This scrumptious sandwich is a personal spin on a Greek-style gyro recipe. Packed with savory lamb, crispy veggies, feta cheese, and homemade tzatziki sauce!
While this gyro recipe is nowhere near authentic homemade gyros, it will surely satiate your craving for a meaty sandwich. Inspired by the flavors of Greece and Asia, we use a savory marinade of soy sauce and onions for the lamb to complement the tangy tzatziki and feta cheese. For all you fusion lovers out there!
The Proper Way to Roll a Gyro
Rolling a gyro requires a bit of technique and the willpower to not overstuff the pita bread (good luck!).
- Lay the Pita Flat: First, lay the pita bread on a flat surface.
- Stuff the Pita: Next, stack the ingredients into the center of the pita bread, building upwards.
- Fold the Pita: Fold one of the pita sides over, followed by the other. Wrap the gyro in parchment paper to keep the sandwich secured, or pierce it with a toothpick.
Like a warm pita? Wrap the pitas in aluminum foil and bake them in the oven at 300°F until warmed through.
Making this Gyro Recipe with Tzatziki Sauce
Making this spin on lamb gyros requires a bit grilling and some light assembly.
- Marinate the Lamb: Slice the lamb into smaller pieces and place them in a baking dish with sliced onion, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, and steak seasoning. Allow the lamb to marinate for in the refrigerator.
- Grill the Lamb Gyro Meat: Heat up the grill and cook the lamb on both sides until the meat is completely cooked through. Allow the lamb to rest for a few minutes and slice it into small strips.
- Make the Tzatziki: Slice, peel, and remove the seeds from the cucumbers. Next, grate them and squeeze out all the excess juice. In a medium bowl, mix the scallions, shredded cucumbers, pressed garlic, diced dill, Greek yogurt, salt and black pepper until well-combined. If you like a brighter tzatziki, add in a couple of teaspoons of lemon juice or red wine vinegar to taste.
- Assemble the Gyros: Place the lamb in the center of the pita and top with feta cheese, followed by tomatoes, red onions, and lettuce. Serve the gyros with a side of the tzatziki sauce for dipping. Enjoy!
3 Tips for Making this Gyro-Inspired Sando
A handful of straightforward tips will help you nail our version of the gyro.
- Marinate the meat overnight if you can. While the lamb will be delicious if it’s marinated for just two hours, an overnight marinade will bring so much depth of flavor. If you have the time, it’s worth it!
- Be aware that lamb cooks very quickly. Lamb only takes a couple of minutes per side to cook, so make sure not to keep it over the grill too long or else it will get tough and rubbery.
- Salt the cucumbers for 20 minutes to take more water out. If your cucumbers are extra watery, slice and salt them for 20 minutes to pull all the excess moisture out. This will make for such a flavorful tzatziki dip that doesn’t taste watered down.
Tasty Side Dish Ideas
Turn your gyro into a full blown meal by pairing it with any one of these tasty side dishes.
- Salad: Greek salad or garden salad
- Fries: Air fryer french fries or air fryer potato wedges
- Chips: Air fryer potato chips
Leftover & Meal Prep Storage Tips
To keep your leftovers fresh for as long as possible, store the meat and tzatziki sauce in two separate airtight containers in the fridge. Assemble the sandwiches on-demand to prevent them from turning soggy. When stored properly, the meat and sauce should keep fresh for up to 5 days.
FAQ
What is gyro meat typically made of in a traditional gyro recipe?
Traditional gyro meat is typically made with a meat mixture of lean ground beef and ground lamb, oregano, cumin, thyme, marjoram, and rosemary. It’s then cooked on a rotisserie and sliced off into thin strips with a sharp knife.
What are some other sauces besides tzatziki that work well in a gyro recipe?
If you aren’t a fan of tzatziki, you can swap it out for avocado hummus or baba ganoush (eggplant spread) in a gyro. So long as the sauce has a little tang, you’ll be golden!
Can you use beef instead of lamb in a gyro recipe?
Swapping in beef for lamb in a gyro is perfectly acceptable. Sirloin steak and ribeye are both awesome cuts to use.
What’s the difference between a gyro and a shawarma?
Shawarma is a Middle Eastern sandwich wrap, while a gyro is a Greek pita sandwich. That said, both contain a ton of savory meat, cheese, and crisp veggies.
What kind of lettuce is best for a gyro recipe?
Regular, old-fashioned romaine lettuce works best in a gyro for it’s crispness and neutral flavor. However, you can also use iceberg lettuce or spinach if you’d like.
More Tasty Sandwich Recipes
- Easy Philly Cheesesteak Recipe (The Ultimate Guide) – Beef, cheese, and pepper sando
- Air Fryer Grilled Cheese (So Easy) – Crispy and melty cheese sando
- Popeyes Chicken Sandwich (Copycat) – Classic fried chicken sando
- Cuban Pork Sandwich – Pork, cheese, & peppers sando
Recipe
Ingredients
Lamb Gyro Meat
- 2 lbs lamb
- 4 tbsp soy sauce
- 1/2 cup teriyaki sauce
- 1 tbsp steak seasoning blend
- 1 onion
Tzatziki Sauce
Sandwich Toppings & PIta Bread
- 2 medium tomatoes
- 5 large lettuce leaves
- 1 cup feta cheese
- 1/2 medium purple onion
- 10 pita or naan bread
Instructions
Meat
- Slice the lamb down into smaller pieces for grilling.
- Place the pieces of the lamb in a dish and cover them with sliced onion. Cover the lamb with the soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, and steak seasoning blend. Let the lamb marinate for 2-24 hours covered in the refrigerator.
- Using a gas or charcoal grill, cook the lamb on each side until the meat is completely cooked through (about 2-3 minutes per side).
- Let the lamb rest for a few minutes. Slice it into small strips.
Tzatziki Sauce and Assembling Gyro
- Dice the scallions into tiny pieces. Peel the cucumbers and remove the seeds. Using a grater, shred the cucumber into small pieces. Squeeze the excess juice from the cucumbers and place them into a medium bowl alongside the scallions. Press the garlic into the bowl, followed by the diced dill, Greek yogurt, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.
- Dice the tomatoes, onions, and lettuce.
- To assemble the gyro, place the meat into the middle of the naan or pita. Top the meat with the feta, followed by lettuce, tomatoes, and onions.
- Serve the gyros with a side of tzatziki sauce for dipping. Enjoy!
No. Don't call this slop any kind of Hellenic anything, especially not a gyro. If you're going to make a food make it correctly or not at all.
Your "take" is bad and your passive aggressive comments are equally bad.
Hi there- This recipe was not meant to be upsetting to anyone. It was my attempt at recreating a gyro, and I fully understand it was not a 100% authentic recreation. Please share your favorite gyro recipes with me if you are inclined to do so.
Are you kidding??
Soy Sauce in a Gyro?
🤣🤣🤣
Hi Richard- I know, it's definitely not authentic, this was just my take on it. 😊
This is the most Blasphemous “Gyro” recipe I have ever seen, and as a Greek am insulted you think you can just call this a GYRO!!! (With pita OR NAN?). Soy sauce, teriyaki? Look, you can make whatever dishes you like, what you don’t get to do is call your invention a “GREEK GYRO!!”
This is not a gyro! Your ingredients are all wrong! Gyro is not LAMB, it’s pork, and it gets its name from being on a VERTICAL SPIT! And soy sauce and teriyaki should not be mentioned when discussing Greek food! There are no Scallions in Tzatziki, lettuce doesn’t belong anywhere near a gyro, (lettuce is not even in Greek salads), and Tzatziki is NOT on the SIDE!!! It’s IN the pita!!! This makes me sick! Teriyaki and tzatziki?? Gross! Signing off, “A REAL GREEK!”
If you want some Greek recipes ask a Greek, or don’t claim a dish that has a traditional longer then your family history! I let the “American” version of the gyro fly, (which isn’t real gyro, but this is way beyond any reasonable use of the Title of GYRO!
Hi Vasili- You are correct, this is not an authentic Greek gyro. My family loved gyros the first time we tried them, and this was my attempt and take at re-creating my own version. This recipe is not meant to be upsetting to anyone, but a nod of appreciation. Please share your favorite gyro recipe with me if you have a link and are inclined to share. Thank you for the feedback!
As a Greek, I have to agree, though I would have not been as hearsh! Garlic, onions and oregano are the foundation of so much Greek cuisine, including gyro. Keep cooking!
That's totally fair, Angela! We're always open to hearing how to better our recipes and we're surely not perfect. Thanks for sharing those foundational ingredients and for the kind words.
for tzatziki sauce salt the cucambers after you grate them, youll get more juice out :))
Great idea, thank you!
Stake spice you mean steak spice, right?
Oh lol Tanya, one of those words I always mess up on 🙂 thank you!!!
do you remember what the Mediterranean food place in sf was?
The place was called Darbar. They served the best naan I have ever tried.
Is it good to use beef instead, if yes what kind of beef meat is better? Thank you.
Yes, it will work wonderful with beef. I like Sirloin Steak, if you check out the link to recipe below, there are instructions on preparing perfect steak. 🙂
http://momsdish.com/recipe/26…
I'll try it, thank you so much.
No problem, please tell me how you like it 🙂