Gyro Meat Seasoning Recipes

TRADITIONAL GYRO MEAT

Steps:

• Place the onion in a food processor, and process until finely chopped. Scoop the onions onto the center of a towel, gather up the ends of the towel, and squeeze out the liquid from the onions. Place the onions into a mixing bowl along with the lamb and beef. Season with the garlic, oregano, cumin, marjoram, rosemary, thyme, black pepper, and salt. Mix well with your hands until well combined. Cover, and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours to allow the flavors to blend.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Place the meat mixture into the food processor, and pulse for about a minute until finely chopped and the mixture feels tacky. Pack the meat mixture into a 7x4 inch loaf pan, making sure there are no air pockets. Line a roasting pan with a damp kitchen towel. Place the loaf pan on the towel, inside the roasting pan, and place into the preheated oven. Fill the roasting pan with boiling water to reach halfway up the sides of the loaf pan.
• Bake until the gyro meat is no longer pink in the center, and the internal temperature registers 165 degrees F (75 degrees C) on a meat thermometer, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Pour off any accumulated fat, and allow to cool slightly before slicing thinly and serving.

GYRO MEAT RECIPE

Steps:

• Place onions, garlic into a large food processor and process until finely chopped but not liquefied.
• Add meat and all the seasonings and grind for another 3-5 minutes. Do not skip this step. If you do, it will be like ground beef with some weird seasonings in it. Grind it until it's a big, huge, sticky mess that you wonder how you will ever clean up.
• Since writing this recipe I've discovered a faster way to do this, which is to use your stand mixer with the paddle. Paddle the living daylights out of the meat with the spices until it's a sticky mess. This is a lot easier to clean up than a blender, and the end result is the same. So use whatever you have that works for you.
• Put into a foil pan, and smooth out the top, and bake at 350 for 60 mins, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 175-180
• Take it out of the oven and drain all the fat.
• Cover it with foil and then place something heavy on it to compress it. I put a cast iron skillet on top and then carefully placed 3 cans of beans on top of the skillet to compress it.
• Let it rest for 30 mins and then slice into thin slices.
• Gyros!

GYRO MEAT WITH TZATZIKI SAUCE

Steps:

• Process the onion in a food processor for 10 to 15 seconds and turn out into the center of a tea towel. Gather up the ends of the towel and squeeze until almost all of the juice is removed. Discard juice.
• Return the onion to the food processor and add the lamb, garlic, marjoram, rosemary, salt, and pepper and process until it is a fine paste, approximately 1 minute. Stop the processor as needed to scrape down sides of bowl.
• To cook in the oven as a meatloaf, proceed as follows:
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Place the mixture into a loaf pan, making sure to press into the sides of the pan. Place the loaf pan into a water bath and bake for 60 to 75 minutes or until the mixture reaches 165 to 170 degrees F. Remove from the oven and drain off any fat. Place the loaf pan on a cooling rack and place a brick wrapped in aluminum foil directly on the surface of the meat and allow to sit for 15 to 20 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 175 degrees F. Slice and serve on pita bread with tzatziki sauce, chopped onion, tomatoes and feta cheese.
• To cook on a rotisserie, proceed as follows:
• Form the meat mixture into a loaf shape and place on top of 2 overlapping pieces of plastic wrap that are at least 18 inches long. Roll the mixture in the plastic wrap tightly, making sure to remove any air pockets. Once the meat is completely rolled in the wrap, twist the ends of the plastic wrap until the surface of the wrap is tight. Store in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or up to overnight, to allow the mixture to firm up.
• Preheat the grill to high.
• Place the meat onto the rotisserie skewer. Place a double-thick piece of aluminum foil folded into a tray directly under the meat to catch any drippings. Cook on high for 15 minutes. Decrease the heat to medium and continue to cook for another 20 to 30 minutes or until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 165 degrees F. Turn off the heat and allow to continue to spin for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 175 degrees. Slice and serve on pita bread with tzatziki sauce, chopped onion, tomatoes, and feta cheese.
• Place the yogurt in a tea towel, gather up the edges, suspend over a bowl, and drain for 2 hours in the refrigerator.
• Place the chopped cucumber in a tea towel and squeeze to remove the liquid; discard liquid. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the drained yogurt, cucumber, salt, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, and mint. Serve as a sauce for gyros. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week.
• Yield: 1 1/2 cups

ALTON BROWN'S GYRO MEAT RECIPE

Steps:

• Process the onion in a food processor for 10 to 15 seconds and turn out into the center of a tea towel.
• Gather up the ends of the towel and squeeze until almost all of the juice is removed. Discard juice.
• Return the onion to the food processor and add the lamb (and beef if using), garlic, marjoram, rosemary, salt, and pepper and process until it is a fine paste, approximately 1 minute. Stop the processor as needed to scrape down sides of bowl.
• TO COOK IN OVEN as a meatloaf, proceed as follows:
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Place the mixture into a loaf pan, making sure to press into the sides of the pan.
• Place the loaf pan into a water bath and bake for 60 to 75 minutes or until the mixture reaches 165 to 170 degrees F.
• Remove from the oven and drain off any fat.
• Place the loaf pan on a cooling rack and place a brick wrapped in aluminum foil directly on the surface of the meat and allow to sit for 15 to 20 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 175 degrees F.
• Slice and serve on pita bread with tzatziki sauce, chopped onion, tomatoes and feta cheese.
• TO COOK ON ROTISSERIE proceed as follows:
• Form the meat mixture into a loaf shape and place on top of 2 overlapping pieces of plastic wrap that are at least 18 inches long.
• Roll the mixture in the plastic wrap tightly, making sure to remove any air pockets.
• Once the meat is completely rolled in the wrap, twist the ends of the plastic wrap until the surface of the wrap is tight. Store in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or up to overnight, to allow the mixture to firm up.
• Preheat the grill to high.
• Place the meat onto the rotisserie skewer. Place a double-thick piece of aluminum foil folded into a tray directly under the meat to catch any drippings.
• Cook on high for 15 minutes.
• Decrease the heat to medium and continue to cook for another 20 to 30 minutes or until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 165 degrees F.
• Turn off the heat and allow to continue to spin for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 175 degrees.
• Slice and serve on pita bread with tzatziki sauce, chopped onion, tomatoes, and feta cheese.
• Tzatziki Sauce Directions:
• Place the yogurt in a tea towel, gather up the edges, suspend over a bowl, and drain for 2 hours in the refrigerator.
• Place the chopped cucumber in a tea towel and squeeze to remove the liquid; discard liquid.
• In a medium mixing bowl, combine the drained yogurt, cucumber, salt, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, and mint.
• Serve as a sauce for gyros. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week. Yield: 1 1/2 cups sauce.

GYROS SPICE MIX WITH A KICK

Steps:

• Mix herbs and spices, transfer to a jar.
• Use for chicken, lamb, pork and minced/ground meats.
• Mix a few teaspoons with lemon/lime juice, olive oil and salt to taste and mix that with the type of meat you selected.
• For kebabs or burgers, add to the mince with some salt.

GROUND BEEF GYROS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the first 5 ingredients. Chill. In a large bowl, combine seasonings; crumble beef over mixture and mix lightly but thoroughly. Shape into 4 patties. , Grill, covered, over medium heat or broil 4 in. from the heat for 6-7 minutes on each side or until a thermometer reads 160°. Cut patties into thin slices; stuff into pita halves. Add lettuce, tomato and onion. Serve with the yogurt sauce.

EASY CHICKEN GYRO

Steps:

• Place Greek yogurt, cucumber, dill weed, 2 cloves garlic, white vinegar, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt, and black pepper in a blender. Blend until smooth; set aside.
• Whisk together 4 cloves minced garlic, juice of 1 lemon, red wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons olive oil, and oregano in a large glass or ceramic bowl. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
• Stir in chicken strips and toss to evenly coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven's broiler and set the oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source.
• Remove chicken from the marinade and shake off excess. Discard the remaining marinade. Place chicken on a large baking sheet.
• Broil the chicken in the preheated oven until lightly browned and no longer pink in the center, 2 to 4 minutes per side.
• Transfer cooked chicken to a plate and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
• Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat; place each pita bread into the skillet until warm and soft, about 2 minutes per pita.
• Serve warmed pita bread topped with chicken strips, yogurt sauce, tomatoes, onion, and lettuce.

GYRO

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
• For the gyro meatloaf: Gather the minced onions in a clean kitchen towel and wring out as much liquid as possible. In a large mixing bowl, combine the onion, beef, lamb, milk, breadcrumbs, oregano, thyme, fennel, coriander, egg and some salt and pepper and mix together. Fry up a small test batch; taste for salt and pepper, and adjust the seasoning as needed.
• Transfer the meatloaf mixture to a food processor and process it to the consistency of a paste. Tightly pack it into a loaf pan, making sure there are no cracks or air pockets. Bake until cooked through, about 45 minutes. Let cool completely before cutting into thin slices.
• For the tzatziki sauce: Grate or mince the cucumber and add it to a bowl along with the yogurt, dill, lemon juice, mint, olive oil, coriander and cumin. Whisk to blend. Season with salt and pepper.
• For the lemon vinaigrette: In a blender, combine the lemon juice, oregano, thyme and mustard. With the motor running, add the olive oil in a slow, steady stream to emulsify.
• For the salad: Toss the lettuce, red onions and tomatoes with about 4 tablespoons of the vinaigrette.
• Heat the 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large saute pan over high heat. Briefly warm up the pitas in the pan, giving them just long enough on each side to get hot but not crispy. In the same pan, sear the slices of gyro on both sides, about 2 minutes per side.
• Spread 1 heaping tablespoon of tzatziki sauce onto each pita. Top with some slices of meatloaf and finish with some of the salad. Roll the pitas up tightly and wrap them in foil or secure them with a toothpick. Serve.