Carnival season is open again this year. Parades have already started to get organised and we are all waiting for Tsiknopempti to get the party started. Tsiknopempti, the official BBQ day of the year for Greece, it is a celebration equivalent to Shrove Tuesday, but with a lot of grilling instead of pancakes. Are you ready for home-made gyros?
Head straight to the recipe.

Gyros is possibly one of the most loved dishes next to souvlaki skewers. Wrapped or not, with ample of tzatziki and a healthy dose of salad on the side. The best thing about it, is that you don’t need a vertical rotisserie to make gyros at home. You can make it on your frying pan or the grill in just 10 minutes. It’s that quick. It requires a little bit of preparation for the marinade.
I went for pork gyros and I chose pork belly. You could select a leaner piece of pork such as tenderloin but you might find it a little dry. Pork belly gives you a very generous fat content and this is the fat the gyros is going to be cooked in, no need to add any other oil.

The trick for the perfect gyros comes to the spices. Along with the popular Greek oregano, thyme, out much loved paprika and mustard you add to the marinade a tiny bit of cinnamon and sumac. Sumac is a very popular Middle Eastern spice. Crimson red in colour and with a lemony flavour it enhances the flavours of grills and mince meat preparations such as kebabs. It works wonders on gyros too, so don’t omit it when making your gyros marinade.
Here is what you will need:

Ingredients:

• 500 gr pork belly
• 70ml olive oil
• 15 ml vinegar
• 1 tbsp mustard
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp sumac
• 1 tsp sweet paprika
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/3 tsp cinnamon

For the garnish
Freshly chopped parsley
Tomatoes
onions
To serve
Greek pita bread
Tzatziki

How to make it:

1. Slice the pork belly thinly.
2. Mix the herb with olive oil and vinegar and marinade the pork for at 1-4 hours (in the fridge).
3. Heat up a non stick frying pan and place the gyros to brown (approximately 10 minutes).

Have a great time making your gyros at home everyone!

from Athens with love,

Eugenia

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