September 26, 2010
Wow. One down and {hopefully} nine challenges to go! And, a huge THANKS for those who voted!! I am so glad to be able to participate in this contest! The second challenge for Project Food Blog is to tackle a dish from another culture. Okay, doesn’t sound too hard. Yeah riiight, of course there is a catch. Foodbuzz wants us to steer clear of the obvious Italian and French cuisine choices… dang. They also want us to venture out of our comfort zone… double dang.
My choice for this challenge came to me after several glasses of wine with my mom {which is how any good idea happens}. Chicken Shawarma… never made it… never ate it… I didn’t even know how to spell it until that night! My mom heated me up some leftover Chicken Shawarma from a Middle Eastern restaurant Grape Leaves she had earlier in the week… HOLY HEAVEN ON A PLATE!! I loved it! From the nice char on the chicken to the creamy garlic sauce and rice pilaf! I had to make this!! THIS WAS THE ONE!! My mom handed me her recipes and I mulled it over with yet another glass of wine {or two}.
Honestly I was really excited for this challenge, especially when I knew what I was cooking! So how hard could it be?? Well for one, usually my dinner choices revolve around the simple and easy kind of recipes. This one looked challenging yet delicious with simple flavors. It didn’t call for any hard to find ingredients, just ones I haven’t really used before and ground cardamom which cost me 12 bucks, but hey no biggie. It was when I was reading the instructions that my jaw dropped. In the recipe for the marinade, it said to marinate the chicken thighs for two to three days! YES that is d-a-y-s people!! I never can plan a meal that far in advanced. Because I work three twelve hour shifts a week, I always end up forgetting to start it or forgetting to cook it! So Foodbuzz asked us to go out of our comfort zone… well this is big time for me.
The marinade is really fun to make… if you have all the ingredients. When I was making my grocery list… I thought all I needed from the grocery store was the cardamom and star anise. Well I couldn’t find the star anise at the store so I just hit my mom up for some {thanks Mom!}. So then I’m setting up for the picture above and I’m at the part of the recipe for all the spices, I get out the *ahem* 12 dollar cardamom, white pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon… where’s the ground clove? CRUD. How much more unprepared could I be? Luckily I have my Mom {who has just about every spice or herb in her cupboard that this unprepared girl could need} and she lives just around the corner! 
I used 10 cloves of garlic just for the marinade!! Wow and let me tell you… my house still smells garlicky! Not that I mind really, but I don’t think I’ve ever used so much garlic in one single recipe! You finely mince or press out all ten garlic cloves and mash it up with some kosher salt. Add in the lemon juice, vinegar and olive oil. Since I didn’t have a dish big enough for marinating 4 pounds of chicken thighs, I just used a gallon size re-sealable bag and placed the chicken thighs, {crushed} cinnamon sticks, bay leaves, star anise and the marinade liquids over top! I mixed the marinade around by squeezing the bag and then I just placed it in a bowl and refrigerated it, tossing it around every so often. Let me just tell you the marinade smells like heaven… the cardamom and garlic really stood out to me… it was one of those things that I just knew was going to taste fantastic!
Most commonly Shawarma is cooked on a spit… well {shocker} I don’t have one. So I just grilled it instead, over a low temp for a longer amount of time… I am now however working on getting a spit for my grill… because it wouldn’t have been a whole heck of a lot easier, and would have made for killer photos!! MY Oh MY… but when the chicken hit the grill… the most wonderful smell permeated the air! Simply Heavenly!
Traditionally Chicken Shawarma comes with rice pilaf and this really good garlic sauce. So I made those too!! You toast the orzo in {a lot} of butter until it’s lightly golden, then you add in the rice, broth and a cup of water. Reduce to a simmer and finish cooking for 15 to 20 minutes. I let the rice sit for about 10 minutes after it was done simmering then I fluffed with a fork. Next time I may try it with a little freshly grated nutmeg and some toasted almond slivers, but it still was delicious even without them!
*Just a little tip: if you have a pot {like me} that doesn’t have a nice heavy lid… try using a small dessert plate… works like a champ!
For the garlic sauce; you need {more} garlic, salt, lemon juice, olive oil and thinned out with mayo and sour cream… Greek yogurt would work well too! This was perfect! FYI… a little of the garlic sauce goes a long way, so consider yourself warned {and whomever is dining with you}!
The Chicken Shawarma I had with my mom was served with the chicken all chopped up into small bite size pieces. Well for presentation purposes I didn’t do that… I did however do it while I was eating and then I stuffed the chicken and rice pilaf into a pita bread half {that I made a while ago} and dip it in the garlic sauce… and I then unhinged my jaw and stuffed the whole thing into my mouth… and smiled.
If this isn’t heaven…
It was a strangely warm day for Michigan in late September… 85 flippin’ degrees warm! Buy it did make for a perfect evening for a grilled dinner! I was so happy to see that everyone in my family loved this dish. My girls asked for more chicken, and my husband stuffed himself full! I enjoyed it also and I am definitely making this recipe again with maybe a nice big fat Greek salad to go along with it.
Don’t forget to vote starting September 27th!! Follow my link for Project Food Blog {at the top along the side} and make sure to click the heart to make your vote count!! Please oh please I have a great menu planned for next week’s challenge!! {Oh… And the step-by-step recipes are coming soon!}
Chicken Shawarma:
{makes 4 generous portions}
The Marinade:
3-4 pound Chicken Thighs
10 Cloves of Garlic
2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
6 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tablespoons Vinegar
1/2 Lemon, juiced
2 teaspoons ground Cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground White Pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg, freshly grated
1/4 teaspoon ground Clove
4 Bay Leaves
2 3inch sticks of Cinnamon, crushed
1 Star Anise
Press or mince the 10 garlic cloves and combine with salt. Smash them until they make a paste. In a small bowl combine the spices, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil. Place the chicken thighs in a gallon size plastic bag and add the crushed cinnamon sticks, bay leaves and star anise. Pour in the marinade, zip and press on the bag to evenly distribute the marinade. Place bag in a bowl and marinade in the fridge for up to 3 days.
After marinating, grill on low {200-250 degrees} for about 10 to 12 minutes, {if bone in} per side or until a meat thermometer reads at 165-170 degrees.
Shawarma Garlic Sauce:
8 small cloves of Garlic
1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1/2 Lemon, juiced and strained
4 tablespoons Olive Oil
Mayonnaise, to taste
Sour Cream, to taste
or Greek Yogurt, to taste
Mince or press 8 garlic cloves and make into a paste with the kosher salt. Add in the lemon juice and while whisking add the olive oil. Add mayo, sour cream or Greek yogurt to taste (approximately 2-3 tablespoons} adding it gradually until desired taste and texture.
Rice Pilaf:
{Makes about 4 cups cooked rice}
1/2 stick Unsalted Butter
1 cup Orzo Pasta
1 cup Long Grained Rice
1 can {14.5 fl. oz.} Low Sodium Chicken Broth
3/4 cup Water
Melt butter in a medium sauce pan until hot and bubbly, add the orzo pasta and “fry” until lightly golden in color. Add the cup of rice, stir. Pour in the chicken broth and water, stir and bring back to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cover with a heavy lid and cook for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and let it sit for 10 minutes. Fluff with fork and serve! Optional: Season with salt and pepper or nutmeg. For a crunchy texture add toasted almond slivers!
{CLICK HERE} to print all of these recipes!!
Over the past few years I’ve been on a mission to find and create recipes that I can make from scratch. I hope you enjoy the recipes on this blog as they are tried and true from my kitchen to yours! (
I love the meat when it is cooked on the spit. Rotisserie-style and served in sandwiches. They are call them duners in Bulgaria. Good luck with round 2!
Thanks Casey!! I like the recipe you chose!! Best of LUCK!!
Oh Laurie, you read my mind! I was an exchange student in Denmark in college and there were stands near the University that sold chicken schwarma sandwiches in pita bread and I've been craving them lately! YUM can't wait to try this. Good luck in the next round!
Wow – it looks so fun to make I can't wait to try something new and to buy new spices! How inspiring..again!
you can never have enough garlic! ohhh…it's those amazing pitas again.:) so glad to see you made it to round two, keep up the excellent work!!
-amanda
http://www.seegirlcook.com
Thank You Carol! You have to try this recipe… I'm not kidding… SOOO GOOD!
Amanda! I TOTALLY agree, I LOVE garlic… never can have too much garlic!! PS.. Love what you've done with your blog! It's beautiful!!! cheers!
looks fantastic. so glad I've found your blog – looking forward to reading more. you got my vote!
this is one of my favorite dishes! you have inspired me to give this a try in my own kitchen!
Nice entry and presentation. Voting.
beautiful post!
you have one of my votes. (See my entry here: http://www.foodbuzz.com/project_food_blog/challenges/2/view/869)
This is a really great post–beautiful photos, delectable-looking food.
Oooh, that looked super good! It's lunchtime and I'm drooling over this post! Great entry. You got my vote.
That looks absolutely delicious! I am going to bookmark this page…
I voted for you – good luck!
What a nice entry. I am off to vote for you.
THANK YOU ALL!! For all the kind words… and votes
!
For all of you in the PFB challenge… you have my vote too! Best of luck!
Thanks for this recipe! It looks amazing . . . and since I regularly use a ton of garlic in my recipes, also right in my comfort zone. =)
Good luck with the Food Blog challenges!
Back in college I used to get a chicken shwarma on the way home from my morning lecture three times a week for a whole semester, this brings back memories of freedom after sitting in a room hearing about Renaissance landscapes from 8-11 AM. Awesome post.
Also, that shot of your marinade ingredients is awesome, I want to turn it into a poster and put it on my wall. You've got our
Great recipe, and love that photo of your chicken on the grill with the fire below.
Just voted, hope we are both in round 3! 