With familiar flavours of the classic white sauce and a quick stir-fry of spiced beef, you can create your own take-out style shawarma meal easily at home. For the full platter experience, cook up some classic Seasoned Rice and Crispy Potatoes and make a Chopped Veggie Salad (see Notes, below). Serve extra tahini alongside.
Beef Shawarma
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients
White Sauce
½ cup (125 mL) plain yogurt
2 tbsp (15 mL) tahini
¼ tsp (1 mL) EACH salt, granulated sugar and ground cumin
¼ tsp (1 mL) garlic paste or grated garlic
Shawarma Beef
1 lb (500 g) Beef Top Sirloin Grilling Steak, about ¾ inch (2 cm) thick
1 tbsp (15 mL) shawarma spice seasoning (see Tip*)
1 tsp (5 mL) salt
½ tsp (2 mL) ground sumac
2 tbsp (30 mL) EACH white vinegar and olive oil
1 tsp (5 mL) garlic paste or grated garlic
Instructions
- White Sauce: Whisk together yogurt, tahini, salt, sugar, cumin, garlic and 1 tbsp (15 mL) water until smooth. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
- Shawarma Beef: Cut beef across the grain into thin slices. Pat dry with paper towel. Combine beef, shawarma spice, salt, sumac, vinegar, oil and garlic in a bowl; toss to evenly coat.
- Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; add half of beef and stir-fry for about 5 minutes or until browned but still pink inside. Transfer to a bowl; repeat with remaining beef.
- Arrange Shawarma Beef on serving plates or platters and drizzle with White Sauce.
Notes
The beef cooks quickly so prepare the side dishes and get them cooking while you make the White Sauce and Shawarma Beef.
Seasoned Rice: Rinse 1 cup (250 mL) basmati rice in a sieve, stirring with fingers, until water runs clear. Drain and set aside. Bring 2 cups (500 mL) water to a boil over high heat in a saucepan. Add 1 tsp (5 mL) garlic powder, ½ tsp (2 mL) ground turmeric, 1 tbsp (15 mL) butter and rice. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Turn off heat off and let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and season to taste with a squeeze of lemon juice. Set aside and keep warm.
Crispy Potatoes: Cut 3 large yellow flesh potatoes (about 1 lb/500 g) in half lengthwise, then cut crosswise into ¼-inch (5 mm) thick slices. Place in a bowl, season with ½ tsp (2 mL) salt and drizzle with 2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil; toss to coat. Spread in an air fryer basket, in batches as necessary. Set the temperature to 400°F (200°C) and set time for 20 minutes. (Alternatively, spread on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and bake in preheated 425°F oven, or 400°F convection oven for about 20 minutes). Cook until browned, crisp and tender inside.
Chopped Veggie Salad: To make a tasty, crunchy chopped veggie salad for your platter, toss together chopped cucumber, chopped tomatoes, chopped red onions, chopped parsley in a bowl and season with salt and a drizzle of olive oil.
Tip: *You can buy a shawarma spice seasoning, a blend of spices, in Middle Eastern stores, specialty spices shops and well-stocked supermarkets. Look for one without added salt or reduce the salt in the recipe to ¼ to ½ tsp (1 to 2 mL), adding more to taste after cooking. To make your own, combine 2 tbsp (30 mL) ground cumin, 2 tsp (10 mL) sweet paprika, 1½ tsp (7 mL) ground turmeric, 1 tsp (5 mL) ground coriander, ½ tsp (2 mL) EACH ground cinnamon, ginger and black pepper and ¼ tsp (1 mL) ground cardamom in a jar and shake well to combine (Makes about 2/3 cup/150 mL). Measure 1 tbsp (15 mL) for the recipe and store remaining blend, tightly covered, for up to 3 months.
