Beef & Lamb Gyro or Shawarma

I been in love with Gyro since the mid-90's and every time I am around Italian or Gyro restaurant I need to have one. I used to work for a fast food restaurant inside the food court of a big mall and right across from the place I worked at was a Gyro Place. Usually all of the manager (myself included) will buy food that we share with assistant/co-managers and one of them bought this. I said I wanted to taste, and sure enough, I was hooked.

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So, fast forward so many years hahaha, my DH wanted pizza every so often and sure enough the pizza place that we always go to have them. At first I hesitate on buying because from where I am used to, it cost almost $5.00 and that was a long time ago. However, mother's day came and hey! It's mothers day, I can have anything I want, DH can have pizza hahaha.

  Even my youngest one loves it. I did some research and bought all what I needed to make it. Mind you, it was the hottest week in my area and using anything in house to make heat was making the whole house hotter than the outside temperature. I opt out on air conditioner to save money, so I cooked the meatloaf looking meat outside on the grill. Oh boy! It was scrumptious, it lasted a while too because only my youngest son and I eats it. I think one batch can feed a party of ten. Maybe I can serve them when we decide to have a party during summer.

I enjoy everything that comes with it. The lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pita bread, and the tzatziki sauce mmmm yummy!

"Shawarma, also shaurma and other spellings, is a Middle Eastern meat preparation, a variation of the doner kebab of Ottoman Turkey, where thin cuts of lamb, chicken, turkey, beef, veal, or mixed meats are stacked in a cone-like shape on a vertical rotisserie. As it rotates and the outside cooks continuously, thin slices are shaved off. Shawarma is one of the world's most popular street foods, especially in the countries of the Levant and the Arabian Peninsula. It is similar to the Greek gyros, which is also derived from the doner kebab. It was brought in the early 20th century to Mexico by immigrants from the Middle East, where it became the basis of tacos al pastor."

Credit to GeniusKitchen.com, thank you for sharing this recipe. Taste just like the ones they sell in the restaurants.

INGREDIENTS

·         1lb ground beef

·         1lb ground lamb

·         ¹⁄₂ cup breadcrumbs

·         2 garlic cloves, finely minced

·         3 teaspoons oregano

·         2 teaspoons onion powder

·         2 teaspoons salt

·         1 teaspoon pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl, and mix well.
2. Knead the mixture on the counter for 10 minutes - just like you're kneading bread. You may want to use a dough-scraper to help keep the counter clean. (I do). Pick that meat up and SLAM it into the counter, continuing to do so for the 10 minutes. This is key to getting the correct texture. I'm no Alton Brown, but I think the thing we're doing here is melting the fat so that we get a nice smooth texture in the end.
3. Form into a flat loaf - I like to put the meat onto a piece of wax paper, and flattening it into a 3" high slab rectangle. I cover it with another piece of wax and use a rolling pin to flatten it out, just make sure you straighten out the edges to form a rectangle so that when it comes time to slice, they are nice and even.
4. Bake the loaf on a broiler pan (or pan with raised edges, because it will leak grease!) at 350 for about an hour. Alternatively, you can grill it over coals, that's my favorite way, just be sure to turn often so as to distribute the juices.
5. Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing thin.