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This Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma is hearty, wholesome and delicious! Enjoy tender, juicy chicken packed with Mediterranean flavors in a dish that’s rich in protein, low in calories and incredibly versatile. All you’ll need is a few simple ingredients and your trusty slow cooker to put it together. It's gluten-free + low-calorie!
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The simple, effortless flavors of Mediterranean food are what I almost always turn to when I want to enjoy a healthy, delicious meal. In this dish, creamy, warm spices bounce off the tangy flavor of tahini. It's really a wonderful way to make boring chicken fabulous.
Even better, it's made EASY in the crockpot for a no brainer meal. Perfect for meal prepping or feeding a crowd! Looking for more easy dishes with similar flavors? Try my healthy Greek chicken casserole and my low carb Greek chicken bowls, served with the zucchini noodles. Both are favorites at the top of the list for me!
Why You’ll Love This Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma Recipe
- Whole Food Ingredients: The dish focuses on the use of fresh and healthy ingredients. It is the perfect choice for anyone trying to make healthier meals.
- Customizable: You can tweak and customize the spices and seasonings to your liking, and there’s lots of ways to serve the chicken too!
- Easy Family Meal: Making this slow cooker shawarma is hands-off cooking. You’ll need just a few minutes to dump everything in your slow cooker, and that’s it!
Ingredients
- Chicken thighs: Chicken thighs are the perfect choice for this recipe. They’re soft, tender and juicy, and add a lot of flavor too. I would recommend using skinless chicken thighs to keep it healthier and boneless for easier prep. You can also use chicken breasts as well but adjust the cooking time as needed.
- Tahini: A paste made from sesame seeds for a rich, creamy and nutty flavor. You can buy tahini at the grocery store -- even Walmart carries it. It's usually in the peanut butter aisle. You can use the leftovers to make marinades and dips.
- Greek yogurt: I used nonfat Greek yogurt here. You could use the regular version too, if that’s what you prefer.
- Chicken broth: To add an extra depth of flavor to the dish.
- Lemon juice: Nothing beats a nice drizzle of freshly squeezed lemon juice to add a nice bit of tanginess to the chicken.
- Garlic: For the little zip of flavor. You can use garlic powder if you don’t have fresh garlic.
- Spices and seasonings: I used a simple mix of spices including cumin powder, garlic powder, paprika, cinnamon powder, coriander powder, some dried parsley and curry powder. And of course, some salt and pepper too!
- Olive oil: Perfect for this Mediterranean inspired recipe.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations & Dietary Modifications
- Spice it up: Add an extra sprinkle of paprika or some cayenne into the Crock Pot along with the other spices to lend this chicken shawarma a bit of heat.
- Top it up: Add an extra bit of flavor and texture to the shawarma by topping it with some fresh tomatoes, cucumber, cabbage, and pickled onions, or better yet, just make a small bowl of my coleslaw with Greek yogurt.
- Paleo-friendly: To make the chicken shawarma paleo friendly, swap the Greek yogurt in the recipe for coconut yogurt.
How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma
This chicken shawarma slow cooker recipe barely needs any effort or prep time to make!
Step 1: Add in everything. Place the chicken thighs in your slow cooker. Add the seasonings and spices, lemon juice, Greek yogurt, chicken broth and tahini and mix well.
Step 2: Time to cook. Cook it for 3 hours on high or for 6 hours on low.
Step 3: Shred It. Check if the chicken is cooked. Allow it to cool down just a little bit and shred it. Add the shredded chicken back into the pot. Then serve it hot with some brown rice, roasted veggies, and a nice drizzle of some sundried tomato red pepper hummus.
Storage Directions
- Storing: Store your leftover chicken shawarma in an airtight container, refrigerated, for up to 5 days.
- Reheating: You can reheat the chicken in a pan over medium heat, with a splash of water to adjust its consistency. Another great idea is to microwave it until it is nice and warm.
- Make Ahead: You can prep the chicken ahead of time too, if you want to use it for a meal later in the week. Simply marinate the chicken with all the ingredients in a freezer safe container and freeze it for up to 2 months. Then, allow it to defrost overnight in the refrigerator, slow cook it when you want to, and serve.
Serving Suggestions
Serve this Crock Pot chicken shawarma with some brown rice or a healthier wrap like my homemade 3 ingredient tortillas.
You’ll also want to have a nice hummus and some pickled or freshly sliced veggies to go with it. I personally love my no bean pumpkin hummus and edamame hummus with this creamy, juicy chicken. If you love a bit of heat, you might want to try making my easy spicy black bean hummus or cilantro jalapeno hummus recipes.
And if you want to go the extra mile, serve it with a fresh salad like a simple healthy Greek pasta salad or tabbouleh quinoa salad.
Expert Tips
- Use forks: Use two forks to shred the chicken once it is done cooking. It’s the simplest, easiest way to shred chicken, in my opinion, and I do it all the time when making my Instant Pot shredded chicken.
- Season as you go: If you’re sensitive to spice, start by adding just a bit of the seasonings and spices. Give it a quick taste when you shred the chicken, and add more if needed.
Recipe FAQs
The best way to know if the chicken is fully cooked is to use a meat thermometer to check its internal temperature. If the thermometer reads 165 degrees or more, the chicken is done.
Yes, this chicken shawarma recipe is naturally gluten-free.
More Delicious Chicken Recipes
If you tried this chicken shawarma recipe or any other recipe on my website, please please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you go in the 📝 comments below.
Crock Pot Chicken Shawarma
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons tahini
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- ¼ cup chicken broth low sodium
- ½ cup nonfat Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 ½ teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon curry powder
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon coriander
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place the chicken thighs in a crockpot with extra virgin olive oil, lemon, salt, pepper, chicken broth, tahini, Greek yogurt, minced garlic, cumin, curry powder, garlic powder, paprika, cinnamon and coriander.
- Cook on high 3 hours (or low 6 hours). Check to see if chicken is ready. It is ready when it easily falls apart when you break it up with a spatula or spoon.
- Serve with brown rice, roasted zucchini slices and Greek yogurt as desired. Top with dried parsley.
Notes
- Nutritional data does not include brown rice or zucchini.
- For a Paleo option, serve with cauliflower rice and swap the Greek yogurt for coconut yogurt.
- Serving size is approximately 1 large cup.
- My Amazon shop has more products similar to those used for this recipe and that I recommend to my weight loss clients.
- If you love this recipe, check out my low calorie cookbook for more delicious recipes and weight loss tips!
Nutrition
Amazing! My husband and I loved this recipe! Can't wait to cook it again for our family
Great to hear - thank you!
Great recipe! I made this dairy free using Culina coconut based Greek yogurt and it turned out great, no coconut flavor whatsoever. I also added sumac to amp up the middle eastern flavor profile.
Wow, so flavorful! I added cooked spinach to sneak in greens for my family. Didn't need the broth as when it slow cooked in my Instant pot it produced its own broth. Kind of cross between Greek and Indian?
My whole family loved this recipe. I served it with riced cauliflower and asparagus.
I forgot to mention that I modified this by using breasts and making in the Instant Pot. I put all the ingredients in the pot except for the Greek yogurt, lemon juice,and the tahini and pressure cooked it. After I pressure cooked it, I stirred in the remaining three ingredients.
You never mention the lemon juice - adding it into the crockpot. Or is it just for the chicken afterwards?
Hi there! Everything is added to the slow cooker in step 1 with the chicken.
Hi I am just wondering if you could use breast instead of thighs
I'm sure you could!
I’d love to try this, but my son is allergic to dairy. I can’t find a dairy free Greek yogurt anywhere, could I substitute anything else for the Greek yogurt? I’m thinking plain dairy free yogurt or possibly dairy free cream cheese or sour cream?
Any of those could work. I don't find DF substitutes to be optimal though because of the chemicals they're made from. You can make a cashew cream from soaking cashews and blending with a bit of DF milk to achieve a creamy consistency like I did in this recipe. If I were to do it DF, that would be the route I'd take. https://skinnyfitalicious.com/brussels-sprouts-with-cashew-cream-sauce/
Not all dairy free substitutes are full of crap chemicals! There are several reputable, clean brands available. I made your recipe using Kite Hill plain almond yogurt, purchased at my health food store, and the meal turned out great. My whole family, including my son who is anaphylactic to all dairy (as well as 5 other foods), loved it.
I've made this several times and the whole family loves it. I'm going to a family reunion and it will be pretty big. I'm wondered if this would work in a big pot, not a crockpot and cooked slowly on low heat. I don't have enough crock pots to make this recipe 6 times!
Exciting! I'm happy you love it so much you want to share it with the rest of your family. I don't have experience cooking in a large pot actually, but if I were going to do it that's how! Let me know how it turns out!
A great recipe! I chopped the chicken up and served in pitas with veggies, a variety of middle eastern spreads, feta cheese and pickled turnips. Delicious and will definitely make again!
Thank you for sharing my husband from Baghdad love it.
That's amazing! Thanks for letting me know.
I've been looking for a way to use up all this tahini in my cabinet (I stocked up while it was on sale). Thanks!
Hope you enjoy!
I love hands off crockpot recipes, thanks for sharing.
Aww thanks lady. This one's a goodie!
Anything in the crock pot is a win!!!!!!
For sure!
We LOVE schwarma, so the fact that I could make it at home and have it be this easy? Totally saving.
Oh you must make!
Sounds delicious! I'm always looking for new, easy Crock Pot recipes. So many great flavors in this one!
Add it to the list. Thanks Blair!