Homemade Gyros with Homemade Tzatziki Sauce

 

My first experience with Greek food, was through my sister in law who has Greek descendants in her family.   She would always tell me about the yummy food, like Moussaka, Spanakopita, Baklava and Gyros.  I couldn't wait to try it, and was definitely not disappointed when I did.

Later, when I was a radio DJ at our radio station (yes my family owned a radio station in South Africa), one of our time slots was bought by a Greek community, and they would come in and do their shows, talk about their news, their food and so on.  It was another way that I was surrounded, so to speak, by the Greek culture.

 

 

I quickly became a fan, and Gyros have always been one of my favorites. But, the only time I ate any would be if we went to a Greek restaurant, and that wasn't something we did often. 

 

Like many of my favorite restaurant dishes, I realized that if I could make them at home, then anytime the craving kicked in, I could have it without having to go out....that and the fact that usually it is much cheaper to make it at home too. 

 

I found this recipe at Christina's Cucina, along with the recipe for homemade tzatziki sauce too, and I could not wait to try it.  I honestly thought that it was going to be this very long complicated process, but it was so easy to make, and my husband loved them, stating that they are very close to the ones from our local Greek eatery.

Just one thing, I couldn't get lamb around here, so I used ground beef and ground pork, which is not the traditional meat used in Gyros, but nonetheless they were superb.  I am going to try and find lamb so that next time I make them, they are more authentic, but nonetheless, keeping this recipe and adding it to our family favorites.

 

 

Homemade Gyros with Homemade Tzatziki Sauce

Yield: 8 servings 

 

 

 

Ingredients 

1 medium size onion, roughly chopped 

1 lb ground beef 

1 lb ground lamb 

2 large cloves of garlic 

1 Tbsp dried marjoram 

1 Tbsp dried ground rosemary 

2 tsp Kosher salt 

1/2 tsp ground black pepper 

 

 

To Serve 

Tzatziki Sauce (recipe below) 

lettuce 

sliced tomatoes 

sliced sweet onion 

 

 

Instructions 

Run the onion in a food processor for about 15 seconds. Place the onion in the center of a kitchen towel and squeeze out the juice and return to the food processor. Add the meat, garlic, spices, salt and pepper to the onion, and process. 

 

Do so until it looks like a fine paste, about a minute. Place the mixture in a loaf pan and press evenly. 

 

Bake in a water bath (place loaf pan inside another pan filled with water) at 325°F (165°C) for about an hour or more until temperature reaches 165-170°F (75°C.) 

 

Remove from the oven, drain fat, and place on a cooling rack. Cover meat with aluminum foil and a heavy weight for about 15 minutes until internal temperature is 175°F (79°C).

 

Place meat on a cutting board and slice as thinly as possible. In another pan, heat the pita bread. 

 

Finally, place the meat on one half of the pita, topped with tzatziki sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, and onion. 

 

 

 

Homemade Tzatziki Sauce

 

 

 

Ingredients

16 oz Greek yogurt 

1 medium cucumber or about 3 Persian cucumbers, grated 

Kosher or sea salt 

2 tsp finely minced garlic 

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 

 

Place the grated cucumber in a colander and sprinkle with Kosher salt. Place a plate and weight on top to press out the liquid, for 20-30 minutes. 

 

Drain, then squeeze the cucumber in a kitchen towel (or a strong paper towel) to remove the rest of the liquid. 

 

Next, place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. 

 

Mix well, and refrigerate until ready to use.