Shawarma wraps are the perfect street food. Absolutely delicious and easy to handle.
It was Bahrain’s turn in the Baking World Tour and I had not eaten shawarma in a while so here we are. Although the country in which shawarma originated is not clear, it is popular all over the Middle East.
For those of you who have not heard of this wrap, shawarma is marinated meat that is normally cooked on a spit. The meat is sliced in strips as it is cooking. The bread used for wrapping can be quite thin or it can be thicker and puffier with a bit more bite like the one I made. All sorts of meat can be used, but my favourite is chicken. The marinades vary a lot too, so if you want to tweak yours, go ahead.
Along with the chicken all sorts of fillings can be used. I opted for a tzatziki sauce, some fresh leaves, vegetables, herbs, and hot sauce. It is up to you what you put into your wraps.
For best results marinate the chicken for 24 hours, but you can get away with doing it on the same day too.
At the end of the video, I will show you how to wrap it up in foil street-food-style so you can carry it around and not worry about spilling anything.
This recipe makes 3 large wraps. If you would like to make more simply multiply the amount of ingredients.
Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.
Ingredients
For the dough –
240g (8.5oz) strong white bread flour
10g (0.35oz) wholemeal flour
5g (0.17oz) salt
15 (0.5oz) olive oil
3g (0.1oz) instant dry yeast or 3.6g (0.12oz) active dry yeast or 9g (0.3oz) fresh yeast
150g (5.3oz) water, cold*
*To learn more about dough temperature control click here.
For the chicken –
600g (1.3lb) boneless chicken thighs
200g (7oz) Greek yogurt
20g (0.7oz) olive oil
30g (1oz) garlic, minced
10g (0.35oz) salt
3g (0.1oz) ground cumin
5g (0.17oz) ground coriander
5g (0.17oz) paprika
2g (0.07oz) oregano
2g (0.07oz) cinnamon
2g (0.07oz) allspice
30g (1oz) lemon juice
For the tzatziki –
200g (7oz) Greek yogurt
100g (3.5oz) grated cucumber. Remove seeds before grating.
10g (0.35oz) chopped dill
2g (0.07oz) salt
10g (0.35oz) minced garlic
10g (0.35oz) lemon juice
You can adjust the ratios to your liking.
To assemble –
Tomatoes
Cucumber
Rocket
Spring onions
Parsley
Hot sauce. I used Sriracha.
Method
- Marinade the chicken. In a large bowl combine all the marinade ingredients and mix them well. Add the chicken and coat it with the marinade. Cover and leave in the fridge for 24 hours or less if you cannot wait that long.
- Make the tzatziki. In a bowl combine the yogurt, salt, lemon juice, dill, garlic, and cucumber. Mix well. You can make this just before you assemble your wraps, but I made it at the same time as the chicken and left it in the fridge for 24 hours. There is no advantage or disadvantage when doing this as it is delicious either way.
- Make the dough. In a bowl combine the water, salt, yeast, olive oil, and wholemeal flour. Mix well to dissolve any large salt crystals and to hydrate the yeast. Add the white flour and mix to a dough.
- Tip the dough out on your table and knead it for 5 minutes. *Desired dough temperature 25C (77F). If your dough is warmer, then it will ferment more rapidly. If it is cooler, then it will take longer. Adjust proofing time accordingly.
- Cover and ferment for 2 hours or until doubled in size.
- Divide the dough in 3 equal pieces. Shape into balls.
- Cover and ferment for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
- Whilst the dough balls are fermenting cook the chicken. Lay it on a baking tray lined with non-stick paper side by side so that it does not overlap. You can scrape all the marinade onto the chicken from the bowl. Place it in a preheated oven at 200C (390F) with the fan on. Roast it for around 30 minutes or until the internal temperature is above 75C (170F) and the outside has charred nicely. Place it on the middle shelf so that the top layer would brown properly by the time the chicken has cooked through.
- Roll the dough balls out to around 25cm (10in). Cook them in a dry pan on high heat for around 5 minutes in total flipping occasionally. Do not expect a lot of colouration as we are not using any oil. If your bread is super brown, then it is most likely over cooked and dry already.
- Cover it with clingfilm as soon as it comes out of the pan to keep it moist and pliable.
Assemble your wraps and tuck in! And whilst you are enjoying your meal check out some more videos of the Baking World Tour.
Keep in mind that the conditions in each kitchen are different, so fermentation times may vary for you. It is up to the baker to control the bread and react accordingly.
Your oven may be different too, so cooking time for the chicken may vary.
Watch the video here
