Shawarma is a Middle Eastern-style sandwich usually composed of shaved lamb, chicken, turkey, or beef. Shawarma is a popular dish across the Middle East, and is consumed by many across the rest of the world as well. Shawarma is known as guss in Iraq and gyros in Greece.
Shawarma is made by placing strips of meat or marinated chicken on a skewer. Animal fat and an onion or tomato are placed at the top of the stack to provide flavoring. The meat is then roasted slowly on all sides as the skewer rotates in front of or over a flame for a period of several hours (see rotisserie). Traditionally a wood fire is used, but nowadays a gas flame is more common. While many establishments have one skewer, specialty restaurants might offer two or more, usually of different flavors.
The cooked meat is then shaved off the skewer with either a large knife, electric knife or a small circular saw, dropping to a circular tray below to be retrieved. Shawarma is most commonly eaten as a fast food, made up into a sandwich with pita bread or rolled up in Arabic lafa (a sweet, fluffy flatbread) together with vegetables and a dressing. Vegetables commonly found in shawarma include cucumber, onion, tomato, lettuce, parsley, pickled turnips, pickled gherkins and cabbage.
Common dressings include tahini (or tahina), Amba sauce (pickled mango with Chilbeh) and hummus, flavored with vinegar and spices such as cardamom, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Chicken shawarma is often served with garlic mayonnaise, pomegranate concentrate, skhug (a hot chili sauce), or any combination of the three. Once the sandwich is made up, it might be dipped in the fat dripping from the skewer and then briefly seared against the flame. In Syria and Lebanon, chicken shawarma sandwiches are generally toasted after being made up, whereas meat sandwiches are eaten straightaway.
Sometimes beef is used for shawarma instead of lamb, and turkey is also occasionally used instead of chicken. In Israel, a turkey/lamb fat mixture is the primary flavor, although chicken is also available. Less common alternatives include fish and sausage. Some shawarma stores use hot dog buns or baguettes, but most have pita and lafa. Shawarma is often served with a plate of french fries or home fries; sometimes the fries are placed inside the pita as well. Sometimes, beef shawarma—despite its name—contains some lamb in addition to the beef, to ensure juiciness.
Shawarma is also eaten as a dish either by itself, served with grilled bread and garnish or sometimes with other Middle Eastern foods like Tabouli, Hummus, and Fattoush.
