Use your Instant Pot to make the best schwarma recipe ever! Marinate chicken, cook in the Instant Pot and then serve on pita bread with a delicious sauce. 

 

Chicken Schwarma Recipe for Instant Pot

My introduction to Middle Eastern food was over 20 years ago right after I had graduated from college. I took a job working for a travel company and I was placed in the Africa and Middle East department. We often ate at local middle eastern restaurants and chicken schwarama was one of the first middle eastern foods I fell in love with. 

Schwarma recipes are the equivalent of your grandma’s secret recipe for making anything. Every person does it a little differently. It differs from country to country, city to city and home to home. The staples in schwarma are cardamom and cinnamon and maybe lime or lemon. But even then, everyone makes it a little differently. 

Schwarma requires a lot spices that you probably normally don’t use like cardamom and sumac. But if you love schwarma then they are worth finding and just keeping on hand.  Plus cardamom is excellent lots of other dishes like Cardamom Coffee . 

In a restaurant, schwarma is cooked for a long time on a rotating skewer over a spit. We can’t do that at home, exactly, but the pressure cooker Instant Pot is a great at home substitute for long term cooking in a lot less time. 

Prepare and Marinate Chicken

Place chicken thighs in a large plastic food storage bag. Gently beat the chicken thighs with kitchen mallet to thin out. You can also us a rolling pin if you don’t own a kitchen mallet. Be careful not to rip or tear the bag.

In a small bowl mix together cumin, cardamom, paprika, cinnamon, turmeric, garlic, sumac, cayenne, salt, pepper, olive oil and lemon juice. Pour the marinade in the bag with the chicken.

Seal the bag tightly and refrigerate. It’s best to marinate the chicken in this mixture overnight but a few hours at the least.

Cook Chicken in Instant Pot

When you’re ready to cook the chicken, place the trivet that came with your Instant Pot into the pot. We used a 6 quart Instant Pot Duo. Add 1 cup of water to the bottom of the cooking pot.

Remove the marinated chicken from the bag and place it on top of the trivet.  Close and seal the top of the Instant Pot. Set to high pressure for 40 minutes. 

Once the Instant Pot finishes cooking, quick release the pressure. Carefully remove the chicken. Place on a cutting board and slice. Set the chicken aside while you make the sauce. 

Make Sauce and Serve Schwarma on Pitas 

Chicken schwarma is normally served and eaten on pitas. This sauce is a nice addition but not required. You can also serve the chicken with homemade tzatizki sauce we serve with our chicken souvlaki.

To make the sauce, mix together yogurt, lemon juice, and garlic. Stir in salt, sumac, cayenne pepper, and pepper. Stir well.

Serve the chicken with sliced cucumbers, and tomatoes on pitas. Top with the sauce and enjoy.