Mediterranean · Serves 2
When you have a little extra time (a great weekend project!), bake these from-scratch pita breads for the best shawarma ever! You’ll mix, rest, and roll out dough while marinating chicken in yogurt, garlic, and spices. Sauté the chicken with onion, and serve it with a tangy, juicy feta, cucumber, and tomato salad plus warm homemade pitas.
Wash and dry produce.
Place flour in a large bowl. Reserve 1/4 cup flour in a small bowl and set aside (reserve 1/2 cup flour for 4 servings) (TIP: Reserved flour will be used for rolling and forming in Steps 4 & 5).
In large bowl with flour, add 1 tsp yeast, 1 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp sugar (2 tsp yeast, 1 TBSP salt, and 1 tsp sugar for 4). Whisk to combine.
Add 3/4 cup warm water (TIP: For the perfect water temperature to help activate the yeast, microwave 1/4 cup water until steaming, 60-90 seconds, then add 1/2 cup tap water) and 1 TBSP olive oil (1 ⅓ cups water and 2 TBSP olive oil for 4). Stir until the flour is absorbed and you have a sticky dough ball, about 30-60 seconds.
Drizzle top of dough with a drizzle of olive oil; turn dough to coat. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm spot until dough has doubled, about 1 1/2 hours.
While dough is resting, Quarter cucumber lengthwise; slice into 1/4-inch-thick pieces. Dice tomato into 1/4-inch pieces. Halve, peel, and thinly slice onion; finely chop a few slices until you have 1 TBSP (2 TBSP for 4 servings). Quarter lemon.
In a second small bowl, combine cucumber, tomato, finely chopped red onion, feta, juice from 2 lemon wedges (juice from 1 whole lemon for 4), salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Refrigerate salad until ready to serve.
Open package of chicken and drain off any excess liquid. In a medium bowl, combine chicken, shawarma spice, garlic powder, juice from remaining lemon wedges, 1 packet of yogurt, a drizzle olive oil, and ½ tsp salt. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to cook.
Once pita dough has doubled in size, adjust oven rack to middle position and place a baking sheet on the middle rack in the oven. Preheat oven with baking sheet to 500 degrees.
Cut parchment paper into six 6-inch x 6-inch small squares (twelve squares for 4 servings). Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface using 1-2 TBSP of reserved flour. Knead briefly to form a ball. Divide the dough into 6 equal portions (12 portions for 4). Reform each portion into a ball. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rest 20 minutes.
Once dough balls have rested for 30 minutes, flatten one ball at a time, and, using remaining reserved flour as needed, gently roll out with a rolling pin until you have a 4-to-5-inch round, ¼-½-inch-thick (TIP: the key is to not roll too aggressively in order to prevent the air pockets from being forced out.) Transfer each round to a sheet of prepared parchment paper.
Once all 6 pitas are formed, carefully remove preheated baking sheet from oven. Carefully add 3 pitas with parchment paper to hot baking sheet. Carefully return to middle rack and bake pitas until puffy and golden brown, 5-8 minutes. Remove cooked pitas and repeat with remaining pitas. (TIP: Cover cooked pitas with kitchen towel to keep them warm until ready to serve.)
Once pitas are baked, heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add yogurt marinated chicken and any remaining marinade in a single layer; cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and cooked through, 6-8 minutes.
Serve warm pitas, shawarma chicken, cucumber salad, and remaining yogurt family style. Enjoy as a bowl, or halve pitas, carefully open the pockets, and fill with chicken, cucumber salad, and remaining yogurt.
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