Chicken Shawarma Mediterranean Salad
This vibrant Arizona chain copycat recipe is full of veggies, chicken, and quinoa!
I love stumbling upon copycats for restaurants I’ve never heard of and probably will never eat. Pita Jungle is exclusively an Arizona restaurant chain. It looks and sounds fantastic and totally up my alley. This recipe was such a hit. It is a salad but has lots of heartiness to it with quinoa and chicken - lots of veggies and just a hint of lemon juice over the top. This was especially a hit (sans feta) with my husband who doesn’t like salad dressings. I just super appreciate how vibrant the whole plate is. So lovely and delicious!
What You Need:
For the Shawarma Chicken Marinade:
3 cloves minced garlic
1 Tbsp. ground coriander
1 Tbsp. ground cardamom
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 Tbsp. smoked paprika
1 tsp. sumac
2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/4 cup avocado oil
2 lb. chicken breasts, thinned
For the Mediterranean Salad:
3 roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
1/4 chopped medium red onion
2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro, plus some for garnish
4 to 5 Persian cucumbers, sliced
1/3 cup crumbled feta, plus some for garnish
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup pine nuts or slivered almonds
5 cups cooked quinoa
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. sumac
Salt to taste
24 oz. romaine lettuce
Directions:
For the marinade: mix all ingredients except chicken in a small bowl. Add chicken with marinade in a large gallon size zipper baggie. Massage and let marinate for a few hours or up to 24 hours.
Cook chicken on a preheated 500 degree grill until cooked all the way through. Set aside while you prep the rest of the salad.
For the salad: Prep and chop everything, adding it to a large bowl as you go. Add feta, raisins, pine nuts, quinoa, lemon juice, sumac, and salt.
Slice chicken and add to bowl OR serve on top.
Add a bed of lettuce to your plate or bowl, top with veggies and chicken, then garnish with additional feta, pine nuts, and cilantro.
Recipe from Hungry Hobby
