# Authentic Syrian Chicken Shawarma at Home

> Syrian shawarma is chicken sliced thin and marinated in yoghurt, vinegar, garlic and shawarma spice for at least four hours, then seared in a hot pan. It's served in thin flatbread with toum garlic sauce, chips and pickles, and toasted at the end so the wrap crisps.

**Syrian Cuisine · 270 min · 6 servings · 380 kcal per serving**

Shawarma is one of the best-known dishes of the Levant and a signature of Syrian cooking. What sets it apart is the marinade and the way it's wrapped — and both are entirely doable at home, to a standard that beats most takeaways.

## Ingredients


### Chicken marinade
- 1 kg — chicken breast, sliced thin
- 1 cup — yoghurt
- ¼ cup — white vinegar or lemon juice
- 3 tbsp — vegetable or olive oil
- 3 cloves — garlic, crushed
- 1 tsp — shawarma spice mix
- ½ tsp — turmeric
- ½ tsp — paprika
- ½ tsp — black pepper
- a pinch of cinnamon or mixed spice
- salt, to taste

### Toum (garlic sauce)
- ½ cup — mayonnaise
- ½ cup — yoghurt
- 2 cloves — garlic, crushed
- 1 tsp — white vinegar
- a pinch of salt

### To serve
- saj or thin Arabic flatbread
- chips
- pickled cucumbers
- chopped parsley or shredded cabbage

## Method

1. **Marinate the chicken** — In a large bowl, mix the yoghurt, oil, garlic, vinegar and all the spices with the sliced chicken. Cover and refrigerate for at least four hours — overnight is better, so it takes on the full flavour.
2. **Cook it** — Heat a little oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Add the chicken and stir until cooked through and lightly browned, then set it aside.
3. **Make the toum** — Blend all the sauce ingredients until smooth and creamy. A stick blender gives the best texture.
4. **Assemble** — Lay out the flatbread, spread a layer of toum, then the chicken, the chips and the pickles. Add parsley or cabbage if you like. Roll it tightly and toast it on a grill or in a hot pan until crisp on the outside.

## Tips

- The longer the marinade, the deeper the flavour.
- For a natural smoky note, put a lit coal on a piece of foil inside the pot after cooking and cover it for a few minutes.
- Use thin saj bread — it's what gives you a wrap that holds like the takeaway version.

## FAQ

### إيه الفرق بين الشاورما السوري والتركي؟
السوري بيتتبّل بالزبادي والخل وبهارات الشام وبيتقدّم بالتومية والمخلل. التركي أخف في البهارات وبيتقدّم غالباً بالطحينة أو الزبادي والخضار.

### ينفع من غير سيخ رأسي؟
أيوه. حمّري الشرائح في طاسة تيفال سخنة جداً على دفعات صغيرة — الزحمة بتبخّر اللحمة بدل ما تحمّرها.

### قد إيه أسيبها متتبّلة؟
من 4 لـ 12 ساعة. الزبادي بيطرّي بلطف، وأكتر من 24 ساعة القوام بيبقى طري زيادة.

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Source: https://hanakoleah.com/en/syrian-cuisine/authentic-syrian-chicken-shawarma-recipe
Edited by: Marwa Mohamed
Last updated: 2026-09-12