Shawarma

Shawarma used to be the food that I ate in my twenties in the middle of the night on weekends, in the Netherlands where I grew up, when all the bars closed at either 2 or 4 am LOL. Seriously, it was either this of fries with mayo. (I might need to do a blog post about typical Dutch things haha… this must sound so weird to a lot of you). Anyway, it has always had the status of “junkfood” to me because that’s how it was eaten; with garlic sauce based on mayo and a salad on the side that had 3 lettuce leaves and one slice of tomato. It is not in fact, junkfood. It is a wonderful and flavorful dish that has it’s origin in Turkey. With an easy to make spice mix that includes (among others) cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom, and the fact that the mix works with about any type of meat, it can be a great addition to your weekly rotation when you need an easy crowd pleaser!

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup black pepper
• 1/4 cup all spice
• 1/4 cup garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons ground cloves
• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons ground nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons ground cardamom
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon salt

Save your spice mix in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.

Instructions (for 2 pounds of meat)

• Pick any meat you like to make your Shawarma with. This mix works especially well with chicken and pork.
• To marinate the Shawarma meat you’ll need 2 tablespoons of oil (avocado or olive), 1 tablespoon white vinegar,1/2 teaspoon salt and 2 tablespoons of mix per 2 pounds of meat.
• Cut your protein of choice in bite sized pieces and put in a bowl or ziplock bag to marinate in the fridge. For chicken, marinate 20-40 minutes, pork and beef 1-24 hours.
• When ready to cook, put some oil in a medium skillet on medium/high heat and cook until cooked through. The spice mix might stick to the pan a little so make sure to stir every now and then and scrape up all the good bits.

What I’ve learned…

• This mix also works very well with chickpeas if you want a vegan option! Same measurements, just make sure to drain and rinse your peas well before marinating. Marinate for 20-40 mins.

Stats:

The stats for this recipe depend on the kind of protein you will be using.

Source: http://www.littlespicejar.com