February 21, 2010

Breakfast:

Oatmeal

honey

bananas

blueberries

Lunch:

Leftover Malysian curry

leftover chip dip

leftover rice

Dinner:

Shawarma:

Shawarma is like the ultimate on the go meal. Thinly sliced meat, wrapped in a pita bread with veggies and sauce is a delicious quick meal. Before attempting a shawarma recipe, please read"Shawarma 101: Tips for Making Authentic Shawarma". You won't be disappointed!
Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts (thinly cut)
1 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup vinegar
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cardamom pods
1 teaspoon allspice
juice from 1 lemon
___________________________
FOR THE SAUCE:
1 cup tahini
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons yogurt
___________________________
PITA FILLINGS:
8 loaves of pita bread or 4 large
thinly slice cucumbers
thinly sliced onions
1/2 teaspoon sumac
thinly sliced tomatoes
1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
pickle slices (optional)
Preparation:

Combine all ingredients except for chicken, fillings, and sauce ingredients to make marinade. If it seems a little dry, add a little olive oil (a tablespoon at a time). Here is an excellent tahini recipe, if you do not have some handy.

Add chicken, cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours, preferable overnight.

In a stockpot or large saucepan, cook chicken over medium heat for 45 minutes or until done. Be sure not to overcook! If chicken becomes a little dry, add a few tablespoons of water throughout cooking duration.

While chicken is cooking, prepare the sauce. Combine sauce ingredients and mix well. Set aside.

Take the onions, tomatoes, cucumbers and sprinkle with sumac. Add other filling ingredients in a large bowl and combine well.

When the chicken is done, you can shred it, slice it, or leave into large pieces. As long as it it thinly cut, there is not much difference. I prefer to cut mine into wide strips.
Prepare the Pita

Place enough chicken on pita that cover 1/4 of the loaf. Add veggies and pour sauce. Roll like a soft taco or burrito and you have shawarma! You can also stuff the pocket of the pita if you like. I prefer to roll large pitas (this is where making your own pita comes in handy), but it is hard to find large loaves of pita at the supermarket.
Serving Shawarma

You can serve shawarma with fries, falafel, hummus, or with a salad like tabouleh.
We used to get these when we were in the Middle East, we can't make them like they did but it was fun to try. They sold them everywhere you went kind of like burgers here, I guess.

Baked potatoes.