This Shawarma Chicken Jerky is super easy to make, and absolutely packed with flavour! A gourmet jerky, at a fraction the cost of retail!
You see, we upgraded our food dehydrator and bought a jerky gun earlier this year. Our thinking was that making our own jerky would be fantastic for road trip snacks and to bring hiking with us.
Beyond that, it would give us more control over the ingredients in our jerky, AND save us a bunch of money. Score!
What we hadn’t considered, at the time, was how much FUN we could have with it. We quickly branched out from more traditional jerky flavour profiles, really just going wild with it.
We soon had more recipes for funky, gourmet jerkies than we could handle.
So... here we are with some spillover, LOL!
This gourmet chicken jerky recipe is based on a local favourite - Chicken Shawarma - and uses the same general flavour profile as my Chicken Shawarma Salad.
Shawarma may sound like an unusual flavour for jerky, but it just works.
You’re looking at a hefty dose of garlic, some spice, and smoke. You know - jerky flavours!
While the cinnamon and cardamom may be a bit odd for jerky, it brings a well rounded depth of flavour - it really is a fantastic chicken jerky recipe!
Best of all, it only takes about 15 minutes of work to get a batch into the dehydrator. Super easy.
Let’s take a look at what you’ll need, and how to do it:
Equipment
Beyond the basics - bowls, measuring cups, etc - there are two specialized pieces of equipment that I use for making jerky:
A Jerky Gun
This is basically a caulking gun - food grade - that you use to pipe out strips of jerky onto your parchment paper. It’s also known as a “jerky cannon”.
The one I bought is the XINQIAO Jerky Gun Food Grade Plastic Beef Jerky Gun Kit . It’s usually about $35 (Canadian) on Amazon, but I lucked into something like 25% off, when I purchased it.
Even if I’d paid full price, it would ABSOLUTELY be worth it! I’ve never been one for single-function, special equipment in the kitchen... but I LOVE it.
From the very first time I used my jerky gun, I was HOOKED. I had no idea that the whole jerky making process could be so quick and easy!
I’ve heard of people making jerky by spreading the mixture out, flattening it with a rolling pin, then cutting it with a pizza cutter, but to be honest, that sounds fussy. This? This is *slick*!
A Food Dehydrator
While you technically CAN make homemade chicken jerky in a regular home oven, I’m not a fan of running one for hours on end.
I’ve had a couple different food dehydrators before - the kinds with no time or temperature controls. Without more control over - and knowledge of - the drying process, I’d always been too nervous to try making jerky in them.
I’ve since upgraded to a Cosori 6 Tray Food Dehydrator, and LOVE it.
Aside from the control, space, and ease in using it, or’s it’s paid for itself MANY times over.
It was something like $200 Canadian, and - between all the Maple Cinnamon Apple Chips and jerkies I’ve been making - we’ve saved many TIMES that amount, by not paying retail prices for our dried snacks.
We’re also using a dehydrator a LOT more, now that we have a nice one. Having the control over the temperature really opens up the possibilities!
Ingredients
With only 2 exceptions, the ingredients in this shawarma chicken jerky recipe are super simple. If you have a robust spice rack, you may even have them on hand!
As for those last two, they may be specialty, but I use them in pretty much all of my jerky recipes. They’ll definitely get used, if you’re a jerky fan!
Some notes for you:
Lean Ground Chicken
Use the highest quality ground chicken you can when making chicken jerky.
While fresh or frozen will usually work in my jerky recipes, I generally recommend using fresh - I like the finished texture a bit better..
If you want to make your own ground chicken, trim some boneless skinless chicken breasts - plain chicken - and run them through a food processor or meat grinder until well broken down.
Lean chicken breast meat will have a better shelf life than higher fat dark meat will - fat can go rancid.
Finally, if you want to make turkey jerky, feel free to use the same amount of lean ground turkey. For that matter, you can swap the meat our for whatever kind of ground meat you prefer!
Liquid Smoke
As with all of my jerkies, you’ll need some Liquid Smoke in this shawarma themed jerky!
Because the chicken shawarma we order tends to be quite smoky, I use a bit more in this recipe, than I do in most of my jerky recipes.
No worries, it’s not at all overpowering - there is a LOT of seasoning to balance it out!.
Prague Powder
Prague Powder is one of a few different curing salts out on the market. It’s not something you’ll normally cook with, but it’ll last a long time - a little goes a long way!
I use Prague Powder #1 Cure, same as I use for my Montreal Smoked Meat Recipe, Back Bacon Recipe, Homemade Corned Beef Recipe, and Peameal Bacon Recipe.
This is a bright pink curing salt that’s a mixture of salt and sodium nitrite. It’s commonly used in cured meats - like pepperoni or summer sausages - and is what gives the jerky its characteristic red colour.
Beyond aesthetics, it also contributes to giving dehydrated meat that iconic jerky flavor, AND helps ensure that your homemade meat snack will be good to eat for a long time. It does this by preventing the growth of bacteria, during and after the drying process.
A couple of things to note:
1. Prague Powder is pink, but it is NOT the same thing as Himalayan pink salt!
2. Prague cure is only to be used in small amounts for curing meats, and should never be consumed as-is. The measurements are important - if you want a saltier shawarma chicken jerky, add some regular salt, rather than increasing the curing salt.
Everything Else
Rounding out this recipe, you will need:
Lemon Juice (Ideally fresh squeezed!)
Dried Oregano
Crushed Chilies, optional
Garlic Powder
Ground Cardamom
Ground Cinnamon
Ground Cloves
Ground Cumin
Onion Powder
Smoked Paprika
Turmeric Powder
Salt
... as always, I don’t really have anything to add, when it comes to these last few ingredients!
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How to Make Shawarma Chicken Jerky
The full recipe is in the printable recipe card at the end of this post, here is the pictorial walk through:
Cut 2 or 3 squares of parchment paper slightly smaller than your dehydrator trays, set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl - using freshly washed or gloved hands - combine ingredients well. REALLY well - for best results, it’s better to overhandle it, than to under-mix it.
Use a spoon to load the mixture into a jerky gun, taking care to avoid creating air bubbles.
Line your dehydrator racks with the cut parchment paper, then pipe your jerky strips out onto them, leaving some space in between each.
Dehydrate in a food dehydrator at 165 F for 2 hours.
Once two hours has passed, remove the jerky strips from the parchment, flip them over, and place them directly onto the wire rack.
After the first 2 hours.
To test for doneness, remove a piece of Shawarma chicken jerky from the dehydrator and let it cool to room temperature. It should feel dry to the touch and be able to bend to 90 degrees without breaking. (A bit of cracking or crackling is ok!)
Shawarma Chicken Jerky Storage
Allow jerky to cool COMPLETELY to room temperature before packaging.
Shawarma jerky will keep at room temperature (in a cool dark place) for a week so, or a few weeks in the fridge.
If sealed into an airtight container WITHOUT OXYGEN, it should be good for a month or so in a cool dark place, a couple months in the fridge, and 6 months or so in the freezer.
Once you open your vacuum sealed bag of chicken jerky, it should be eaten within a couple days - or a week, if put in the fridge after opening.
More Homemade Jerky Recipes
Are you a fan of jerky, whether for road tripping, camping, or just as a high protein snack? I have SO much fun making it - here are some of my go-to recipes for homemade jerkies!
Basic Ground Beef Jerky
Blueberry Bison Jerky
Buffalo Wing Chicken Jerky
Chipotle Chicken Jerky
Ginger Beef Jerky
Ground Venison Jerky
Homemade Salmon Jerky
Honey Garlic Chicken Jerky
Jalapeno Chicken Jerky
Jerk Chicken Jerky
Lingonberry Elk Jerky
Mango Habanero Chicken Jerky
Mushroom Jerky, 2 Ways
Pumpkin Spice Chicken Jerky
Rosemary & Blueberry Beef Jerky
Spicy Garlic Chicken Jerky
Spicy Orange Chicken Jerky
Sriracha Chicken Jerky
Tofu Jerky, 2 Ways
Pepperoni Jerky
... But wait, there's more! We've been having so much fun designing gourmet jerky recipes, we started a whole new blog for them! Check out Dried & Tasty for all kinds of fun recipes to make in your food dehydrator!
Shawarma Chicken Jerky [Ground Chicken Jerky]
Equipment
- 1 Jerky Gun
- Food Dehydrator
Ingredients
- 1 lb Lean Ground Chicken
- 1 tablespoon Garlic Powder
- 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
- 2 teaspoon Liquid Smoke
- 2 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon Smoked Paprika
- 1 teaspoon Turmeric
- ¾ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Oregano
- ¼ teaspoon Cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Ground Cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon Ground Cumin
- ¼ teaspoon Prague Powder #1 Cure
- Pinch Ground Cloves
- Crushed Chilies optional
Instructions
- Cut 2 or 3 squares of parchment paper slightly smaller than your dehydrator racks, set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl - using freshly washed or gloved hands - combine ingredients well. REALLY well - it’s better to overhandle it, than to under-mix it.
- Use a spoon to load the mixture into a jerky gun, taking care to avoid creating air bubbles.
- Line your dehydrator racks with the cut parchment paper, then pipe your jerky strips out onto them, leaving some space in between each.
- Dehydrate in a food dehydrator at 165 F for 2 hours.
- Once two hours has passed, remove the jerky strips from the parchment, flip them over, and place them directly onto the dehydrator racks.
- Return to the dehydrator and continue dehydrating at 165 F for another 2 - 3 hours.
- To test for doneness, remove a piece of chicken jerky from the dehydrator and let it cool to room temperature. It should feel dry to the touch and be able to bend to 90 degrees without breaking. (A bit of cracking or crackling is ok!)
- Storage: Allow jerky to cool COMPLETELY to room temperature before packaging.
Notes
Nutrition
Thanks for Reading!... and hey, if you love the recipe, please consider leaving a star rating and comment! |
Chicken Shawarma is one of our absolute favourite take out foods, and this jerky recipe definitely scratches that itch! We hope you love it as much as we do!