This shawarma-style sheet pan chicken is a weeknight winner

A couple of years ago, when I was pregnant, I was at one of my favorite cafes in Seattle and ordered its chicken shawarma wrap. Truly, it was a life-changing experience, so good that I immediately went home and started recipe testing for how to make it. I have done this recipe a few different ways, and perfected the marinade over the past couple of years, and now — after almost three years — I think it’s finally ready to bring to all of you.

A quick and easy meal you can scale up and make for a crowd or throw together quickly at the end of the night — it’s also one of my daughter’s favorite meals that we have on rotation at our house — I typically serve it with mushrooms and turmeric rice, a side salad and some sort of citrus fruit.

When I first started testing this recipe, I would do it on a sheet pan and throw a bunch of vegetables on the pan. One night I tossed everything in the marinade — the chicken, mushrooms, onions, peppers, zucchini and tomatoes — and didn’t even let it marinate for longer than 20 minutes, and it was still a hit. (The marinade is what makes it out of this world, so if you have the time to let it marinate overnight, I promise you that you will taste the difference.)

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Shawarma-Style Sheet Pan Chicken

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Inactive time: 12 to 24 hours

Total time: 50 minutes

Servings: 4

INGREDIENTS

Marinade

• ⅓ cup lemon juice (about the juice of 2 lemons)
• ¼ cup olive oil
• ¼ cup avocado oil, plus more for sheet pan
• 3 garlic cloves
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 2 teaspoons sweet paprika
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons fresh dill
• A pinch of ground cinnamon
• A pinch of red pepper flakes

Shawarma-style chicken

• 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1 pound brown cremini mushrooms, sliced

Whipped green goddess feta sauce

• 10 ounces Greek yogurt
• 6 ounces feta cheese
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• ¼ cup whole milk
• 3 tablespoons dill

STEPS

1. Make the marinade: In a blender, combine all marinade ingredients and blend until fully incorporated.
2. Place chicken in a large zip-top bag and add ⅔ of the marinade.
3. In a separate zip-top bag, add the mushrooms, onions and remaining ⅓ of the marinade.
4. Refrigerate both bags, and let marinate for 12 to 24 hours.
5. Make the shawarma-style chicken: Once you are ready to cook the chicken, preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
6. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper, and drizzle with additional avocado oil, about 1 tablespoon.
7. Place the chicken on the sheet pan, being careful not to overcrowd to ensure the chicken cooks up evenly and doesn’t steam. Pour any remaining marinade in the bag over the chicken.
8. On a separate sheet pan lined with parchment paper, add the mushrooms and onions. Pour over any remaining marinade.
9. Bake both sheet pans for 15 minutes. Remove the mushrooms and onions, and rotate the chicken pan. Bake the chicken for another 5 minutes, or until cooked through.
10. Make the whipped green goddess feta sauce: In a blender, add all ingredients except the dill, and blend until smooth.
11. Add the dill and pulse until it’s incorporated but you can still see pieces of the dill throughout.
12. Drizzle over the chicken or have it available to dip on the side, and serve with the mushrooms and onions.

Enjoy!

Clarification: This story has been updated to specify that the chicken thighs should be boneless and skinless.