma
Chicken Shawarma FAQs
Shawarma originates from the Middle East and in essence, is deeply seasoned, marinated meat (typically lamb, beef or chicken) that has been stacked on a vertical spit, to roast low and slow for hours on end while slowly turning, nestled up to the gas-burning grill. Shawarma translates to “turning” in Turkish. Once roasted, the meat is tender, juicy, and full of incredible flavor from the spices, and is often thinly sliced and folded into pita, or wraps, or made into a shawarma plate.
Toasting whole spices gives the shawarma marinade a more intense flavor, but using ground spices is quicker and easier and works well too! Use toasted whole seeds or ground spices, or a combo! Cumin, coriander, garlic cloves, salt, cayenne pepper, turmeric, ginger, black pepper, and allspice.
Shawarma is often served with a “White Sauce” that can be whipped up in a food processor or blender. It is typically made with garlic, lemon, salt, and olive oil, similar to a creamy aioli (but without the egg). More often than not, I prefer serving shawarma with yogurt-based Tzatziki.
Though we prefer the flavor of a real grill here, a grill pan or skillet works in a pinch! We also have a recipe for Baked Chicken Shawarma on the blog.
More favorite Middle Eastern Recipes
I hope you give my Chicken Shawarma recipe a try- I know you will love it, just read all the reviews! xo
Love this recipe? Please let us know in the comments and leave a 5-star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below the recipe card.
Watch How to Make Chicken Shawarma
Chicken Shawarma Recipe
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 6
- Category: Chicken, Grilled
- Method: grilled
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
A simple delicious recipe for chicken shawarma that can be grilled or baked – full of Middle Eastern flavor. Serve with homemade pita bread and tzatziki or over Israeli Salad.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs to 2 1/4 lb chicken thighs (boneless and skinless, or skin on- see notes) leave whole or cut into bite-sized pieces for skewers.
Shawarma Marinade:
- 2 tablespoons ground cumin
- 2 tablespoons ground coriander
- 8 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons allspice
Instructions
- Soak skewers in water if using.
- Place all marinade ingredients in a bowl and mix, or pulse in a food processor to make a paste.
- Rub chicken on all sides with the marinade and let sit at minimum 20 minutes (or up to 24-48 hours for the best flavor, refrigerated). You can also cut the chicken into 1-inch cubes and marinate for skewers.
- Grill chicken on a pre-heated grill, on medium-high heat, closing the lid to the BBQ, until all sides have nice grill marks, about 8 minutes each side.
- Move to a cooler part of the grill or finish cooking chicken in a 350 F oven until cooked all the way through ( 170F) , about 10 minutes.
- * Alternatively, you can bake the chicken thighs in a 375 F oven for 30-40 minutes or use a grill pan on the stovetop.
- Enjoy the chicken shawarma over Israeli salad, tabouli, Lebanese Slaw, or with Middle Eastern rice and veggies, or as a sandwich with tahini yogurt, tzatziki, pita bread, tomatoes, cucumber, and red onion.
Notes
Feel free to use boneless skinless chicken breasts, understanding grilling time will shorten. I prefer thighs because they are pretty hard to overcook/dry out.
If using skewers: Make sure to soak wood skewers in water, at least 30 minutes so they don’t burn. Marinate the cubes of chicken in a bowl for at least 20 minutes, before skewering.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4 ounces
- Calories: 213
- Sugar: 0.1 g
- Sodium: 693.7 mg
- Fat: 12.1 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 3 g
- Fiber: 0.6 g
- Protein: 23 g
- Cholesterol: 106.5 mg
Absolutely love this recipe, we make it every few weeks lately. So good with the Israeli salad.
So glad you are enjoying it! Yes, love it with the Israeli Salad!
This is delicious. My spouse is very happy with this recipe. The salad I made on the side was small diced of cucumbers, red onion ( yellow onion will do ), tomatoes toss with lemon juice , olive oil, salt and pepper. The combination is great together. Thanks for this recipe
Thanks, so good to hear!!!
This was delicious and a winner with guests. Made in the oven. I did put foil over the dish for the first 15 minutes and then uncovered to finish. Tender and juicy. I recommend the 24 hour marinade process. Get your hands messy and really rub that paste in too.
AMAZING! I love this recipe, make it almost weekly!
So happy you liked it Jamie!
I LOVE this recipe! So good! I make it almost weekly!
Tried this for the first time 2 weeks ago and it went down a storm with family and friends. In fact I didn’t make enough apparently!!! 🙂
I used chicken legs last time instead, plus fresh ginger and cooked it about 3 hrs later on the BBQ over a medium heat.
Deeeeeelicious! So I’m making it again today, with a salad and home made Tsasiki
This recipe is brilliant! Everyone who has tried it loves it and it is quick and easy to prepare. It goes perfectly with the Israeli salad, and I like to serve it with bread too.
Great recipe! Made it for a group of friends everyone wanted the recipe!
Awesome Vera, thanks so much!
I brought the marinated chicken along with the Israeli salad, pita bread, hummus and feta to my daughter and son in law’s today for an impromptu middle of the week cookout. The grilled chicken shawarma and Israeli salad were a big hit ! My daughter asked for the recipes. These recipes will be made often!
Im so glad you liked it!
I made this with the israeli salad tonight for a healthy dinner party and it was such a hit!!!! I used chicken thighs because that’s what I had and they turned out super juicy and delicious. I marinated for a couple hours to really get the flavours going. This was my first time checking out your blog and I have found quite a few things I will definitely try. Yum!!!!
Awesome Whitney- appreciate you rating and leaving a comment- and glad you like the salad and chicken- 2 of my personal favs! Welcome to the blog- happy you are here!
Made this recipe for dinner last night and it is amazing! I blended the spices in a foods processor and rubbed on chicken breasts then let them sit for about 30min then grilled. The smoky flavor transported us to the Mediterranean! I will make this again – thank you so much for posting!
Great to hear Kristi! Thanks for the comment and rating and I’m so glad you enjoyed it!xoxo
I made this last night for a group of friends. I used boneless skinless chicken thighs.. It was outstanding, and so simple to make . Along with the Israeli salad I added naan and an eggplant curry to round it out. Not a bit of leftovers. This one will stay in my summer grilling rotation:)
I really love your posts and appreciate the alternative suggestions, to make it vegetarian or vegan as I like to mix it up.
Thanks so much Kathleen, so happy you all enjoyed it! Eggplant curry sounds delish!
Excellent recipe! The chicken shwarma and Israeli salad was well received even though I did over cook the chicken a bit.
Thanks Tim, glad you liked it, and I overcook chicken all the time. Oh well. 😉
Fantastic recipe! My husband thinks this was the best chicken I’ve ever made. Thank you! It’s juicy, flavorful and so aromatic.
Yay! I love hearing that!!!
Recipe was delicious and I don’t care what country it originated from!
I made this tonight with the salad, gluten free paleo pita and a Lebanese garlic dill sauce all wrapped up in the pitas! So so good! I will keep this recipe in my make again file!
Sounds Delicious! thanks for sharing- and love that you put it in a pita! Great idea!
I am just now getting around to leaving a comment, however I have been making this recipe now for about a year.
I cannot tell you how many times in a week my husband and children ask if I can make this. It’s easy and incredibly flavorful! It is my go to for larger crowds as well because of the simplicity of it. Everyone raves about it!
Thanks so much Krista! I’m so happy you and your family have enjoyed these! And thank you for leaving a comment and rating! Always appreciated!!!
It would be nice to give tribute to the actual origin of this food, which is clearly Palestinian. This recipe is a new favorite-delicious!!
Hi delicious
By the way i don’t think it’s Israeli or Palestinian salad…
It’s originally Jamaican salad so please all you political folks fighting over the right to the salad….give credit to where credit is due..
Jamaica…
I just want to say how fantastic this recipe turned out! I made it with the Israeli salad and it was the perfect accompaniment to the chicken. I did use chicken breast instead of the thighs as I already had it on hand. This meal was so flavorful and wonderful, so happy I tried it out! Can’t wait to make it again!
I’m so glad!!!
This recipe is a new favorite-delicious!!
I have made this a few times, and it is one of my favorites – fantastic!! I use chicken breasts & cook it on the grill, big green egg, and the combination of the spices and smokiness is wonderful. My husband and kids love this too, and those kids are picky… Making for Mother’s Day. Thank you for this great recipe.
Thanks Sherri- love that you’ve made it your own!
I was expecting 6 people for dinner and a couple of hours before we ate, it grew to 10. I had plenty of appetizers, so wasn’t concerned. I had marinated the suggested amount of chicken overnight, and just added more thighs to the baggie with the paste and it was just barely enough – whew! Served with the Israeli Salad and Turkish Cucumber Salad along with quinoa cooked in chicken broth. Two thumbs up all around for ease of prep (though the chopping took me a while), moistness of chicken and delicious flavors. Thank you for sharing and for making me appear to be a carefree hostess.
I’m so glad it turned out Sabrina! Thanks for your comment!
Had this for dinner tonight, but I subbed pork chops for chicken. It definitely would be better with a fattier dark meat like chicken thighs but it was great this way, too. Amazing flavors. I cubed the pork, put it on skewers and broiled it on a rack on a cookie sheet. Gets it that nice grill flavor without a grill 🙂
Fixed the chicken tonight and was very impressed. I made it with breasts and split them horizontally and they took chicken to a new level. Will make the Israeli salad tomorrow night to have with the leftover chicken. Thanks for a very interesting and delicious recipe.