Chicken Shawarma with Lime Avocado Mayo

To be honest, this recipe should actually be called Shawarma-style chicken.
The real shawarma (i.e., how they actually make it in the Middle East) is spice-marinated sliced cuts of meat, like chicken, beef, goat, lamb, and sometimes turkey stacked and cooked on a vertical spit.
As the shawarma turns, the meat is cooked by a heat source that is located behind the actual spit.
What’s amazing is that the meat is basted in fat and its own juices.
Marinade + fat = awesome flavors.
Afterwards, the cooked meat slowly falls off or is shaved with a large knife; and it is either eaten on its own or tucked inside a pita, with tahini, garlic sauce, veggies and sometimes even french fries.
Legit.

Basically what I did here was to make the marinade, use it on chicken and then I grilled it to perfection.
Because notwithstanding being a sucker for kitchen gadgets, I currently do not have the space in my kitchen to fit a Shawarma machine.
Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to own one and throw massive Shawarma parties.
Unfortunately I don’t see that happening any time soon...major bummer.
Back to the recipe, since I was going for a non-authentic Shawarma recipe, I decided to go fusion and serve it with avocado mayo.
Like Middle East meets Mexico or something.
Which for me is a big step because I tend to hate fusion food. With passion.
Like if you really want to get me upset, you’ll invite me to dinner to a fusion restaurant.
I really do not care for vietnamese noodles served with Bolognese sauce nor for Red Velvet fried chicken.
I have limitations, I know.
To quote Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory’s “I don't understand my food. Chinese noodles with Korean barbecue in a taco. [...] My mother would lock her car doors if she had to drive through this hodgepodge of ethnicity.”
lol

Anyways, this recipe is super yummy, the chicken bursts with flavor and goes great with the freshness of the lime avocado mayo.
Apparently, fusion food sometimes works.
Both the chicken and the mayo store well in the fridge, so you can make a large batch and enjoy it for several days afterwards; just reheat before serving.
What’s really awesome about this Chicken Shawarma is that it’s ridiculously easy and quick to make. A complete no-brainer.

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Ingredients
Serves 4

Chicken

1 lb / 453 gr free-range organic chicken breast, cut into 3-inch strips
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¾ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon curry powder
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon ground coriander

Lime Avocado Mayo

1 ripe avocado
2 tablespoons mayo (make your own paleo mayo with this recipe)
2 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
Juice of one lime
¼ teaspoon fine grain sea salt

Ground black pepper to taste

Directions

Heat a grill or a grill pan to medium-high (if you’re using an outdoor grill lightly oil the grill grates).
In a bowl whisk olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, curry powder, cumin and coriander until combined.
In a shallow sealable container or in a large Ziploc bag, combine chicken strips and marinade.
Cover or seal and marinate at room temperature for at least 20 minutes.
In the meantime make the avocado mayo. In a bowl mash the avocado until smooth. Add mayo, Greek yogurt, lime juice, salt and pepper and stir to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Set aside.
Remove the chicken from the marinade and grill until golden brown and cooked through, about 6 to 8 minutes turning regularly, until juices run clear (if you want you can skewer chicken strips onto bamboo sticks that have been soaked in water for 5 minutes.)

Nutrition facts

One serving (dressed with avocado mayo) yields 412 calories, 28 grams of fat, 5 grams of carbs and 35 grams of protein.