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Chicken Shawarma with Butter Rice

Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Keyword: Shawarma
Servings: 4

Ingredients

Main ingredients

  • 1 kg boneless chicken thighs
  • 1 clove garlic (minced)
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice

Shawarma Spice Mix

  • 1 tbsp ground cumin
  • 1 tbsp ground coriander
  • 1 tbsp ground cardamom
  • 2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp cayenne pepper (reduce if you prefer not spicy)

Yoghurt Sauce

  • 1 cup greek yoghurt
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 clove garlic (pressed or finely minced)
  • salt
  • pepper

Butter Rice

  • 100 g butter
  • 0.5 medium onion (finely diced)
  • 2 cups rice
  • 2 cups water (or as instructed on rice packet, if not using rice cooker)

Instructions

Marinating the Chicken Shawarma

  • Using a large mixing bowl, add the chicken thighs, minced garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and spice mix.
  • Mix well and ensure that the chicken thighs are properly coated in the marinade before placing in the refrigerator. For best results, marinate overnight.

Preparing the Butter Rice

  • Finely dice half of a medium onion and set aside.
  • In a saucepan/ pot, melt the butter over a small fire and sauté the diced onions for about 5 minutes.
  • Transfer this onion butter mixture to a rice cooker, add the 2 cups of rice and 2 cups of water and start cooking.
  • If you are continuing to cook the rice in the saucepan/ pot, add the rice and sufficient water (as guided by packet) and cook till fluffy!

Cooking the Chicken Shawarma

  • You can choose to cook this on the grill, oven or pan/skillet.
  • If you're using a pan or skillet, over a medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of oil to coat the pan. Once the pan is hot, add the chicken thighs and sear for 4-5 mins on each side. Try not to flip the chicken too often to allow it to have a good sear! Check that your chicken is cooked through properly and turn down the heat to cook chicken for a little longer if necessary.
  • If you're using the oven, lay out the chicken thighs evenly across a wide baking tray. Try to minimise stacking the chicken thighs on top of each other, to allow then to properly cook and char at the top.
  • If you're having a barbecue or grill, allow for the chicken thighs to char on each side and cook through properly.
  • Once chicken is cooked, using a large chopping board, slices into strips as preferred.

Yoghurt sauce

  • Mix the yoghurt, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper together and serve.