📋Chicken Shawarma Bowl

5 from 1 vote

📋Chicken Shawarma Bowl

Chicken shawarma bowl is Middle Eastern inspired chicken shawarma recipe which is super 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.

Prep Time30

Cook Time45

Course: Dinner, Main Course

Cuisine: Mediterranean, Middle Eastern

Servings: servings

Calories: 605kcal

Author: Jyothi Rajesh

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!

Nutritional Info – Please keep in mind that nutritional information provided is only a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.

Nutrition