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Greek-American Lamb Gyros

Greek-American gyros employ the same vertical rotisserie method of cooking as authentic Greek gyros, and both come served in rich, fluffy pita bread with a yogurt-based sauce, tomatoes, and onions, but that's where the similarities end.
Unlike Greek gyros, which are usually made with whole pieces of thinly-sliced marinated pork skewered in a large stack on the rotisserie before being cooked and shaved, Greek-American gyros are made with a large, sausage-like cone of seasoned minced lamb and beef.
As great as the real deal is, in all honesty, I prefer the Greek-American style. When properly cooked, the thinly shaved pieces of meat offer a sublime mixture of textures. Crispy, salty edges, and moist, tender areas that have the same satisfyingly resilient texture that a good hot dog has.
Servings: 4
Author: Serious Eats

Ingredients

For the meat:

  • 1 pound ground lamb or ground 85% lean ground b
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt or 1 teaspoon table salt
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons picked fresh oregano leaves or ½ teaspoon dried
  • ½ onion cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1 clove garlic sliced
  • 3 ounces slab bacon or about 5 slices sliced bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces

For the yogurt sauce:

  • ¾ cup plain Greek yogurt
  • ¼ cup mayonnaise
  • 1 clove garlic minced on microplane
  • 2 teaspoons juice from 1 lemon
  • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley or mint

To serve:

  • 4 pieces soft hand-pulled-style pita (not pocket pita)
  • chopped fresh tomato
  • finely sliced onion
  • cubed peeled seeded cucumber
  • hot sauce

Instructions

Season the lamb:

  • Combine the lamb, salt, pepper, and oregano in medium bowl.
  • Mix with hands until homogeneous.
  • Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to over night.

Make the meat loaf:

  • Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 300°F.
  • Place cold mixture in bowl of food processor with onion, garlic, and bacon.
  • Process until smooth puree is formed, about 1 minute total, scraping down sides with rubber spatula as necessary.
  • Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
  • With moist hands, form meat mixture into rectangle about 1 ½ inches high, 8-inches long, and 5-inches wide.
  • Bake until center of loaf reads 155°F on an instant read thermometer, about 30 minutes.
  • Allow loaf to rest at room temperature for fifteen minutes (or refrigerate for up to a week—see note)

Make sauce:

  • Combine Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, garlic, lemon juice, and parsley and stir to combine.
  • Season to taste with salt.
  • Refrigerate, covered, until ready to use.

Broil the lamb:

  • Adjust broiler rack to highest position (about 1 ½ to 2 inches from broiler element) and preheat broiler.
  • Slice loaf crosswise into ⅛th to ¼-inch strips (each strip should be about 5-inches long and 1 ½ inches wide).
  • Lay strips on rimmed baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and broil until edges are brown and crispy, about 2 minutes.
  • Tent with aluminum foil.

To serve:

  • Warm bread by placing on rimmed baking sheet and broiling until soft and pliant, about 45 seconds per side.
  • Spread ¼ cup of sauce over each piece of bread.
  • Divide meat evenly between sandwiches.
  • Top as desired, wrap with foil, and serve.

Notes

  • The original recipe calls for straining regular plain yogurt. Modified to use Greek yogurt.