I always enjoy Gyros from my favorite restaurants and have always wanted to make them at home. You don’t even need a rotisserie. This is a great recipe to make lamb gyros with no rotisserie. Instead, the lamb is baked in the oven meatloaf style, sliced, and then placed under the broiler for a couple of minutes to crisp the edges. The lamb is mixed with ingredients such as garlic, onion, and fresh thyme and then processed in a blender. I found the flavor of the meat to be spot on with what I typically get from restaurants. The meat is placed into a loaf of pita bread or naan and then topped with yogurt sauce, chopped onion, and diced tomato. Enjoy.
Lamb Gyros Recipe
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 Servings 1x
Ingredients
Scale
- 1lb ground lamb
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons fresh oregano
- ½ onion (cut into 1-inch chunks)
- 1 garlic clove
- 5 slices bacon (cut into 1 -inch pieces)
- Yogurt sauce-
- ¾ cup unsweetened yogurt
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 minced garlic clove
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
- For serving-
- 4 pieces pita bread (or naan)
- Chopped fresh tomato
- Diced onion
- Cubed peeled seeded cucumber
Instructions
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Make the Gyro Meat: In a medium bowl, combine the ground lamb, salt, pepper, and oregano leaves with your hands, mixing until all of the seasonings have been evenly distributed. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
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Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Place the lamb mixture in the bowl of a food processor and add the onion, garlic, and bacon. Process until a smooth puree is formed, 30 seconds to 1 minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
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Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. With moistened hands, shape the lamb mixture into a rectangle about 8 inches long and 5 inches wide. Bake until the center of the loaf reaches 155 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
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Adjust the oven rack to the highest position (1½ to 2 inches below broiler element) and preheat broiler. Slice the loaf of lamb meat crosswise into very thin pieces (they should be about ⅛-inch thick; no more than ¼-inch thick). Lay the strips on a rimmed baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and broil until edges are browned and crispy, 2 to 4 minutes. (I did this in two batches, as I couldn’t fit all of the sliced meat on one baking sheet.) Be sure to keep an eye on it, as the broiler works quickly!
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Serve the Gyros: Warm up the bread either in the microwave (30 seconds), on the stovetop or in the oven. Top each with a ¼ cup of tzatziki sauce, chopped tomatoes, sliced onions, and gyro meat. Wrap with foil and serve.