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Gyros

gyro on a plate

 

Are you ready for the weekend?  After two weeks of holidays, this felt like the longest work week ever!  Hopefully the weekend is relaxing and full of good times to make up for it.  My husband and son get to go to a Denver Nuggets game on Saturday night, so I am sure they are going to have fun.  I get to go out with a friend, so you know that I will be having fun!  Have you entered the giveaway for a Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer yet?  Ends this weekend!

gyro on a plate

I love Greek food.  Gyros are my favorite.  We have a couple places in town that we go to, and I always get Gyros (or the Gyro platter if you are going to get picky).  Between the Tzatziki sauce and the grilled lamb, I am in heaven.  But I don’t always want to go out to have to enjoy Gyros.  I have seen plenty of recipes for chicken Gyros at home, but I wanted something closer to the real thing.  So I set to work to research and see what I could come up with.

gyro on a plate

I didn’t use lamb in this recipe, only because of cost.  If you can find it on sale or want to splurge on it, then go for it!  I used a lean ground beef to make it a little healthier.  Gyros are really only good though if you have a good Tzatziki sauce!  This was a good one, not quite the same as my favorite restaurant, but I will keep working on it 🙂  It is a tough job, but someones gotta do it, right?  You can serve this with homemade pitas if you want to go all out (they are so much better!).

Yield: 6 -8

Gyros

Gyros

Homemade Gyro meat over Pitas with a Tzatziki sauce

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes

Ingredients

Gyros

  • 1 small onion, , shredded or really finely chopped
  • 2 pounds ground beef, (ground lamb is even better)
  • 3 clove garlic, , minced
  • 1 Tbls dried marjoram
  • 1 Tbls dried rosemary
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper

Tzatziki Sauce

  • 2 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 small cucumber, , peeled, seeded, and shredded, and all of the liquid squeezed out.
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 Tbls olive oil
  • 2 tsp red wine vinegar
  • 1 Tbls dill

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Add ground beef, onion, garlic, marjoram, rosemary, salt and pepper to a food processor. Process for about 1 minute, until it forms a paste.
  2. Scrape out the mixture onto a lined jelly roll pan (any pan with sides). Press the mixture firmly into a rectangle about 1-2 inches thick. Make sure to firmly pack it together.
  3. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Don't over bake or the meat will be dry. The internal temp should be 175.
  4. Remove meat from the oven, and let stand for 10 minutes before slicing.
  5. Serve on a pita topped with lettuce, red onion, tomatoes and Tzatziki Sauce.
  6. To prepare the Tzatziki Sauce Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl, and mix until well combined.

Notes

Slightly Adapted from Food Network

Nutrition Information

Yield

6

Serving Size

6 -8

Amount Per Serving Calories 488Total Fat 29gSaturated Fat 10gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 14gCholesterol 138mgSodium 1135mgCarbohydrates 6gFiber 0gSugar 3gProtein 49g

Did you make this recipe?

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Erin S
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Lisa {AuthenticSuburbanGourmet}

Tuesday 14th of January 2014

One of my favorite things on earth! Thanks for the recipe!!!

Suzanne

Friday 10th of January 2014

I'm a gyro lover but not so sure on the lamb spent too many years as a veggie girl and still haven't been able to branch that far out ;) I would def make a chicken variety!

Pretend Chef

Friday 10th of January 2014

I can't pass up a gyro! I would love to make them at home and can't wait to give this recipe a try. I would probably splurge on the lamb since I love the taste of it in a gyro.

Ruth

Friday 10th of January 2014

I like to really splurge and use ground goat mixed with ground lamb, I run it through the food processor, make it into a loaf and bake it like meatloaf, then cut off slices and grill them. You can also do a variation with grilled chicen breasts, beef, or pork, It's all good wrapped in a pita!

Christiane ~ Taking On Magazines

Friday 10th of January 2014

I adore, adore, adore gyros. Every time we head to Chicago we go to our favorite gyro place because they have the best I've ever tasted there. To be able to make them at home is a fantastic idea. These are on my list to make! Pinned.

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