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This Chicken Shawarma Taco recipe is definitely inspired by growing up in Mexico with a Syrian dad. He always mixed both cultures in food, adding in some of his French heritage too but that is a story for another day! You can take your Chicken Shawarma Skewers and adapt your recipe so easily by putting them in tortillas, pita, in a rice bowl, on a salad, there’s so many options.
Why You’ll Love Chicken Shawarma Tacos
If you haven’t tried a Chicken Shawarma Tacos before, you are in for a treat. These street-style Shawarma Chicken Kabobs are so full of flavor. My favorite way to eat them is to wrap them in my freshly made, warm tortillas covered in the creamy labneh tahini sauce with the amazing tomato salsa and a few gorgeous Syrian pickles tucked inside. Your house will smell amazing and your taste buds will thank you!
How To Prepare
🥣 Marinating
- Pound your chicken thin with a meat mallet in between two pieces of parchment paper for easier clean up. Cut it into 1 inch squares.
- For you Chicken Shawarma Taco marinade, add into a bowl sour cream, olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, paprika, chipotle, shawarma spices, oregano, salt and allspice and mix well. Add the chicken and mix again. Cover tightly and marinate in the fridge for 12-24 hours.
📍Skewering
- When done marinating, skewer the chicken tightly. I used 5 inch skewers and it yielded 8. Place on a wire rack over a baking sheet.
- Oven option: Preheat your oven to broil on high for 10 minutes. Broil for 5-6 minutes on a couple sides. Let it continue baking at 450°F for 7-8 minutes.
- Air-fry option: You can also air-fry them at 400°F until golden.
🍅Prepping the Sauces
- Mix everything to the tomato salsa.
- Mix everything for the labneh tahini sauce. Add water until you reach your desired consistency.
🫓Assemble
- To assemble your Chicken Shawarma Tacos, add a layer of your labneh tahini sauce over your tortilla, top with sumac, Syrian pickles (see below), the chicken and your tomato salsa.
🫶 And that is it, subscribe for more!
🥒 Syrian Pickle Recipe
- Pickling Solution:
- Mix 2½ parts hot water, 1 part vinegar, 1 tsp kosher salt per cup water until dissolved.
- Prepare:
- Peel 1 beet (this is just for color) and turnips ½ wide and 2 inches long. Pack into a jar all the way to the top.
- Pickle:
- Fill the jar with your pickling solution until about ¼ inch from the top, seal with a tight fitting lid and let sit on your counter for 2 days. They will be ready to eat after the 2 days. Store them in your fridge 1-2 months. They’re great on Chicken Shawarma Tacos but they go great on a lot of other things too!
🔥Chef Nadia’s Tip🔥
Make sure you are skewering the chicken tightly! This helps maintain the moisture and stops the chicken from drying out. Let the skewers rest for a few minutes before servings.
Substitutions and Variations
- Substitutions
- If you can’t find labneh, plain greek yogurt will also work. The texture is a little different but they’re similar in taste.
- This Chicken Shawarma Taco marinade and sauces pair well with shrimp, lamb, many different proteins. Just make sure you look up how long you should marinate whatever protein you choose and adjust cooking times!
- If you don’t want to make your own Syrian pickles, you can buy them on Amazon. I have never actually bought them but I did research it and according to people online, these Ziyad Premium Arabic Pickled Turnips are the best tasting. There is a lot of complaints about the jar coming unsealed or the jar being broken though so if you can find them at your local store or make them, you may want to try that first.
- Variations
- Chicken Shawarma Bowl Variation: If you want to skip the Chicken Shawarma Tacos it into a bowl instead, make some Syrian Rice and add all your fixings in the same order.
- Salad Variation: For a healthier twist, you can make a salad, skip making the dressing and just top with labneh tahini, chicken and tomato salsa!
The Perfect Pairings
🍹Drinks: These Chicken Shawarma Tacos are a fusion of Lebanese and Mexican vibes so it pairs well with flavors that match those bold flavors. A spicy margarita pairs very nicely with this dish. Another option is a hibiscus flower iced tea.
🫓 Sides: You can serve this with either tortillas or pita but I prefer to make my own homemade tortillas and I have the easiest and best recipe for it! Another fresh and simple side is a light cucumber salad. They are also amazing to serve over Syrian Rice and make into a chicken shawarma bowl.
🍮Dessert: This Baklava Pie will be the perfect end to the night!
Common Questions for Chicken Shawarma Tacos
The skewers that I’m using for this Chicken Shawarma recipe are actually cocktail picks from crate and barrel but I use them a skewers and I am obsessed with them!
Sure! Medium high heat for about 4-5 minutes per side until fully cooked.
You can, just make sure you soak them in water for about 30 minutes beforehand so they don’t burn!
The juices will run clean and the internal temperature should be 165℉ (75℃).
Chicken Shawarma Taco Recipe
Equipment
- meat mallet
- skewers I am using 5 inch
- baking sheet
- wire rack
- jar with tight lid for Syrian pickles if making
Ingredients
Shawarma Chicken
- 2 lb boneless chicken thighs
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup olive oil, + 1 tbsp
- 1 lemon, zest and juice of ¼ + a little more
- 1 large garlic clove, grated
- 2 ½ tsp smoked paprika
- 2 tsp chipotle powder
- 1 ½ tbsp shawarma seasoning
- 2 tsp oregano
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp allspice
Tomato salsa
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
- 2 scallions, chopped
- 1 serrano, chopped
- ¼ bunch cilantro, chopped
- Tiny squeeze of lemon
- ¼ tsp dry mint
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Tahini sauce
- ½ cup labneh
- 2 tbsp tahini
- ½ small garlic clove, grated
- Tiny squeeze of lemon
- Water, to taste
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Toppings and Wraps
- Tortillas , tortilla recipe or pita
- Sumac, to taste
- Syrian pickles, to taste, see notes for recipe
Instructions
- Pound your chicken thin with a meat mallet in between two pieces of parchment paper for easier clean up. Cut it into 1 inch squares.
- In a bowl add sour cream, olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, paprika, chipotle, shawarma spices, oregano, salt and allspice and mix well. Add the chicken and mix again. Cover tightly and marinate in the fridge for 12-24 hours.
- When done marinating, skewer the chicken tightly. I used 5 inch skewers and it yielded 8. Place on a wire rack over a baking sheet.
- Preheat your oven to broil on high for 10 minutes. Broil for 5-6 minutes on a couple sides. Let it continue baking at 450°F for 7-8 minutes. The internal temperature should be 165℉ (75℃).
- Air-fry option: You can also air-fry them at 400°F until golden.
- Mix everything to the tomato salsa.
- Mix everything for the labneh tahini sauce. Add water until you reach your desired consistency.
- To assemble add a layer of your labneh tahini sauce over your tortilla, top with sumac, Syrian pickles, the chicken, your tomato salsa and that is it!
Video
Notes
- Pickling Solution:
- Mix 2½ parts hot water, 1 part vinegar, 1 tsp kosher salt per cup water until dissolved.
- Prepare:
- Peel 1 beet (this is just for color) and turnips ½ wide and 2 inches long. Pack into a jar all the way to the top.
- Pickle:
- Fill the jar with your pickling solution until about ¼ inch from the top, seal with a tight fitting lid and let sit on your counter for 2 days. They will be ready to eat after the 2 days. Store them in your fridge 1-2 months.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
