GYROS

Did you know that the cooking technique for gyros may have originated with Alexander the Great?

The modern Greek version is made by slicing meat off a vertical spit or “gyro”, taken from the Greek word meaning “turn.” This is then wrapped in flat bread or pita bread, and typically served with tomatoes, onions, spices, and tzatziki sauce.

Legend has it that this unique rotisserie cooking style was invented by Alexander the Great and his soldiers when they would use long knives to skewer meat and roast it by slowly rotating it over a fire.

This cooking style is also used to make shawarma and “doner kebab” in Turkey, the dish that may have inspired the modern version of the gyro in Greece. Either way, versions of this delicious dish have been sold and served in the streets of Greece, Turkey, and the middle east for hundreds of years.

What else do you know about gyros?

Ingredients:

1. 1 ½ pounds of chicken breast or beef steak

2. Pita bread or naan

3. 2 tomatoes

4. 1 cucumber

5. 1 red onion

6. 1 yellow or white onion

7. 1 lime

8. Olive oil

9. Paprika

10. Celery powder

11. Chili powder

12. Garlic powder

13. Oregano

14. Thyme

15. Dill powder

16. Chili flakes (optional)

17. Cumin

18. Salt & Pepper

Instructions:

Salad topping:

1. Peel and remove seeds from cucumber and then slice in half circles

2. Dice tomatoes

3. Slice ¼ of red onion

4. Mix the cucumber, tomatoes and onion in a bowl

5. Add 1 tbsp of olive oil and the juice of the lime

6. Add salt and pepper to taste

Meat:

1. Slice meat into thin, one-inch-sized cutlets (this is easier if the meat is frozen for about an hour before slicing)

2. Slice half of the yellow/white onion

3. Mix onion and meat in a bowl

4. Add 3 tbsp of olive oil

5. Add 2 tbsp paprika

6. Add 1tbsp of each of the rest of the condiments (including salt and pepper)

7. Let marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight in the fridge

8. Add marinated meat to a hot skillet and stir until fully cooked

9. Add salt and pepper if needed

Serve:

1. Heat up pita bread or naan on a flat top or skillet

2. Serve cooked meat on top of hot bread

3. Add salad topping and tzatziki sauce to taste

Enjoy!