Gyro meat is one of the greatest culinary inventions and no matter how you pronounce, “Gyro” (Yee-ro, Jai-ro, Gee-ro), we’re all pretty much just saying the word, “Delicious.” While the real deal traditional stuff comprised of actual cuts of spiced meat rotating on a vertical rotisserie spit is awesome, it’s the over-processed Greek-American stuff that I’m talking about.
This commercially made ground meat comes formed into a huge cone is placed on a vertical spit where it slowly spins and crisps up on the outside. Then some lucky person gets to carve strips off revealing the less cooked interior before the whole process begins again.
I used to love doing this as a kid working church festivals. I can tell you from experience that a few of those freshly cut strips never made it to the customers, but instead found a home inside my distended Gyro-filled belly.
This glorious conical-shaped rotisserie meat is the stuff of Greek and Middle Eastern church festival legend. Many patrons of the festivals vie for position to get in the long lines just for a taste of this almost comical, yet perfectly proven way of preparing meat. The problem is that unless you find a pizza shop that also sells gyro strips (good, but not the same as the freshly sliced Gyro), most of us have to settle for having this treat only when a festival is upon us.
Not one to easily accept my lot in life, I searched for a way to replicate Gyros at home. After agonizing over the endless recipes online, I narrowed it down to two that seemed to have the most community support. The first is from the brilliant, J. Kenji López-Alt of Serious Eats fame, and the second is from the entertainment food guru, Alton Brown. I tried both recipes and followed the instructions exactly. My personal feeling is that each recipe had its strong points, but neither one completely nailed it.
Mr. López-Alt’s recipe had the correct spices and a really excellent simulation to the correct texture, but didn’t quite get the spice amounts correct. He also used bacon, which I personally feel completely changed the flavor in a way that is still delicious, but no longer true to the Gyro.
Mr. Brown’s recipe gets intricate with the use of a brick to compact the meat while cooking, but this alone doesn’t really perfect the texture and you still lose a ton of moisture by cooking in a loaf pan. While the ratio of spices to meat were probably more in the ballpark here for Alton Brown’s recipe, the spices themselves seemed completely wrong. In particular, the overwhelming use of rosemary seemed to just overrun the flavor profile. I don’t even really think there’s much rosemary in gyro meat at all, if any!
[wordads]
I decided to take what I learned and create my own recipe that is currently the closest I have come to nailing homemade Gyros. I use J. Kenji López-Alt’s technique for texture and flavor while utilizing Alton Brown’s heavier hand for the spices.
Unlike, the Serious Eats recipe, I do not use bacon. Instead, I recommend regular pork belly, which is not smoked, or very fresh pork fat trimmings from your butcher. This adds more fat without adding an unfamiliar flavor to the meat.
One last thing to note is that my research revealed that the commercial Gyros are full of fillers like breadcrumbs, soy, and msg. Yes, that makes them addictively mouth watering, but that also makes this recipe richer in terms of real ingredients.
In terms of assembly, if you don’t put the gyro meat into a sandwich with tzatziki sauce, then you’re missing out. I highly recommend taking the extra steps and making tzatziki cucumber yogurt sauce to accompany the meat as well as pita bread, tomatoes, and onions.
I’m very pleased with the results and I know I’ll have some delicious meals ahead with this recipe. So without further ado, here is my painstakingly researched recipe for Homemade Greek American Gyros!
Makes about 26 Gyro Strips at 46 calories per strip or 1185 calories total. (or 55 calories per strip with the added pork belly or pork fat for 1426 calories total)
1 pound of fresh, good quality, 80/20 ground chuck beef (1160 calories)
Note: You can also use 1/2 pound ground beef and 1/2 pound ground lamb!
1/2 tablespoon of kosher salt (a little less if using regular table salt)
Note: A few people have commented that the original amount of 1 Tbs of salt was a bit too salty. I do think that kosher vs table salt makes a difference. However, try it with 1/2 a tablespoon and if you need more you can always salt later.
1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 sweet or yellow onion roughly chopped (20 calories)
2 cloves of peeled and roughly chopped garlic (5 calories)
Optional: 3 oz. of pork belly or fresh pork fat only if using a leaner ground beef (441 calories)
Note: You don’t have to do this, but it does add to the consistency one expects from Greek-American Gyros. Don’t use bacon, however, because that will just make everything smoky and distract from the gyro flavor. If you use pork fat/trimmings, make sure it is very fresh from the butcher or it won’t taste good.
Optional: Onions, tomatoes, and pita bread to make sandwiches.
Combine the ground beef (or mix of ground beef and lamb) with the tablespoon of kosher salt, 2/3 teaspoon of ground black pepper, and the 3/4 teaspoon of dried oregano flakes. Salting the meat now helps to trap the meat’s natural flavors and juices inside. You’ll see later how compared to making a meatloaf in a load pan, that you lost almost no moisture from the meat!
Using your hands (feel free to wear latex gloves) mix the meat and the spices together. Unlike when making meatballs or burgers, feel free to mash the meat to really mix everything together really well. Form it into a tight ball, cover, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (very important to achieve the correct consistency!) or over night. Refrigerating the meat with the salt helps to tighten the proteins in the meat to lock in those flavors.
After at least an hour and you are ready to start making the gyro, pre-heat the oven to 300 – 325 degrees F.
Roughly chop half of an onion. Save the other half for topping the gyro later.
Peel and roughly chop two garlic cloves.
Combine the onions and garlic in the food processor and blend until the onions are thoroughly pureed.
Add in the cold ground beef (do not let it get to room temperature) and optional pork belly or pork fat if you’re using it to the food processor. Blend everything together very well. You will need to scrape down the sides of the food processor using a spoon as needed and blend the meat again. Admittedly, the result of this mixture will look pretty gross, so don’t get discouraged! You want the meat to end up looking like a thick paste without any visible unblended pieces. This is all part of getting that processed texture of Greek-American Gyros!
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and dump the meat out onto it. Form the gyro meat into a rectangular loaf that is about 1.5 to 2 inches thick (Maybe 10 x 5 x 1.5). Make sure it is uniformly flat all around with a very slight indentation in the middle of the loaf. This will help keep the loaf from bunching up towards the middle when it cooks.
Stick a meat thermometer into the loaf from the side so that it can get the temperature near the middle of the meat.
Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes or until the thermometer reads 155 – 160 degrees F internal temperature for the meat. While you wait, slice up some of the onion and tomato into thin slices so you can top the gyro meat later when you eat. You can also take this time to mix up your tzatziki cucumber yogurt sauce.
When the gyro is ready, remove it from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes at least before slicing. I think you’ll be impressed with how little liquid escapes from the meat.
Place the gyro on a cutting board and with a long sharp knife start to slice it into thin strips along the short side of the loaf.
You can eat the meat just like that, but there’s still something missing. One of the best parts about gyro sliced off a vertical rotisserie is that crispy bit on the outside that contrasts the tender inside. We can replicate this part by broiling or grilling the strips on one side. To broil them, just lay them out on the baking sheet and set the broiler on high. Place the meat on the middle rack in the oven and broil on high for 2 or 3 minutes until you get a deeper brown color on top. If you grill them, just put the strips on high heat for a couple of minutes on one side and remove when they get some nice crispy color. You can also pan fry them on one side, a few at a time, in a non-stick pan over the stove.
Now the meat is ready to eat! Make a sandwich using pita bread (you can use the traditional Greek pita, which is hand pulled and has no pocket, or a Middle Eastern style pita that you can then roll up the gryo with). Lay down 3 or 4 strips of gyro meat on the pita, top it with tomatoes, thin sliced sweet onions, and tzatziki sauce. Then fold and eat!
_______________________________
Please Support Home Is A Kitchen!
No spam. Just real updates on recipes, restaurant reviews, travel, and free giveaways!
This looks soooo good! I’ve always wanted to make homemade gyros. Adding this to my bookmarks and making it this week. I’m sure my husband will applaud you for this recipe.
Uh oh! The pressure’s on! 😜 I hope the recipe works for you and your husband. Please let me know how it turns out. I’d love a third opinion (my wife already gave the second opinion).
This is great. I love gyro but always wondered what they put in it. At least now I know that I can make it myself and be sure of the ingredients. Thanks.
Made this for my family and we loved it! When I dressed it up in a pita with some tzatziki I thought I was eating the real thing!!! The kids ate it so fast, I might need to make a double portion next time. Thanks for the great recipe!!!
Made a fast version. Made the seasoned meat into flat burgers and cooked on stovetop(minus the garlic and onion). Served with red onion, tomato, and lettuce in a pita with the sauce. Awesome and quick! (I used 1 Pound of ground lamb)
All I can say is awesome! My recipe is very similar,but I could never get the texture down. You totally nailed it. Thanks for doing all the hard work and sharing. This is now my families new fav.
I’m so glad to hear that, Janet! I appreciate the kind words and that you tried out the recipe. I hope you and your family enjoy it again in the future. Happy eating!
There are no gyro places in my small Alaskan town. Will be trying this with moose burger. There are just two of us in the family, so can I freeze some of this meat for gyros another time? Would it be best to freeze after baking and cut into strips? or freeze half of the mixture before baking? Thoughts? thanks
Hi Janis! Moose burger sounds awesome. I’ve never had it, but would love to try it. I have no idea how it will work with this recipe, but I’m excited for you to try it. As for saving some of the meat for cooking, I suggest cooking all of it, eating as much as you want, then cutting the leftovers into strips and freezing them. That way you can pretty much just heat up the strips in a warm skillet right out of the freezer. The leftovers will also keep pretty well in the fridge for a few days if you think you’ll want to eat more of it in the same week. Please do let me know how the moose gyros came out!
Turned out to be thawed deer meat and not moose meat. Mixed it half and half with ground lamb. Love the recipe,. I was pleased with the results. Leftovers in the fridge for my husband and friends due home from a hunting trip. If they also like these, I’ll be angling for a way to make the ground and spiced gyro mixture (gyro sausage) to freeze, for easy to make gyros in the future…. thanks.
YUM!! I researched making my own gyro meat on the web, and finally decided that your recipe seemed to make the most sense in terms of technique. I certainly made a wise decision. I’ve just pulled this from the oven and HAD to have a tiny bite to see if this is as close to authentic as the smell–YEP!! REALLY good taste and texture. Thank you for doing the work to come up with this recipe.
I will say that most, if not all, of the other recipes that I looked at involved squeezing the liquid out of the onion / garlic mixture before adding the meat mixture. I decided to go ahead and do that. Again, the texture is superb, so I’m glad that I did that.
Also, rather than trying to use pork belly, I used half ground lamb and half ground pork.
This was actually much easier and quicker than I had originally thought that it would be. I see myself making this quite frequently–I can’t imagine EVER getting tired of gyros!!
Hi Sherry! That’s fantastic that it came out so well and you enjoyed it! Very nice call on the half lamb and half pork combination. Maybe I’ll try squeezing the liquid out of the onions some day. I’ve never had a problem with mushiness or watery meat when not doing it, but I’d be interested to see if there’s a significant difference in texture. Thanks for the tip.
Oh my word this recipe is SOOO good! My search for a homemade gyro recipe is over. I doubled the recipe and used 1 lb. ground beef and 1 lb. ground lamb. I may cut back a bit on the salt next time but absolutely delicious! Thank you for sharing the recipe with us!
I have loved gyros and have tried a few lambless recipes.
This one takes the cake. Once the meat was broiled, the meat took on a whole new flavor. It has the right seasoning and with the tzatziki, this made the perfect home gyro.
Good recipe I like it, did it once already. So i may be able to afford the ingredients in the future a suggestion, just wasted all my color ink along with 9 pieces of paper printing this out so I had a reference so i guess hp gets a piece now too. How about making a printer friendly version so it does not cost an arm and a leg to print out? Thanks for that 9 pages and 2 $30 ink cartridges later! Otherwise its good…
forgot to mention in my little huff about printing this thing up that this is restaurant quality here it beats out people that do it for a living. Simple recipe easy to repeat and it is better then any of the spots I’ve gone in town. So the end result is better to eat in then out. Good show Man Fuel!!! If you want i will make a template for printing the recipes make it easy.
Hi T. I appreciate that you used up a bunch of your ink to print the recipe. Nonetheless, if you look at the title of the recipe before the Ingredients, there is a small print link. If you click that link, it should print only the text of the recipe. If you use the link at the bottom of the page that will print the entire post. Next time, please use the link near the recipe title before the Ingredients. I’m glad you liked the recipe and enjoyed it though.
This is one of the most amazing recipes I have ever made!! I mixed the meats, salt, pepper and oregano last night and refrigerated it. Puréed, baked and broiled it today. Holy crap, it’s amazing!! We used to order gyros all the time, never again. Thank you so much for this recipe.
Hi Rich! I have absolutely no idea if that would work. I don’t have a jerky press and I’ve never tried one. I’d love to hear how it goes if you do try it. My gut reaction is that it won’t work that well simply because the meat is so soft, unlike a steak or other meat that might be used for jerky. Nonetheless, I have nothing to base that on. Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks. So I made it in the oven. It was awesome flavor, and the broiler is a must after the bake. I read on some other recipes to drain the onion juice using a towel. I did that, not sure it was right. Do you wring out the onions? Also, I cooked on a wire rack in a pan. Definitely use the foil under the loaf because it sinks in little and gets wire marks. Purely cosmetic, but I prefer the smooth look like yours has. great recipe!!
I don’t wring out the onions. Someone did mention that in the comments, but I’ve never done it and I’ve been more than happy with the consistency as it is. I’d be interested to see what it’s like, but I don’t think it’s necessary. Thanks for giving the recipe a shot and glad you enjoyed it.
wow I love the recipe made it and everyone loves it I also used it in my restaurant hope you don’t mind new hit I am making stacks of money with this recipe thank you
Wow! Stacks of money, huh? Congratulations on the success. I’m very happy you and your customers enjoy the recipe. Shoot me an email if you’d like to share the name of your restaurant! Thanks for stopping by!
I made the loaves tonight, doing a double batch. I don’t have a processor, but have a KitchenAid mixer and a good blender. I puree’d the onions and garlic in the blender. I used 1 lb. 80/20 beef and 1 lb ground lamb. I used 6 OZ of salt pork belly which I diced up with a chef knife. I mixed it for about 10 – 12 minutes in the mixer. The “paste” produced two 8x5x1.5 inch loaves. Probably enough for 6-8 with seconds (and who doesn’t want a second of Gyros!). In the fridge now. Doing a lunch tomorrow. I will bake them in the morning and let them cool prior to slicing. Pitas here we come!!!
Hi Tom! That’s a very interesting process with the stand mixer. I hope it turns out ok as I’ve never mixed the meat that way or for that long. I would love to hear back from you about the texture using that method! If you used salted pork belly, I hope you lessened the added salt a bit just so it’s not too salty. Overall, I think you’ll be ok as the pita and any toppings would offset. Nice choice using the lamb! Good luck and please let me know how it turns out!
Thank you for this amazing recipe. I had a gyro at the Denver Convention Center at a Volleyball Tournament i was watching. It was ground beef, but very tasty, with a good tzatziki sauce. It peaked my interest in making my own.
I watched Alton Brown and trust him as he has taught me a lot. But his recipe and the brick and this and that seems too much, where yours is amazingly simple and looks to be better than a lot of commercial places, that use fillers and MSG.
I just finished making the tzatzik sauce and it will be amazing once it fully blooms in the fridge while waiting for to make dinner, three hours from now. The meat is chilling, this is a great technique to use the salt to bind the proteins and moisture. I’m so excited for dinner tonight.
I have Crohn’s Colitis, which is an auto-immune chronic disorder that creates violence in the intestines. I’m on a special diet, IBD-AID, and all the ingredients are legal for me, except the the gluten in the pita.
Next time I will make homemade gluten free pitas. They sell them in the store, but they taste like cardboard, at $7.00 a package, no thanks. I am still on the road to remission, and cooking has always been my yoga meditation, creating symphonies of flavors. Sometimes as with the tzatzik, simplicity is beautiful. I am so happy to make this and a little gluten won’t kill me as much as the love for this great dish will please me.
Diets are about slowly compromising, and I have cleaned up my act tremendously and I do believe that Crohn’s, like other things that people have could easily be a curse, but for me it is a blessing to become the healthiest man I have ever been, physically and emotionally. Stress and diet make the differernce. Of course exercise is a big key to controlling stress and over-all health. As in the great movie, Shawshank Redemption, Get busy living or get busy dying.
Many thanks for this and all your entries. I used to live outside of Providence and I remember at the time, almost 20 years ago, the best food was on Federal Hill, but from all of your blogs, it looks like Providence, as in the Denver area where I now live, have both gone through culinary evolution. Regardless of what happens in national politics, it is still an amazing time to live.
Thanks for sharing your story! I hope the gyro lives up to your expectations! Please let me know how it turns out and I’m glad you decided to take a chance on my recipe!
Wow, the meat was fantastic. Although like a few others, I will lower the salt next time.The Pita’s fell apart, but just just more reason to make homemade. The tzatzik sauce is amazing. You too are amazing, responding so quickly and having so much great content.
I will use your reviews when I go to visit Providence this summer. I used to have a summer house in Greenville on Waterman’s Lake on route 44 just outside of Providence. My ex now has it and I will be flying into Providence this summer to take my daughter to New York City for week to see some Broadway shows. I will spend and extra night in Providence checking out one of the fine eateries you have featured.
Thanks again and keep up the good work living your passions.
Youssef, thank you so much for your homework, research and culinary experience. This was fantastic! Made as written with the exception of cooking on the grill rotisserie. I seldom find recipes that I like better than J. Kenji Lopez-Alt’s, but yours turned out better! Thanks for your effort and time to create your blog and share so many wonderful recipes with us!
Let me start by saying that I’m a gyro junkie. Have been for forty years. To the point that I have bought my own vertical rotisserie and the commercial cones. But with the family of two, that’s not really practical. As my wife has pointed out repeatedly. In any case, searched far and wide for a home version of the Greek-American classic. Tried them all and results varied but most, not even close. Having a sausage making background I knew the method and this recipe had it. Most call for so many ingredients, it’s ridiculous. This was basic, but spot on. It will be my go to. Made as written except doubled. Used 1lb beef, 1 lb. Lamb. Used Greek oregano and 6 oz. Hard pork fat. No need to drain onions. You need the liquid. You’re creating an emulsion. Similar to making balogna or hot dogs. I actually ace added a little extra water to get the consistency right. Next time, I might cut back on the salt, but not much. I may also up the oregano. I’m also going to try stuffing it into 4″ balogna casings, par-cooking it, removing the casings and putting it on a spit on the grill. Remember, for the whole gyro experience, it does need the char. Also, the meat is just one ingredient. The sauceis required. Well done. This is as goodas it gets for the home made gyro experience. (Or buy an auto Donner and some commercial cones and hear about that for the rest of your life)
Hi Patrick! Let me just say that this review of the recipe and your passion for gyros has made my day! You definitely sound like you know what you’re talking about when it comes to the Greek-American Gyro. I’m very happy that you found my recipe and that you not only tried it out, but enjoyed it. I may edit my recipe to reduce the salt a bit as some people have mentioned it as being a little salty, so thanks for the input. Your idea of putting the meat into balogna casings sounds awesome! Please let me know how that turns out. Lastly, I have nothing but respect for a man that owns his own Vertical Rotisserie. I’d love to have one myself!
As a side note. I also took it out of the food processor after it looked right and threw it in the stand mixer for about 10 minutes with a paddle. You want a very fine, creamy emulsion. I think it could benefit from stuffing into a casting because it needs the compaction. It’s a little loose to start. But I tend to over do things. Doesn’t matter. Perfect. PS. Seriously, cut it with lamb if you want to get really close.
Used 1lb ground chuck (80/20) & Earthfare meat dept cut up a leg of lamb to grind me 1lb-so far I sampled w/out putting under broiler…glad I decided on this recipe-I doubled & glad I did!! Other recipes I researched had additional seasonings & even breadcrumbs, & this seems authentic taste to me. (‘Authentic’ American Greek, since I have not traveled to Greece.). I bought premade tzatziki @ Sam’s, also Naan stone bread-I think my son’s going to be impressed. His favorite & closest place it 20 miles from us 👍🏼👍🏼
Hey Jennifer! On a horizontal spit right after mixing the meat? Not a chance! Haha! The raw mixture is pretty soft. You MIGHT be able to put it on a vertical rotisserie, but you’d need to make it sort of a cone shape (narrow on top) in order for it to stay in place. If you really wanted to try a rotisserie for this, I would recommend wrapping the raw mixture in plastic wrap and rolling it up so that it forms a thick sausage shape, then inserting the rotisserie spit into the meat along the length, and then tying off the ends of the plastic wrap. Freeze it overnight, if possible. Ideally, when you go to use the rotisserie (vertical or horizontal), the frozen interior will keep the meat on the spit while it rotates. Cook the exterior to a dark brown crispy color and then shave a very thin layer off. Repeat this process until all of the meat is cooked and shaved. I can’t stress enough that I have never done this, but this is what I would do if I wanted to use a rotisserie to cook this. I hope that helps!
I just made this and am not so patiently waiting for my husband and son to come home for dinner. I haven’t broiled the meat yet, but couldn’t stop myself from tasting it right out of the oven. Absolutely amazing. Now I’m pacing and waiting for everyone to get home to put the finishing touches on what will be a fabulous dinner.
That’s great, Crystal! So happy you like it so far and I hope your family loves all your effort! Enjoy and thanks for stopping by as well as sharing your thoughts.
So happy it worked out for you, Emeline! Also thrilled that it was a hit. Thanks for stopping by, giving the recipe a try, and sharing your experience!
Hi Sam! You can definitely try this with ground chicken or ground turkey. The main issue will be the fat content though. I’m thinking you’ll end up with a much leaner and possibly a bit drier product. If you can’t increase the fat content with chicken or pork fat, try adding a 1/4 cup of vegetable oil. It’s not a perfect substitute, but it will help with moisture. Also keep in mind that it will also taste different than a typical gyro obviously. I hope that helps! If you do try this out, please let me know how it goes!
Hi Deb! That is a tough question… Are you allergic to all types of onions? Scallions or leeks or shallots as well? If not, I would recommend trying some of those. Is it just raw onion or can you eat sautéed or caramelized onion? If so, I would try one of those alternatives or caramelizing the onions first. If that isn’t an option, then you could perhaps try a pureeing a 1/4 or 1/2 cup of chopped celery with perhaps a little extra garlic (another clove or two). That could work, but you don’t want too much water, so I’d start with a 1/4 cup and see where you get before adding another 1/4 cup. If that doesn’t yield a good result, you could maybe try just adding a 1/8 cup of chicken broth or vegetable oil. Lastly, try just leaving the onion out entirely without a substitute and adding a little more garlic instead. The flavors and textures won’t be quite right, but you’ll at least get the main flavors of oregano and garlic coming through. I hope that helps and please let me know if it works out!
Had a craving for some Gyro sandwiches for dinner. Found your recipe with a quick Google search. Followed it to a tee…and made the best Gyro meat I have ever tasted. My family agrees! “This is the best thing you’ be ever made” and “these are better than the ones at the Minnesota state Fair which were my favorite”
To anyone who reads this. Make them! They are the best ever!!!
I’m sick and in bed but of course craving absolutely everything. After 3 hours of reading different gyro meat recipes I was absolutely overwhelmed and unsatisfied… that is until I came across your recipe. You did the most amazing job at pointing out what other major recipes were missing (trust me I read them all including the ones you mentioned + the comments) and you learned from their mistakes and formed this perfect recipe. I just know it’s going to turn out absolutely fabulous. Once I’m all better this is 100% going to be the very first thing I make. I’m absolutely excited and very happy that this is also gluten free — a problem that I have with all gyro places since they use breadcrumbs as a filler. I’m at peace! Thank you so much for the time and effort you put into this.
I felt like the texture of the meat was too loose. Thinking next time I’ll make it in a loaf pan with another weighted pan on top to compress the meat while it cooks.
Thanks Cooper! Did you add the salt ahead of time and let it sit in the fridge? That’s a big part of getting that sort of tighter “spongy” quality by changing the proteins. Also making sure to pack the meat when forming the loaf. If you use a loaf pan, you might notice some liquid building up and you won’t get browning on the sides. If you do try tue loaf pan, let me know how it goes! Glad you liked the flavor.
Home Is A Kitchen 
This looks soooo good! I’ve always wanted to make homemade gyros. Adding this to my bookmarks and making it this week. I’m sure my husband will applaud you for this recipe.
Uh oh! The pressure’s on! 😜 I hope the recipe works for you and your husband. Please let me know how it turns out. I’d love a third opinion (my wife already gave the second opinion).
Haha we definitely will!
This is great. I love gyro but always wondered what they put in it. At least now I know that I can make it myself and be sure of the ingredients. Thanks.
Made this for my family and we loved it! When I dressed it up in a pita with some tzatziki I thought I was eating the real thing!!! The kids ate it so fast, I might need to make a double portion next time. Thanks for the great recipe!!!
Made these tonight using ground venison (elk).
We loved them.
Ground elk? Wow! That’s awesome! I’m psyched you enjoyed the recipe and tried it with game meat. Thanks for stopping by.
Made a fast version. Made the seasoned meat into flat burgers and cooked on stovetop(minus the garlic and onion). Served with red onion, tomato, and lettuce in a pita with the sauce. Awesome and quick! (I used 1 Pound of ground lamb)
Looks good I’m trying it….
Please do and let me know how it turns out!
All I can say is awesome! My recipe is very similar,but I could never get the texture down. You totally nailed it. Thanks for doing all the hard work and sharing. This is now my families new fav.
I’m so glad to hear that, Janet! I appreciate the kind words and that you tried out the recipe. I hope you and your family enjoy it again in the future. Happy eating!
There are no gyro places in my small Alaskan town. Will be trying this with moose burger. There are just two of us in the family, so can I freeze some of this meat for gyros another time? Would it be best to freeze after baking and cut into strips? or freeze half of the mixture before baking? Thoughts? thanks
Hi Janis! Moose burger sounds awesome. I’ve never had it, but would love to try it. I have no idea how it will work with this recipe, but I’m excited for you to try it. As for saving some of the meat for cooking, I suggest cooking all of it, eating as much as you want, then cutting the leftovers into strips and freezing them. That way you can pretty much just heat up the strips in a warm skillet right out of the freezer. The leftovers will also keep pretty well in the fridge for a few days if you think you’ll want to eat more of it in the same week. Please do let me know how the moose gyros came out!
Turned out to be thawed deer meat and not moose meat. Mixed it half and half with ground lamb. Love the recipe,. I was pleased with the results. Leftovers in the fridge for my husband and friends due home from a hunting trip. If they also like these, I’ll be angling for a way to make the ground and spiced gyro mixture (gyro sausage) to freeze, for easy to make gyros in the future…. thanks.
YUM!! I researched making my own gyro meat on the web, and finally decided that your recipe seemed to make the most sense in terms of technique. I certainly made a wise decision. I’ve just pulled this from the oven and HAD to have a tiny bite to see if this is as close to authentic as the smell–YEP!! REALLY good taste and texture. Thank you for doing the work to come up with this recipe.
I will say that most, if not all, of the other recipes that I looked at involved squeezing the liquid out of the onion / garlic mixture before adding the meat mixture. I decided to go ahead and do that. Again, the texture is superb, so I’m glad that I did that.
Also, rather than trying to use pork belly, I used half ground lamb and half ground pork.
This was actually much easier and quicker than I had originally thought that it would be. I see myself making this quite frequently–I can’t imagine EVER getting tired of gyros!!
Hi Sherry! That’s fantastic that it came out so well and you enjoyed it! Very nice call on the half lamb and half pork combination. Maybe I’ll try squeezing the liquid out of the onions some day. I’ve never had a problem with mushiness or watery meat when not doing it, but I’d be interested to see if there’s a significant difference in texture. Thanks for the tip.
Oh my word this recipe is SOOO good! My search for a homemade gyro recipe is over. I doubled the recipe and used 1 lb. ground beef and 1 lb. ground lamb. I may cut back a bit on the salt next time but absolutely delicious! Thank you for sharing the recipe with us!
My pleasure, JB! Thanks for trying out the recipe. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
I have loved gyros and have tried a few lambless recipes.
This one takes the cake. Once the meat was broiled, the meat took on a whole new flavor. It has the right seasoning and with the tzatziki, this made the perfect home gyro.
Three thumbs up for this dish.
Thanks, Tonya! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Good recipe I like it, did it once already. So i may be able to afford the ingredients in the future a suggestion, just wasted all my color ink along with 9 pieces of paper printing this out so I had a reference so i guess hp gets a piece now too. How about making a printer friendly version so it does not cost an arm and a leg to print out? Thanks for that 9 pages and 2 $30 ink cartridges later! Otherwise its good…
forgot to mention in my little huff about printing this thing up that this is restaurant quality here it beats out people that do it for a living. Simple recipe easy to repeat and it is better then any of the spots I’ve gone in town. So the end result is better to eat in then out. Good show Man Fuel!!! If you want i will make a template for printing the recipes make it easy.
Hi T. I appreciate that you used up a bunch of your ink to print the recipe. Nonetheless, if you look at the title of the recipe before the Ingredients, there is a small print link. If you click that link, it should print only the text of the recipe. If you use the link at the bottom of the page that will print the entire post. Next time, please use the link near the recipe title before the Ingredients. I’m glad you liked the recipe and enjoyed it though.
Omg I made it for supper tonight and it was fantastic! I used 1/2 beef 1/2 lamb.
Thank you for the recipe!!!!
You’re welcome, Mary! Thanks for trying it out!
This is one of the most amazing recipes I have ever made!! I mixed the meats, salt, pepper and oregano last night and refrigerated it. Puréed, baked and broiled it today. Holy crap, it’s amazing!! We used to order gyros all the time, never again. Thank you so much for this recipe.
Wow! Thanks, Kimberly! I appreciate the kind words and that you took a chance on this recipe. I’m so glad you enjoyed it.
So love the recipe. Think it can work by putting the mix through a jerky press to make strips, then just putting the strips under the broiler?
Hi Rich! I have absolutely no idea if that would work. I don’t have a jerky press and I’ve never tried one. I’d love to hear how it goes if you do try it. My gut reaction is that it won’t work that well simply because the meat is so soft, unlike a steak or other meat that might be used for jerky. Nonetheless, I have nothing to base that on. Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks. So I made it in the oven. It was awesome flavor, and the broiler is a must after the bake. I read on some other recipes to drain the onion juice using a towel. I did that, not sure it was right. Do you wring out the onions? Also, I cooked on a wire rack in a pan. Definitely use the foil under the loaf because it sinks in little and gets wire marks. Purely cosmetic, but I prefer the smooth look like yours has. great recipe!!
I don’t wring out the onions. Someone did mention that in the comments, but I’ve never done it and I’ve been more than happy with the consistency as it is. I’d be interested to see what it’s like, but I don’t think it’s necessary. Thanks for giving the recipe a shot and glad you enjoyed it.
wow I love the recipe made it and everyone loves it I also used it in my restaurant hope you don’t mind new hit I am making stacks of money with this recipe thank you
Wow! Stacks of money, huh? Congratulations on the success. I’m very happy you and your customers enjoy the recipe. Shoot me an email if you’d like to share the name of your restaurant! Thanks for stopping by!
Are you cooking rhis at 325 degrees or is it just to preheat?
Hi Stacie, that’s the cooking temperature as well.
I made the loaves tonight, doing a double batch. I don’t have a processor, but have a KitchenAid mixer and a good blender. I puree’d the onions and garlic in the blender. I used 1 lb. 80/20 beef and 1 lb ground lamb. I used 6 OZ of salt pork belly which I diced up with a chef knife. I mixed it for about 10 – 12 minutes in the mixer. The “paste” produced two 8x5x1.5 inch loaves. Probably enough for 6-8 with seconds (and who doesn’t want a second of Gyros!). In the fridge now. Doing a lunch tomorrow. I will bake them in the morning and let them cool prior to slicing. Pitas here we come!!!
Hi Tom! That’s a very interesting process with the stand mixer. I hope it turns out ok as I’ve never mixed the meat that way or for that long. I would love to hear back from you about the texture using that method! If you used salted pork belly, I hope you lessened the added salt a bit just so it’s not too salty. Overall, I think you’ll be ok as the pita and any toppings would offset. Nice choice using the lamb! Good luck and please let me know how it turns out!
Thank you for this amazing recipe. I had a gyro at the Denver Convention Center at a Volleyball Tournament i was watching. It was ground beef, but very tasty, with a good tzatziki sauce. It peaked my interest in making my own.
I watched Alton Brown and trust him as he has taught me a lot. But his recipe and the brick and this and that seems too much, where yours is amazingly simple and looks to be better than a lot of commercial places, that use fillers and MSG.
I just finished making the tzatzik sauce and it will be amazing once it fully blooms in the fridge while waiting for to make dinner, three hours from now. The meat is chilling, this is a great technique to use the salt to bind the proteins and moisture. I’m so excited for dinner tonight.
I have Crohn’s Colitis, which is an auto-immune chronic disorder that creates violence in the intestines. I’m on a special diet, IBD-AID, and all the ingredients are legal for me, except the the gluten in the pita.
Next time I will make homemade gluten free pitas. They sell them in the store, but they taste like cardboard, at $7.00 a package, no thanks. I am still on the road to remission, and cooking has always been my yoga meditation, creating symphonies of flavors. Sometimes as with the tzatzik, simplicity is beautiful. I am so happy to make this and a little gluten won’t kill me as much as the love for this great dish will please me.
Diets are about slowly compromising, and I have cleaned up my act tremendously and I do believe that Crohn’s, like other things that people have could easily be a curse, but for me it is a blessing to become the healthiest man I have ever been, physically and emotionally. Stress and diet make the differernce. Of course exercise is a big key to controlling stress and over-all health. As in the great movie, Shawshank Redemption, Get busy living or get busy dying.
Many thanks for this and all your entries. I used to live outside of Providence and I remember at the time, almost 20 years ago, the best food was on Federal Hill, but from all of your blogs, it looks like Providence, as in the Denver area where I now live, have both gone through culinary evolution. Regardless of what happens in national politics, it is still an amazing time to live.
Thanks for sharing your story! I hope the gyro lives up to your expectations! Please let me know how it turns out and I’m glad you decided to take a chance on my recipe!
Wow, the meat was fantastic. Although like a few others, I will lower the salt next time.The Pita’s fell apart, but just just more reason to make homemade. The tzatzik sauce is amazing. You too are amazing, responding so quickly and having so much great content.
I will use your reviews when I go to visit Providence this summer. I used to have a summer house in Greenville on Waterman’s Lake on route 44 just outside of Providence. My ex now has it and I will be flying into Providence this summer to take my daughter to New York City for week to see some Broadway shows. I will spend and extra night in Providence checking out one of the fine eateries you have featured.
Thanks again and keep up the good work living your passions.
Glad you enjoyed it! Have a great time when you’re back in Providence!
Is the salt amount for kosher or table salt?
Kosher. I believe it’s in the ingredients section too. I also note that if you’re using table salt, use less than a tablespoon.
Youssef, thank you so much for your homework, research and culinary experience. This was fantastic! Made as written with the exception of cooking on the grill rotisserie. I seldom find recipes that I like better than J. Kenji Lopez-Alt’s, but yours turned out better! Thanks for your effort and time to create your blog and share so many wonderful recipes with us!
Wow! Thanks so much, DB! My pleasure! I agree that Kenji does an incredible job, but I’m also happy you enjoyed this recipe. Please stop by again!
Let me start by saying that I’m a gyro junkie. Have been for forty years. To the point that I have bought my own vertical rotisserie and the commercial cones. But with the family of two, that’s not really practical. As my wife has pointed out repeatedly. In any case, searched far and wide for a home version of the Greek-American classic. Tried them all and results varied but most, not even close. Having a sausage making background I knew the method and this recipe had it. Most call for so many ingredients, it’s ridiculous. This was basic, but spot on. It will be my go to. Made as written except doubled. Used 1lb beef, 1 lb. Lamb. Used Greek oregano and 6 oz. Hard pork fat. No need to drain onions. You need the liquid. You’re creating an emulsion. Similar to making balogna or hot dogs. I actually ace added a little extra water to get the consistency right. Next time, I might cut back on the salt, but not much. I may also up the oregano. I’m also going to try stuffing it into 4″ balogna casings, par-cooking it, removing the casings and putting it on a spit on the grill. Remember, for the whole gyro experience, it does need the char. Also, the meat is just one ingredient. The sauceis required. Well done. This is as goodas it gets for the home made gyro experience. (Or buy an auto Donner and some commercial cones and hear about that for the rest of your life)
Hi Patrick! Let me just say that this review of the recipe and your passion for gyros has made my day! You definitely sound like you know what you’re talking about when it comes to the Greek-American Gyro. I’m very happy that you found my recipe and that you not only tried it out, but enjoyed it. I may edit my recipe to reduce the salt a bit as some people have mentioned it as being a little salty, so thanks for the input. Your idea of putting the meat into balogna casings sounds awesome! Please let me know how that turns out. Lastly, I have nothing but respect for a man that owns his own Vertical Rotisserie. I’d love to have one myself!
As a side note. I also took it out of the food processor after it looked right and threw it in the stand mixer for about 10 minutes with a paddle. You want a very fine, creamy emulsion. I think it could benefit from stuffing into a casting because it needs the compaction. It’s a little loose to start. But I tend to over do things. Doesn’t matter. Perfect. PS. Seriously, cut it with lamb if you want to get really close.
Used 1lb ground chuck (80/20) & Earthfare meat dept cut up a leg of lamb to grind me 1lb-so far I sampled w/out putting under broiler…glad I decided on this recipe-I doubled & glad I did!! Other recipes I researched had additional seasonings & even breadcrumbs, & this seems authentic taste to me. (‘Authentic’ American Greek, since I have not traveled to Greece.). I bought premade tzatziki @ Sam’s, also Naan stone bread-I think my son’s going to be impressed. His favorite & closest place it 20 miles from us 👍🏼👍🏼
That’s so great, Juanita! Good call on the fresh ground lamb. I hope your son enjoys! Thanks for stopping by and checking out the recipe!
Do you think it would hold together enough to be put on a rotisserie spit?
Hey Jennifer! On a horizontal spit right after mixing the meat? Not a chance! Haha! The raw mixture is pretty soft. You MIGHT be able to put it on a vertical rotisserie, but you’d need to make it sort of a cone shape (narrow on top) in order for it to stay in place. If you really wanted to try a rotisserie for this, I would recommend wrapping the raw mixture in plastic wrap and rolling it up so that it forms a thick sausage shape, then inserting the rotisserie spit into the meat along the length, and then tying off the ends of the plastic wrap. Freeze it overnight, if possible. Ideally, when you go to use the rotisserie (vertical or horizontal), the frozen interior will keep the meat on the spit while it rotates. Cook the exterior to a dark brown crispy color and then shave a very thin layer off. Repeat this process until all of the meat is cooked and shaved. I can’t stress enough that I have never done this, but this is what I would do if I wanted to use a rotisserie to cook this. I hope that helps!
I just made this and am not so patiently waiting for my husband and son to come home for dinner. I haven’t broiled the meat yet, but couldn’t stop myself from tasting it right out of the oven. Absolutely amazing. Now I’m pacing and waiting for everyone to get home to put the finishing touches on what will be a fabulous dinner.
That’s great, Crystal! So happy you like it so far and I hope your family loves all your effort! Enjoy and thanks for stopping by as well as sharing your thoughts.
I quadrupled this recipe for a dinner party and it was a huge hit! So delish! Thanks for sharing!!
So happy it worked out for you, Emeline! Also thrilled that it was a hit. Thanks for stopping by, giving the recipe a try, and sharing your experience!
can i use ground chicken instead of red meat???
Hi Sam! You can definitely try this with ground chicken or ground turkey. The main issue will be the fat content though. I’m thinking you’ll end up with a much leaner and possibly a bit drier product. If you can’t increase the fat content with chicken or pork fat, try adding a 1/4 cup of vegetable oil. It’s not a perfect substitute, but it will help with moisture. Also keep in mind that it will also taste different than a typical gyro obviously. I hope that helps! If you do try this out, please let me know how it goes!
Have allergy to onions. Any suggestion to substitute?? Thx!
Hi Deb! That is a tough question… Are you allergic to all types of onions? Scallions or leeks or shallots as well? If not, I would recommend trying some of those. Is it just raw onion or can you eat sautéed or caramelized onion? If so, I would try one of those alternatives or caramelizing the onions first. If that isn’t an option, then you could perhaps try a pureeing a 1/4 or 1/2 cup of chopped celery with perhaps a little extra garlic (another clove or two). That could work, but you don’t want too much water, so I’d start with a 1/4 cup and see where you get before adding another 1/4 cup. If that doesn’t yield a good result, you could maybe try just adding a 1/8 cup of chicken broth or vegetable oil. Lastly, try just leaving the onion out entirely without a substitute and adding a little more garlic instead. The flavors and textures won’t be quite right, but you’ll at least get the main flavors of oregano and garlic coming through. I hope that helps and please let me know if it works out!
Had a craving for some Gyro sandwiches for dinner. Found your recipe with a quick Google search. Followed it to a tee…and made the best Gyro meat I have ever tasted. My family agrees! “This is the best thing you’ be ever made” and “these are better than the ones at the Minnesota state Fair which were my favorite”
To anyone who reads this. Make them! They are the best ever!!!
Thank you so much, Dave! I’m happy you’re happy!
I’m sick and in bed but of course craving absolutely everything. After 3 hours of reading different gyro meat recipes I was absolutely overwhelmed and unsatisfied… that is until I came across your recipe. You did the most amazing job at pointing out what other major recipes were missing (trust me I read them all including the ones you mentioned + the comments) and you learned from their mistakes and formed this perfect recipe. I just know it’s going to turn out absolutely fabulous. Once I’m all better this is 100% going to be the very first thing I make. I’m absolutely excited and very happy that this is also gluten free — a problem that I have with all gyro places since they use breadcrumbs as a filler. I’m at peace! Thank you so much for the time and effort you put into this.
Thanks so much! I can’t wait for you to try it!
The flavor of this is spot on! Loved it!
I felt like the texture of the meat was too loose. Thinking next time I’ll make it in a loaf pan with another weighted pan on top to compress the meat while it cooks.
Thanks Cooper! Did you add the salt ahead of time and let it sit in the fridge? That’s a big part of getting that sort of tighter “spongy” quality by changing the proteins. Also making sure to pack the meat when forming the loaf. If you use a loaf pan, you might notice some liquid building up and you won’t get browning on the sides. If you do try tue loaf pan, let me know how it goes! Glad you liked the flavor.
Yep. The seasoned meat mixture was in the fridge for about six hours.