![Homemade Gyro](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2190/2327548119_281783c3af.jpg)
Gyro Meat
1 med onion, chopped
2 lbs ground lamb
1 T garlic, finely minced
1 T dried marjoram
1 T dried ground rosemary
2 t kosher salt
1/2 t freshly ground pepper
Preheat oven to 325. Process the onion in a food processor for 10 to 15 seconds. Put it into a tea towel and squeeze out as much juice as you can. Return the onion to the food processor and add the remaining ingredients. Process until a fine paste is formed. Place the mixture into a loaf pan, spreading it into all the corners. Put the pan into a water bathe & bake until the mixture reaches between 165 & 170, should be about an hour. Remove from the oven & drain off any excess fat. Place a brick covered in foil on top of the meat (we used another loaf pan filled with canned goods for weight) and let sit for 15 - 20 minutes. Slice and serve on pita with tzatziki sauce, onions & tomatoes.
You can also cook this on a rotisserie. See Alton Brown's recipe for details on that.
Tzatziki Sauce
(this is a wonderful version of this sauce)
16 oz plain yogurt
1 med cucumber, peeled, seeded & finely chopped
pinch kosher salt
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 T olive oil
2 t red wine vinegar
5 to 6 mint leaves, finely minced
Place the yogurt in a tea towel, gather up the edges, suspend over a bowl and let drain for 2 hours in the refrigerator. (I've read you can buy Greek yogurt & skip this step.)
Place the chopped cucumber in a tea owl & squeeze to remove the liquid. In a medium bowl combine the drain yogurt, cucumber and all remaining ingredients. Can be stored up to a week in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
Makes 1 1/2 cups
I'm glad you actually got to take a picture of your gyro. Mine didn't make it.
ReplyDeleteLooks good, my friend. Looks good.
Wow. It's like deja vu all over again! :-)
ReplyDeleteAren't these just too delicious?
I am not very much into meat, IF we eat Gyros or Turkish Döner Kebap I usually have the “veggie” version which is mostly with Feta instead of meat, but your Tzatziki with mint sounds great. I love that combination of yoghurt and mint sauces with mediterranian dishes. Have you ever tried a drink made of yoghurt, some mint and salt and then fill up with sparkling water? So refreshing on hot summer days and ideal if you cooked too spicy.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE Gyros. When D lived in Germany we ate them all the time, because there were these little hole-in-the-wall Turkish joints everywhere. FYI, for any future Gyro cravings, Cook's Illustrated did an article on the best Gyro meat technique last August:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cooksillustrated.com/login.asp?name=&did=4417&LoginForm=recipe&iseason=
It was really interesting!
I love gyros but have never tried to make the meat filling myself, but this version sounds doable!
ReplyDeleteYUM!!! I finally got around to making these and they are WONDERFUL!!! I'd love to include this on my humble little recipe blog with the dairy-free version of the sauce... do you mind if I copy the recipe and link back to you?
ReplyDeletewww.mustfollowrecipes.blogspot.com
Thanks!