Gyro

Name: Gyro
Total time: 120 min
Yield: 2
Ingredients: 8 oz lamb (ground); 4 oz beef, chuck (ground); 1 unit onion (grated, squeezed dry); 2 clove garlic (minced, for the meat); 1 tsp oregano (dried); 1 tsp rosemary (minced); ½ tsp cumin (ground); 1 tsp salt (for the meat); ½ tsp black pepper (ground); ¾ cup yogurt (whole-milk, thick); 1 unit cucumber (grated); ¼ tsp salt (for the cucumber); 1 clove garlic (grated, for the sauce); 1 tbsp dill (chopped); 1 tbsp lemon (juice); 1 tbsp olive oil; 2 unit pita (thick, pocketless); 1 unit tomato (sliced); ¼ cup onion, red (sliced paper-thin)

Sandwiches & Handhelds · African & Middle Eastern

19 ingredients · 120 minutes · 2 servings

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802kcal54.7g protein41.4g fat51.4g carbs~$5.02/ serving*

Contains gluten, dairy

Restrictions

Containsgluten · dairyIt is in an ingredient you cannot leave out.

Diets

No porkNo alcohol

Worked out from the ingredient list. It knows nothing about brands, shared equipment or cross contamination, and it is not a certification — if you have an allergy, you still have to read the label.

Ingredients

Servings:

8 oz	lamb (ground)
4 oz	beef, chuck (ground)
1 unit	onion (grated, squeezed dry)
2 clove	garlic (minced, for the meat)
1 tsp	oregano (dried)
1 tsp	rosemary (minced)
½ tsp	cumin (ground)
1 tsp	salt (for the meat)
½ tsp	black pepper (ground)
¾ cup	yogurt (whole-milk, thick)
1 unit	cucumber (grated)
¼ tsp	salt (for the cucumber)
1 clove	garlic (grated, for the sauce)
1 tbsp	dill (chopped)
1 tbsp	lemon (juice)
1 tbsp	olive oil
2 unit	pita (thick, pocketless)
1 unit	tomato (sliced)
¼ cup	onion, red (sliced paper-thin)

Optional

Not counted above. The dish works without them.

1 unit	potato (fried, thin batons)
½ cup	lettuce (shredded)
2 tbsp	feta (crumbled)
¼ tsp	paprika

Steps

Grate10 min
salted, draining in a sieve
- cucumber
cucumber + the quarter-teaspoon of salt, then squeeze hard in a towel — cucumber is most of the way to water, and unsqueezed it will thin the tzatziki into a puddle by the time you eat
Mix5 min
cold, refrigerated after
drained cucumber + yogurt + grated garlic + dill + lemon juice = tzatziki; rest it cold while the meat cooks so the raw garlic edge softens into the yogurt
Mince10 min
food processor, meat very cold
lamb + beef + squeezed grated onion + minced garlic + oregano + rosemary + cumin + salt + black pepper, pulsed to a smooth sticky paste, 30–40 seconds total. This is the whole trick: pasting the meat extracts myosin so the loaf sets dense and sliceable like spit meat instead of crumbling like a meatball. Keep it cold or the fat smears and the loaf renders greasy
Rest30 min
refrigerated
the paste, packed tight into a small loaf pan with no air pockets — air pockets become tears when you slice
Bake55 min
325°F, pan set in a water bath
the loaf until 165°F at the center; the water bath keeps the outside from setting into a crust before the middle cooks, which is what makes thin even slices possible
Rest15 min
weighted, foil-covered
the loaf under a heavy can or a second pan — pressing while it cools compacts the meat and drives out loose fat, so the chilled block slices without shattering
Slice5 min
cooled, sharp knife
the loaf across the grain as thin as you can manage, no thicker than a coin
Sear4 min
dry pan, high
the slices in a single layer, undisturbed, until the edges brown and curl — the crisp edge is the part the rotisserie gives you and the oven does not
Toast2 min
dry pan or open flame
- pita
pita, brushed with olive oil, just until pliable and blistered; a cold pita cracks when you roll it
Top4 min
- tomato
warm pita + tzatziki spread to the edges + seared meat + tomato + red onion + optionals, then roll tight and wrap the bottom half in paper so the sauce stays inside