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Offal Shawarma
We were inspired to make shawarma recently and, as usual, replaced the traditional meat with offal. The prep for this meal was simple and the meat cooked quickly. After seasoning the meat, broil it in large pieces. With minimal trimming, I was able to prepare several large slices of liver and a whole kidney quite easily, but you can substitute any offal that you have on hand.
Serves 8
Prep Time: 30 minutes (plus 1 hour to soak offal, if desired)
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 1¼ pounds liver, trimmed of skin and connective tissue
- 1¼ pounds kidney, trimmed of center fat and connective tissue
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 2¾ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper, divided
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 lemon, cut in half, with ends trimmed off
- 1 small red cabbage, cored and thinly sliced (about 6 cups)
- ½ cup fresh parsley leaves
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup whole-milk yogurt
- Juice from 1 lemon
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 3 tomatoes, sliced thin
- 4 baby cucumbers, sliced thin
- Pita or sourdough bread slices, optional
Instructions
- Optionally, soak liver and kidney in water (with a lemon squeezed into it) for an hour in the refrigerator to temper the strong flavor.
- Prep the salad. Add cabbage, parsley leaves, olive oil, and salt to large bowl. Mix well to combine and set aside.
- For the sauce, combine yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Mix well and set aside.
- Move oven rack to top shelf or 6 inches from broiler element. Set broiler to high to preheat oven.
- Dry organs and remove any connective tissue you may have missed. Add to bowl with paprika, cumin, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Mix well so that all surfaces are evenly seasoned.
- Line up meat in a single layer on baking sheet. Place lemon halves on their trimmed ends, one on each side of the baking sheet. (If you have a wire rack, set it on baking sheet and place meat on top of rack to increase air circulation in the broiler.)
- Broil until offal is well-browned, about 8-12 minutes for liver and 12-16 minutes for kidneys. Rotate baking sheet after 6 minutes and gauge cooking status of each meat. Remove liver to cutting board to rest and return baking sheet to oven if kidney needs more time to cook. Meanwhile, as meat is cooking, slice tomatoes and cucumbers for serving.
- Let meat rest on cutting board for 5 minutes. Thinly slice meat into strips, add to a plate or platter, and squeeze one of the broiled lemon halves over meat. Squeeze the second lemon half over the cabbage salad and remix before serving.
Reprinted with permission from Janine Farzin’s website, Offally Good Cooking. See many more recipes and sign up for her mailing list at offallygoodcooking.com.
Photo © Janine Farzin
Published in the Journal of Health and Healing™
Summer 2023 | Volume 47, Number 2
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