Baked Chicken Shawarma {Taim Copycat}

The combination of sweet and savory flavors in this chicken remind me of the chicken shawarma at Taim restaurant, a casual, quick place that recently opened a location in our area.  You can use the chicken in a bowl, wrap, or eat it by itself with some salad on the side.  This recipe requires time to marinate (at least 2 hours or up to overnight).

Baked Chicken Shawarma

Ingredients:

2.5 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs (this would probably work with chicken breasts too)

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper, as desired

2 tablespoon plain Greek yogurt

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

1 tablespoon thyme

1.5 tablespoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon smoked paprika

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/4 teaspoon cardamom

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 of a large red onion, thinly sliced

Serving suggestion for a Chicken Shawarma Bowl:

Spring greens

Cilantro lime rice

Diced cucumber

Cherry tomatoes, halved

Roasted broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, beets (You can roast veggies on the bottom rack while the chicken cooks on a middle rack.

Hummus

Lemon vinaigrette

Crushed pita chips

Directions:

1. Trim excess fat off the chicken thighs, as desired.  Put chicken in a large glass bowl. Pour olive oil over the chicken and season with salt and pepper.  Add yogurt and lemon juice.

2. Mix all the spices together in a small bowl.  Pour over chicken.  Mix well.  (I find it's just easiest to use my hands to mix.)  Add red onion slices and mix those in.

3. Cover with plastic wrap and let marinate in the fridge for at least two hours, or up to overnight.  

4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Take chicken out of fridge to start coming to room temperature.  Coat the bottom of a metal baking sheet with nonstick spray or a small amount of olive oil.  Put chicken and onion mixture on pan in an even layer.  Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the thickest part of chicken is 165 degrees.

5.  Allow chicken to rest for about 10 minutes, then slice thinly to use in wraps, bowls, etc.

Source: adapted from the Instagram account shredhappens