Shawarma spice on chicken thighs, one pan, high heat. This is the weeknight dinner that tastes like you spent hours in the kitchen. The garlic toum is aggressive in the best possible way.

Prep 15 min Cook 25 min Total 40 min Serves 4 Difficulty Easy

Chapter: Weeknight Dinners  ·  Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Ingredients

Protein — The Chicken

Coat chicken thighs with all spices, olive oil, lemon juice, salt. For best results, marinate 1 hour. Cook on sheet pan at 425°F for 25 min until charred and cooked through. Slice thin.

Starch — The Pita

Warm pita bread in oven or on a dry skillet. Serve with store-bought pickled turnips for authentic flavor.

Vegetable — Israeli Salad

Finely dice tomatoes, cucumber, and red onion. Dress with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and chopped parsley. Serve alongside with hummus.

Sauce — Toum (Garlic Sauce)

Blend garlic cloves with salt. Slowly stream in neutral oil while blending — like making mayo. Add lemon juice. Blend until white, fluffy, and intensely garlicky. This is the thing that makes the dish.

Chef's Note: Before that spice blend touches the chicken, taste it. That's the tasting spoon philosophy in action — adjust the cayenne, add more lemon, go heavier on the cumin. Make it yours before it ever hits the heat. The framework is there. The dish is yours to finish.

Find 59 more recipes like this in The One Clog Cookbook Vol. I — 60 Internationally Inspired Dinners for the Home Cook.

Cook with intention. Feel and taste your way through it. Keep one clog in the kitchen. Always.
— Brian W. Bonanno