Chicken shawarma bowl is Middle Eastern inspired chicken shawarma recipe which is easy to make at home that packs big flavors. It can be used in shawarma wraps or shawarma bowls for make-ahead lunches for work.
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Ingredients needed
For chicken shawarma-
- 2 pounds boneless chicken, use mix of chicken breast and thighs
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoon garlic, minced (can use garlic powder)
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon red chili flakes (optional)
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- Salt & pepper to taste
For shawarma bowl toppings-
- ½ cup cucumber, sliced
- ½ cup cherry tomatoes, sliced into halves
- ½ red onion, sliced thin
- 10-15 olive, pitted
- Any salad greens like iceberg lettuce or Romaine lettuce
- 2 tablespoon cilantro & mint leaves
- Juice and zest of 1 lemon
For dressing-
Use any of the following dressing
- Hummus dressing
- Tahini sauce
- Cilantro yogurt sauce
- Tzatziki sauce
Ingredients additions & substitutions
- Substitute fresh minced garlic with garlic powder.
- Add ½ teaspoon turmeric powder to the marinade for color.
- Use any vegetables raw or roasted to assemble shawarma bowl.
- Raw vegetables like cucumber, tomato, onion, lettuce can be used.
- Roast vegetables like bell peppers, zucchini, and cauliflower (seasoned with salt, pepper and curry powder mix) in a sheet pan in pre-heated oven at 425 degree F for 10 minutes. Use roasted veggies to assemble shawarma bowls.
- Use any grain of your choice for the bowl. Yellow rice, lentils, quinoa are some of the best choice for grains.
- Feel free to add crumbled or cubed feta cheese and sliced almonds for enhanced taste and texture.
How to make chicken shawarma bowl (with step-by-step pictorial)
Making flavorful and vibrant yellow rice is easy. Just follow this fail-proof recipe.
Once yellow rice is ready, cover rice with lid and set it aside until use.
Prep toppings/vegetables-
Slice cucumbers, half cherry tomatoes, thinly slice red onion. Toss vegetables in 1 teaspoon fresh squeezed lemon juice, lemon zest and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Keep aside.
Adding lemon juice and zest is optional. You can use vegetables as it is.
Chicken shawarma-
- For best results use a mix of both chicken breasts and boneless chicken thighs. Score chicken breast and thighs with a pairing knife on both side.
- In a wide bowl mix olive oil, lemon juice, minced garlic, ground cumin, ground coriander, ground cardamom, cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, red chili flakes, salt and pepper to taste.
- Add chicken to the bowl. Rub chicken thoroughly to spread the marinade all over evenly.
- Cover and marinade chicken for minimum 1 hour or maximum overnight in refrigerator.
Cook on grill-
If using grill, heat up grill to 375 to 425 degree F.
Grease grill with olive oil. Place marinated chicken on hot grill. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes on each side or until chicken is cooked through (internal temperature of cooked chicken should be 165 degree F).
Cook in oven-
Line a baking sheet with aluminium foil.
Arrange marinated chicken in single layer on the sheet.
Bake at 425 degree F for 20 to 25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
- Transfer chicken to wooden board and let it rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
- Slice chicken thin.
- Assemble chicken shawarma bowl-
- Layer the bowl with yellow rice or quinoa, chicken shawarma, vegetables like cucumber, cherry tomatoes, olives, sliced red onions, iceberg lettuce.
- Drizzle with hummus dressing or cilantro yogurt sauce or tahini dressing or tzatziki.
- Enjoy immediately.
Tips for making chicken shawarma bowl
- For juicy flavorful chicken use chicken thighs or use a mix of both chicken breasts and thighs.
- The longer chicken is marinated; chicken will absorb bags of flavors resulting in more flavorful chicken shawarma.
- Customize chicken shawarma bowl according to your preference. Add or swap any ingredient topping. Use raw vegetables(cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red onions, iceberg lettuce or Romaine lettuce) or roasted vegetables (bell peppers, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, zucchini), mushrooms) or a mix of both.
- Undercooked or over cooked chicken both are not okay! To ensure chicken is cooked use meat thermometer to check internal temperature of chicken.
- After chicken is cooked, rest it on wooden board for 5 minutes before slicing. Resting is essential for chicken to absorb all the moisture in it. You’ll loose all the moisture from the chicken if sliced immediately after cooking, hence turning chicken dry!
FAQS
Yes, chicken shawarma is great for meal preps. Cook chicken, prep veggies, cook yellow rice and cool completely. Then store everything separate in containers refrigerated.
When ready to serve assemble chicken shawarma bowl or make chicken shawarma wrap using warm pita bread (not pita pocket).
Cooked chicken will stay good for 3 to5 days refrigerated. Store all ingredients separately so they don’t turn soggy.
When ready to serve, simply assemble the bowl or make a wrap with all ingredients and enjoy.
Yes you can.
You can either freeze marinated chicken in freezer containers for upto 3 months.
Or you can cook marinated chicken on grill or oven, let it cool then store in freezer safe zip lock bags. Cooked chicken can be frozen and used for 3 months.
Frozen marinated chicken can be reheated in microwave or in oven or on a skillet. Thaw chicken overnight in refrigerator, then cook chicken in oven, skillet or on a grill.
To reheat cooked chicken shawarma, thaw to defrost overnight in refrigerator. Reheat in microwave or on a skillet until warmed.
After cooking chicken shawarma, you can use it to make a wrap with pita bread. Lightly warm pita bread on a skillet, place sliced chicken, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, lettuce leaves (and or any other vegetables of your choice), drizzle with hummus dressing or tahini dressing or cilantro yogurt dressing. Fold the wrap and serve.
To make chicken shawarma bowls – layer the bowl with yellow rice or quinoa, chicken shawarma, vegetables like cucumber, cherry tomatoes, olives, sliced red onions, iceberg lettuce.
Drizzle with hummus dressing or cilantro yogurt sauce or tahini dressing or tzatziki. Enjoy immediately.
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Brown sugar bacon wrapped chicken
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📋Chicken Shawarma Bowl
Ingredients
For chicken shawarma-
- 2 pounds boneless chicken use mix of chicken breast and thighs
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoon garlic minced (can use garlic powder)
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon red chili flakes optional
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- Salt & pepper to taste
For shawarma bowl toppings-
- 2 cups yellow rice
- ½ cup cucumber sliced
- ½ cup cherry tomatoes sliced into halves
- ½ red onion sliced thin
- 10-15 olive pitted
- Any salad greens like iceberg lettuce or Romaine lettuce
- 2 tablespoon cilantro & mint leaves
- Juice and zest of 1 lemon
For dressing-
- Use any of the following dressing
- Hummus dressing
- Tahini sauce
- Cilantro yogurt sauce
- Tzatziki sauce
Instructions
- Making flavorful and vibrant yellow rice is easy.
- Once yellow rice is ready, cover rice with lid and set it aside until use.
- Slice cucumbers, half cherry tomatoes, thinly slice red onion. Toss vegetables in 1 teaspoon fresh squeezed lemon juice, lemon zest and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Keep aside.Adding lemon juice and zest is optional. You can use vegetables as it is.
- Chicken shawarma-For best results use a mix of both chicken breasts and boneless chicken thighs. Score chicken breast and thighs with a pairing knife on both side.
- In a wide bowl mix olive oil, lemon juice, minced garlic, ground cumin, ground coriander, ground cardamom, cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, red chili flakes, salt and pepper to taste.
- Add chicken to the bowl. Rub chicken thoroughly to spread the marinade all over evenly.
- Cover and marinade chicken for minimum 1 hour or maximum overnight in refrigerator.
- Cook on grill-If using grill, heat up grill to 375 to 425 degree F.
- Grease grill with olive oil. Place marinated chicken on hot grill. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes on each side or until chicken is cooked through (internal temperature of cooked chicken should be 165 degree F).
- Cook in oven-Line a baking sheet with aluminium foil.
- Arrange marinated chicken in single layer on the sheet.
- Bake at 425 degree F for 20 to 25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
- Transfer chicken to wooden board and let it rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
- Slice chicken thin.
- Assemble chicken shawarma bowl-Layer the bowl with yellow rice or quinoa, chicken shawarma, vegetables like cucumber, cherry tomatoes, olives, sliced red onions, iceberg lettuce.
- Drizzle with hummus dressing or cilantro yogurt sauce or tahini dressing or tzatziki.
- Enjoy immediately.
Video
Notes
- For juicy flavorful chicken use chicken thighs or use a mix of both chicken breasts and thighs.
- The longer chicken is marinated; chicken will absorb bags of flavors resulting in more flavorful chicken shawarma.
- Customize chicken shawarma bowl according to your preference. Add or swap any ingredient topping. Use raw vegetables(cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red onions, iceberg lettuce or Romaine lettuce) or roasted vegetables (bell peppers, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, zucchini), mushrooms) or a mix of both.
- Undercooked or over cooked chicken both are not okay! To ensure chicken is cooked use meat thermometer to check internal temperature of chicken.
- After chicken is cooked, rest it on wooden board for 5 minutes before slicing. Resting is essential for chicken to absorb all the moisture in it. You’ll loose all the moisture from the chicken if sliced immediately after cooking, hence turning chicken dry!
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