Vegetarian Shawarma Bowl
Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian Recipes Vegetables Salads
Shawarma by accident. And vegetarian on top of that. You know how it is when you start making something and at the end you realize it turned out to be something else? When I tasted all the elements mixed together I realized I had made a vegetarian shawarma. A very good shawarma... intensely aromatic... intensely oriental... to the point that even my taste buds couldn't believe how well everything combined. And zhoug... is mandatory!
Ingredients
500g cooked chickpeas
2 Lebanese flatbreads
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon chili flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 tablespoons oil
Salad
4 small tomatoes (roma, plum)
4 fresh mini cucumbers
1 medium red onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar (or pomegranate molasses)
Sauces
200g plain yogurt
zhoug
Servings: 4
Calories: 429 cal / serving (calculated with 2% Greek yogurt and 1 tablespoon of zhoug per serving)
How to prepare vegetarian shawarma bowl
- Place the flatbreads in an oven tray side by side.
- In a bowl, mix the chickpeas with the spices (including sesame seeds) and oil. Pour over the flatbreads and spread evenly in a single layer. If it goes over the edge of the flatbreads it's ok, the important thing is that they don't overlap, so they can bake evenly and quickly.
- Bake in the oven at 180C (350F) for 25-30 minutes. It's important to keep an eye on them during this time so the flatbreads don't burn. When the chickpeas feel slightly firm, they're done.
- Remove the chickpeas to a bowl and check the flatbreads. They should be crispy (break easily) all the way to the center. If they're not yet (sometimes the middle stays soft), put the tray with just the flatbreads back in the oven for a few more minutes until baked throughout.
- After the chickpeas and flatbreads have cooled, crumble the flatbreads as finely as possible over the chickpeas and mix. Adjust salt to taste.
- Mix the yogurt with a little salt and water (add gradually, one tablespoon at a time) until the yogurt flows easily off the spoon. You can use drinking yogurt and then you won't need water, you can use Greek yogurt and then you'll need to thin it with about 5-6 tablespoons of water... adjust according to the yogurt you chose.
- Prepare the salad: dice the vegetables, sprinkle with a little salt and then mix with the oil and balsamic vinegar.
- Place the chickpeas on a wide serving platter. Drizzle a little yogurt on top, just enough to look nice, and then do the same with zhoug. Place the salad, remaining yogurt and zhoug sauce alongside. For individual plating: put 1/4 of the salad on the bottom of the plate. Sprinkle 1/4 of the chickpeas with flatbread on top. Drizzle yogurt and then zhoug. Serve immediately so the crispy pieces of flatbread don't get soggy.
Can be packed to go, but each element must be packaged separately (chickpeas with flatbread in one container; salad in another; portion the yogurt and zhoug into two small sauce containers).
Shawarma assembled on a plate (one portion packed to go)
