Kalimera’s Well-known Rooster Gyros – RecipeTin Eats

October 30, 2025

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This Rooster Gyros recipe was given to me by the proprietor of Kalimera Souvlaki Artwork, a wildly standard gyros bar in Melbourne. It’s ridiculously, unbelievably, eye-rollingly good. The key lies in a easy marinade made with simply 4 pantry spices. Critically!!!

Kalimera’s Greek Rooster Gyros

A few years in the past, I did a collection for Good Meals Australia referred to as Secret Recipes the place I shared recipes for among the world’s most iconic dishes, generously handed to me by the very eating places well-known for them.

The primary one I did was for the nice Greek gyros. I’ve all the time been obsessive about gyros, and for many of my life I’ve been loyal to my authentic recipe made with a heady yogurt-garlic-oregano marinade. I nonetheless adore it, however at this time’s gyros recipe is one thing else….

It was given to me by Thomas Deliopoulos, proprietor of Kalimera Souvlaki Artwork which is a wildly standard souvlaki bar in a vibrant Greek neighbourhood referred to as Oakleigh in Melbourne. It serves up gyros so good it has esteemed cooks like Australia’s Ben Shrewery and New York Occasions meals critic Sam Sifton raving about it!

At Kalimera Souvlaki Artwork with an enormous hen gyros!

Thomas’ recipe has a novel marinade made solely with spices – it doesn’t even have minced garlic in it – with a stunning secret – curry powder! Not sufficient to make it style like curry, it simply provides a layer of flavour that makes an in any other case pretty common spice combine into one thing wow!

At Kalimera, the gyros is cooked the standard method on big vertical rotisseries layered with fistfuls of fats. I simply pan-fry or BBQ it, and was initially apprehensive this residence model can be missing. However by tweaking the spice quantities barely (additionally as a result of I’m fairly certain Kalimera makes use of higher high quality spices than common grocery shops promote), I can safely say I used to be unsuitable. I’ve made it for many individuals now, and everyone seems to be nuts for it!

Thanks for the recipe Thomas! It’s significantly nice. I stay up for visiting Kalimera once more!

Components in Kalimera’s Greek Rooster Gyros

That is an uncommon mixture of pantry spices that creates a magical gyros marinade – the flavour Kalimera Souvlaki Artwork has grow to be well-known for!

1. Kalimera’s secret hen gyros marinade

Curry powder – Simply common western curry powder, the sort you get from peculiar grocery shops. Gentle, not spicy. Kalimera’s secret ingredient!
Mustard powder – One other stunning ingredient you don’t normally see in typical Greek marinades! Provides earthiness into the flavour. Dijon mustard just isn’t fairly the identical however will make a good substitute.
Candy / common paprika – not spicy or smoked.
Dried oregano – a Greek favours. Recent oregano just isn’t the identical right here.
Further virgin olive oil – the liquid to make the marinade.
Salt and pepper – I take advantage of cooking salt (kosher salt is the US equal). In the event you solely have desk salt, lower the portions within the recipe by 50%, when you have salt flakes, enhance by 50%.

2. COPYCAT KALIMERA GYROS SAUCE

Thomas was coy about revealing his precise gyros sauce recipe, nonetheless, he did inform me what’s in it so I made a copycat up. I feel it’s fairly shut! Right here’s what you want:

Plain yoghurt – ideally Greek or Greek-style. Full fats is greatest, although low-fat will work simply superb.
Entire-egg mayonnaise – That is the one sort of mayonnaise I take advantage of as a result of it has a smoother flavour than common mayonnaise which is extra vinegary and/or sweeter. S&W and Hellman’s are the manufacturers I get. Kewpie can also be very best as it’s related in flavour. However, it’s okay! 🙂 You need to use common mayonnaise if that’s all you bought, or desire!
Further virgin olive oil – to complement the sauce.
American yellow mustard – the key ingredient!! Provides the sauce a heat color and a touch of flavour. Dijon mustard just isn’t the identical, we would like the full-on vibrant yellow stuff!! 🙂 Don’t use scorching English mustard, oh gosh, that may make this too spicy!
Garlic and paprika – These are the 2 spices that add flavour into the sauce.

3. for the gyros

Use the bread-type of pita bread, if you could find it. That’s the standard bread used for gyros. In any other case, any flatbread will work right here.

Gyros pita bread / souvlaki bread – As famous above, I take advantage of the bready-type of pita bread that’s about 5mm / 0.2″ thick, 21cm / 8.5″ extensive. My favorite is the Golden Prime model Souvlaki Bread , which is standard with Greek eating places and souvlaki retailers right here in Australia. I get mine from Harris Farms (I’m in Sydney).

Don’t be deterred when you can’t discover this kind of pita bread! Gyros is fabulous wrapped in something – common skinny pita bread, flatbreads, Lebanese bread, even tortillas!
Tomato – Halved and thinly sliced.
Lettuce – Kalimera don’t use lettuce in theirs however I do like a little bit of recent leafy greengage inside. Be happy to skip it!
Purple onion – Equally to lettuce, that is my addition. I like a little bit little bit of oniony-freshness is wraps like this.
HOT CHIPS! I do know the gyros purists will approve, it wouldn’t be a correct Greek street-style gyros with out them! Nevertheless, it’s elective and I need to confess, a lot of the instances I make gyros for a daily meal I don’t embrace them, simply out of sheer laziness – and since the gyros is so good (and stuffed full) even with out them. 🙂

I simply use frozen – cook dinner them as you please (I bake for on a regular basis, fry to impress) – although when you actually wish to exhibit, make your individual fries!

Methods to make Kalimera’s well-known Rooster Gyros

Kalimera cooks their hen gyros on big vertical rotisseries. We’re simply going to make use of our range or BBQ, not skewering concerned. Not the identical present however you continue to get the flavour!

1. Marinade hen

Combine the marinade in a big bowl.
Marinade – Toss the hen by, ensuring you get the marinade into all of the cracks and crevices! Then go away it to marinade in a single day – 24 hours is right, 12 hours is sufficient, 3 hours is the naked minimal (in my books, although a buddy has made this with out marinading in any respect and thinks that after the hen is chopped and tossed, you get sufficient flavour).

2. Prepare dinner

Sauce first – Combine the sauce up first earlier than cooking the hen because it advantages from resting for about 20 minutes to let the flavours meld.
Scorching chips subsequent, if utilizing – Then cook dinner the recent chips utilizing no matter technique works. In the event you’re baking or air frying, time it so they’re prepared when the gyros is able to assemble. In the event you’re frying, fry then preserve them heat in a 100°C/200°F oven.

Prepare dinner hen both on the range in a non-stick pan or higher but, on a BBQ, till deep golden brown and charred on the perimeters. You received’t want oil because the marinade has sufficient. Use medium excessive warmth, so the floor received’t burn earlier than the within cooks by.

Small thighs will take about 3 minutes on either side, giant ones 4 – 5 minutes. If you wish to be certain, test the inner temperature – it ought to be at the very least 72°C/162°F once you take it off the BBQ. It would rise to 76°C/169°F as soon as rested.

Relaxation – Take away the hen from the BBQ/range right into a pan or tray. Loosely cowl with foil then let it relaxation for 3 minutes (or nonetheless lengthy it takes to cook dinner the remaining, if cooking in batches utilizing a fry-pan). Resting is essential so the fibres re-absorb the meat juices in order that they don’t run out once you chop the hen!
Heat the pita bread – Whereas the hen is resting, heat the pita bread. That is particularly necessary if you’re utilizing the bready-type, else it can crack once you fold. The simplest method is to simply stack on a plate and microwave for 1 – 1 1/2 minutes on excessive, till it’s heat and pliable within the center.

Else, you may brush with water and pan fry (cautious to not make the floor crispy, else it can crack when folded) or wrap in foil and heat within the oven.

Slice the hen into 8mm / 1/3″ strips.
Assemble gyros – To assemble, smear sauce down the center. Pile hen on, then place lettuce and tomato down the aspect. Sprinkle with pink onion, high with chips, drizzle with extra sauce then fold and devour!

That is such an excellent recipe to make in large batch as a result of it’s so easy to make the marinade – simply measuring out dry spices, no squeezing lemon, not even mincing garlic. Glorious to bag up marinated meat for the freezer, or big-batch cooking for teams.

It’s additionally a kind of meals that you would be able to lay every thing out for everybody to assist themselves to make their very own wraps. I make no secret that I’m a fan of meals like that (like this one, this one, this one and this one). Sure, partially as a result of it’s much less work for me. But in addition I identical to DIY meals – simply feels extra interactive and inclusive to eat this manner reasonably than formal plated meals!

Ideas? 🙂 – Nagi x

PS Whereas I made gyros wraps, are you able to think about how good this may be in plate-form with a pile of this meat on spiced Lebanese rice (Mejadra) with tabbouleh or shredded lettuce and tomato, an enormous dollop of tzatziki or hummus and folded flatbread tucked into the aspect? Yesssss!!

Watch the right way to make it

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Kalimera’s Well-known Rooster Gyros – RecipeTin Eats

Kalimera’s Greek Rooster Gyros