Traditional Gyro Meat

Description

This Greek/Lebanese style meatloaf is sliced and served with pita bread, tzatziki, and tomatoes for a delicious gyro that is the closest I’ve come to emulating my favorite Mediterranean restaurant. The preparation time seems long, but most of it is resting time, so you can be doing other stuff! You can substitute pork or chicken for the ground lamb and beef if you prefer.

Ingredients

  • ½ onion, cut into chunks
  • 1 pound ground lamb
  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
  • 1 teaspoon ground dried rosemary
  • 1 teaspoon ground dried thyme
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

  1. Pulse onion in a food processor until finely chopped. Scoop onions onto the center of a towel
  2. gather up the towel ends
  3. and squeeze to remove liquid.
  4. Combine onions
  5. lamb
  6. beef
  7. garlic
  8. oregano
  9. cumin
  10. marjoram
  11. rosemary
  12. thyme
  13. pepper
  14. and salt in a large bowl. Mix with your hands until well combined. Cover and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours to allow the flavors to blend.
  15. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
  16. Place the meat mixture into a food processor and pulse until finely chopped and the texture feels tacky
  17. about 1 minute. Transfer to a 7×4-inch loaf pan
  18. and pack down to make sure there are no air pockets.
  19. Line a large roasting pan with a damp kitchen towel. Place the loaf pan in the center of the towel-lined roasting pan
  20. and transfer it into the preheated oven. Carefully pour boiling water into the roasting pan until it comes halfway up the sides of the loaf pan.
  21. Bake in the preheated oven until gyro meat is no longer pink in the center and the internal temperature registers 165 degrees F (75 degrees C) on a meat thermometer
  22. 45 minutes to 1 hour.
  23. Pour off any accumulated fat
  24. and allow to cool slightly before slicing thinly and serving.

Prep Time: 15 mins

Cook Time: 45 mins

Total Time: 2 hrs

Servings: 10

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