STS Cookin': Gyros

I'm a HUUUUGE fan of gyros, possibly one of the best walking around while eating foods. They are ok in restaurants, but nothing beats finding a food truck with gyros, especially with some homemade pita bread. One of my recent purchases was a 3-part series of recipes from Alton Brown's show Good Eats. Perusing the book I saw he had an episode on gyros. This is one of those recipes where it seems like a lot of work, but it is pretty easy. I also used his homemade Tzatziki sauce and a home made pita recipe from online. The pita will get me into trouble one day.

Pita Ingredients:

1 cup Warm Water, should not be hot or boiling

2 tsp Active Dry or Instant Yeast

2 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour

2 tsp salt

1-2 tsp Olive Oil if desired

Gyro Ingredients:

1 medium Onion, finely chopped

2 lbs. Ground Lamb

1 Tbsp. Garlic, minced

1 Tbsp. Dried Marjoram

1 Tbsp. Dried Rosemary

2 tsp. Salt

1/2 tsp. Black Pepper

Tzatziki Ingredients:

2 cups Plain Greek Yogurt, low-fat is ok, no fat-free

1 medium Cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped

4 cloves Garlic, minced

1 Tbsp. Olive Oil

2 tsp. Red Wine Vinegar

5-6 leaves Fresh Mint, chopped finely

Pita Instructions:

1. Add yeast in warm water and let it sit for 15 minutes until the yeast has dissolved. There should be a bread smell coming from the liquid.

2. Add the flour to the bowl  followed by the salt and olive oil. mix until it forms rough dough.

3. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a floured surface. Knead the dough for 5-7 minutes. It should lose any stickiness and be able to form a smooth ball.

4. Place dough in a cleaned bowl and cover for 1-2 hours until it doubles in size. Remove from the bowl, deflate the dough, and separate into 8 equal pieces.

5. Roll each piece out into a circle with 1/4 inch thickness.

6. Heat a cast iron skillet or frying pan. When hot place the dough on the surface for 30 seconds, until bubbles start to form. Flip the dough and cook for 1 minute. Then flip to the original side and cook for another minute. Remove and repeat as needed.

Dough can be stored in the fridge after separating into pieces if you aren't planning to cook right away

Gyro Instructions:

1. Process the onion in a food processor for 10-15 seconds until it becomes almost a thick liquid. Place on a tea towel and twist to drain all of the liquid.

2. Return the onion to the food processor and add the lamb, garlic, marjoram, rosemary, salt, and pepper. Process until it is a fine paste, about 1 minute.

3. If cooking on a grill, form into a loaf shape by placing it between 2 pieces of plastic wrap at least 18 inches long.. Twist the plastic wrap to remove air pockets and pack into a tight loaf. Refridgerate overnight. Heat grill to high and place meat on rotisserie skewer. Cook over high for 15 minutes, decrease to medium and cook for 20-30 minutes. Internal temperature should be 165. Turn off the heat and cook for another 10-15 minutes until the internal temp reaches 175. Make sure to leave a foil pan under the meat to catch drippings.

4. If cooking in an oven, press the meat into into a meatloaf pan. and place into a water bath. Ensure there are no air bubbles. Heat the oven to 325 and cook for 60-75 minutes until the loaf reaches 170 degrees. Remove and cover with foil until the loaf reaches 175 degrees. Remove from pan and slice thinly.

Tzatziki Ingredients:

1. Place the cucumbers in a tea towel and squeeze to drain the liquid.

2. Combine all of the ingredients and mix well. Serve in a bowl or place into a squeeze bottle.