Homemade Greek Gyros
First things first. It's pronounced "hero". It's not Ji-ROW or Gear-row like my husband likes to jokingly say. So now you can consider yourself #cultured.
Making fresh gyro meat is actually super simple and surprisingly tasty. If you're looking for a way to mix up chicken night, try this dish instead. It takes less than 25 minutes!
I like to eat my gyro on a whole wheat pita round, with red onion, tomato, fresh tzatziki and plenty of baba ganoush. I'll teach you how to make all of the sauces that go with this so you can wow your family's taste buds.
Gyro Meat
Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground lamb
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup Panko bread crumbs
1 medium onion, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, smashed and finely minced
4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
2 teaspoons dried cumin
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
Line two large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
If you have a food processor, use it to finely chop the onion and garlic. If not, use a knife to chop finely.
In a large bowl, add all gyro meat ingredients: 1 pound ground beef, 1 pound ground lamb, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup milk, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 cup Panko crumbs, chopped onion, minced garlic, 4 teaspoons kosher salt, 2 teaspoons black pepper, 2 teaspoons oregano, 1/2 teaspoon rosemary, 1 teaspoon thyme, 2 teaspoons cumin.
Combine the meat using your hands.
Shape the meat into about 12-14 oval patties. It's okay if you have more or less, just be sure to watch them and adjust cooking time accordingly.
Line them up on the pan making sure they are not touching each other.
Bake them for about 20 minutes, or until a meat thermometer reaches 160 degrees F.
Remove from the oven and keep warm.
To serve, use a whole wheat pita, spread this fresh tzatziki and Ina Garten's Smoky Eggplant Dip (Baba Ganoush) on the pita. Add whatever vegetables you desire and enjoy!
