Authentic Shawarma seasoning blend, just the way it’s made in the Middle East. It’s so fragrant, delicious, and easy to make. Great to season chicken, meat, vegetables, and even chickpeas.
As I grew up in the Middle East, I had lots of Shawarma in my life. It’s a popular snack/dinner food that everyone loves, and in every Jordanian town, you’ll find a Shawarma shop in almost every street. In the “Souk” you might even find 2 or 3 or even 4 Shawarma shops next to each other, and they all have their customers!
It’s just how the Middle East rolls. Shawarma = life. In the UK, these shops are called “Kebab shops” but mainly made the Turkish way. And as in Little Sunny Kitchen, we are all about healthifying recipes as much as we can so we created a Shawarma seasoning recipe for you. Of course, a Shawarma recipe will follow!
If you like Middle Eastern flavors, make sure to check out my Baharat seasoning mix which is added to all Middle Eastern dishes.
If you google Shawarma spices, you’ll find lots of recipes. But let me assure you, THIS IS the authentic recipe here!
Shawarma Seasoning Ingredients
You will need the following spices, either ground or whole:
- Cumin
- Coriander
- Garlic powder
- Paprika
- Cloves
- Cardamom
- Turmeric
- Ginger
- Black pepper
- Cinnamon
How to Make Shawarma Seasoning?
- First, you need to collect the spices. I don’t recommend adding any extras such as chili flakes as that will change the flavor and you’ll end up with a different spice blend.
- You can either collect ground spices and just mix them, or collect whole spices and then grind them. It depends on what you have available.
Grind the spices using a pestle and mortar or an electric grinder.
If you’re looking to buy a really good electric spice grinder, then I can recommend this Cuisinart spice grinder (currently on sale for just $36, it went down from $70).
This is the grinder that we used at the cookery school when I did my chef training, it’s so efficient and the reason why I love it because it comes with a removable stainless steel bowl (most cheaper spice grinders come with built-in bowls which makes them so difficult to clean). And you can just pop the bowl in the dishwasher! It’s also great for grinding nuts.
The KitchenAid spice grinder is also great, it comes with 2 bowls and that’s perfect if you also would like to grind coffee.
Storing Spices
Whole spices stay fresh for longer, once you grind them, they need to be stored in a cool dry place. However, homemade spices last much longer than any ground spice that you buy from a store. So store in an airtight jar in a cool dry place for up to a year.
How to Marinate Chicken or Meat With Shawarma Seasoning?
In a bowl, add 1 tablespoon of seasoning to every 1 pound of meat. Add 1 tablespoon of yogurt, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Mix everything together, cover the bowl, and refrigerate for 1-24 hours.
Make sure that you check out my chicken shawarma recipe that I made in the Instant Pot.
More Homemade Seasonings
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I hope that you love every recipe that you make! – Diana x
Shawarma Seasoning
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder/granules
- 1 teaspoon ground paprika
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ½ teaspoon dried ground turmeric
- 1 tablespoon dried ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- First, you need to collect the spices. I don’t recommend adding any extras such as chili flakes as that will change the flavor and you’ll end up with a different spice blend.
- You can either collect ground spices and just mix them, or collect whole spices and then grind them. It depends on what you have available.
Notes
- Use 2 tablespoons of seasoning per 1 kilogram of chicken/meat, or 1 tablespoon per 1 pound of chicken/meat.
- The amounts in this recipe card will make around 6 tablespoons of seasoning which is enough for 6 pounds of chicken or meat.
- You can easily double or triple this recipe.
- To marinate chicken or meat: in a bowl, add 1 tablespoon of seasoning to every 1 pound of meat. Add 1 tablespoon of yogurt, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Mix everything together, cover the bowl, and refrigerate for 1-24 hours.
- Store in an airtight jar in a cool dry place for up to a year.
Nikki Farrow
This seasoning is PHENOMENAL! I loved how flavorful and beautiful in color my chicken is. Thank you so much for this recipe. This was my first taste of shawarma.
Diana
Hi Nikki, so glad to hear that you loved it! Thank you so much for the awesome review!
MK
This was an incredible shawarma blend! Thank you!! Also, just do double check—it’s really 1 TABLESPOON of ginger?
Diana
So glad that you loved it! And that’s right, you need a tablespoon of ground ginger 🙂
Rhonda
For the cardamom powder. I have black cardamom is that the same things?
Diana
Hi Rhonda, they’re a bit different. The black cardamom is smoky with spicy notes, while green cardamom is very aromatic and has a minty flavor. That being said, you can probably use black cardamom for extra flavor but it is stronger than green cardamom, so I would either leave it out or reduce the amount by half. I hope that you enjoy!
Rose
Thor’s looks fabulous. I’m intending to attempt your chicken shawarma tonight if possible. I’ve got everything except the cardimun, coriander, and garlic powder.
Are there any reasonable substitutions for the cadmium and coriander? Can I leave them out? I can easily get garlic powder but like fresh garlic, would this be ok for a small batch used right away?
Thank you for helping! I’m excited to try it
Diana
Hi Rose, you can totally add fresh garlic to the chicken marinade. As for the coriander and cardamom, they give a lovely flavor to the seasoning but you can leave them out if you don’t have them. Enjoy!
HEATHER WADE
Knowing I was going to make this recipe again, and again, I made a triple batch of the seasoning. There’s a good chance it will wind up on something else between now and my next shawarma.
Diana
Thank you so much for sharing that with me and for giving wonderful feedback! I hope you love every recipe you try!