Chicken shawarma with puffed pita and pickled onion salad

Fit for a feast, pull together these juicy chicken kebabs, homemade pita breads and fresh salad with a pomegranate molasses dressing and gather the clan.

• serves

  4

• prep

  45 minutes

• cook

  20 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Stream free On Demand

Freshly Baked

episode • Middle East Feast with Shane Delia • 

cooking • 

22m

G

episode • Middle East Feast with Shane Delia • 

cooking • 

22m

G

Ingredients

• 4 skinless chicken thighs, cut into large bite - sized pieces
• 2 tbsp toum
• 1 tbsp pul biber (red Aleppo pepper)
• 3 tbsp plain Greek yoghurt
• pinch salt
• 1 lemon, zest
• 1 tsp sumac
• 1 bunch large spring onions, cut into 4-cm pieces
• 10 small pickled Turkish chillies, halved if large
• plain Greek yoghurt, to serve
• lemon wedges, to serve

Puffed pita

• 250 g plain flour
• 7 g salt
• 150 ml warm water  
• 3 g dry yeast
• 5 g sugar
• 125 ml (½ cup) extra-virgin olive oil
• fine semolina, for dusting
• 4 tbsp toum

Dressing

• 1 tsp toum
• 1½ tbsp pomegranate molasses
• 60 ml (¼ cup) extra-virgin olive oil
• pinch sumac
• pinch salt
• 1 lemon, juiced

Pickled onion, cucumber, parsley and mint salad

• ½ red onion, finely sliced
• 2 tbsp pickled baby onions, finely sliced
• 1 cucumber, crushed and roughly chopped
• ½ bunch flat- leaf parsley, picked, washed and torn
• ½ bunch mint, picked, washed and torn

Marinating time: 2 hours

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, combine the chicken, toum, pul  biber, yoghurt, salt, lemon zest and sumac. Cover and refrigerate for 1½-2 hours.  
2. For the puffed pita place the flour and salt in a large bowl. Combine the warm water, yeast and sugar, then add to the flour with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Combine until a smooth dough comes together. Shape into a ball, then place in the bowl, rub generously with more olive oil, cover and stand in a warm place for 1 hour or until risen.
3. For the dressing, combine all the ingredients in a bowl, then set aside.
4. Preheat a chargrill pan or barbecue and the oven grill to high.
5.  Thread the chicken pieces, spring onions and chillies alternately onto metal skewers.
6. Place all the salad ingredients in a bowl and set aside until ready to serve.
7. Knock back the pita dough, cut into 4 even pieces and roll into balls. Sprinkle a generous amount of fine semolina on a tray. Roll out the dough into 1 cm – thick rounds and place onto the semolina dusted tray.  Mix 100 ml water and 1½ tablespoons olive oil in a small bowl and carefully brush over the dough rounds.
8. Place a drizzle of oil in a large heavy - based frying pan over high heat. When hot, add one bread round at time and cook until it starts to puff up, then transfer the pan to the grill and cook until puffed and lightly blistered. Once puffed, remove from the grill and place into a bowl with a lid to keep it steaming -  this will ensure it is cooked inside. Repeat with the remaining breads. Mix the toum with 80 ml (⅓ cup) olive oil and spread evenly over the hot pita breads, then season with salt.
9. Meanwhile, cook the chicken skewers on the chargrill pan or barbecue for a few minutes on each side, turning once charred.
10. To serve, add enough dressing to the salad to just coat, then toss to combine. Place the grilled chicken skewers and salad in a pita. Top with a good dollop of yoghurt and a squeeze of lemon juice.

 

Join Shane Delia and friends for A Middle East Feast on SBS Food and SBS On Demand.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

Stream free On Demand

Freshly Baked

episode • Middle East Feast with Shane Delia • 

cooking • 

22m

G

episode • Middle East Feast with Shane Delia • 

cooking • 

22m

G