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Greek gyros on parchment paper topped with lamb meatballs cucumber and tomatoes.
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5 from 2 votes

Lamb Gyros With Greek Tzatziki Sauce

Gyros with Tzatziki Sauce are great for summer cookouts. Wrap a pita around grilled lamb meatballs with tomato, cucumber, parsley, and sauce!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time45 minutes
Course: Dinner & Main Dishes
Cuisine: Greek
Keyword: grilled lamb kebabs, gyro meat recipe, gyros, lamb gyros
Servings: 8 gyros wraps
Calories: 720kcal

Ingredients

Tzatziki Sauce

  • 1 cup Greek yogurt
  • 1 garlic clove minced
  • ½ cucumber (seeded and peeled)
  • 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon fresh mint minced
  • pinch salt and pepper

Gyros (Lamb Kabobs)

  • ¼ cup red onion (diced)
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • ¼ cup breadcrumbs
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped
  • 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary chopped
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • ½ teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • ½ cup feta cheese crumbled
  • 1 egg
  • 3 lb ground lamb
  • 8 pita wraps

Garnishes

  • tomatoes chopped
  • cucumber chopped
  • parsley minced

Instructions

Tzatziki Sauce

  • Using a whisk, mix Greek yogurt, minced garlic, chopped cucumber, lemon juice, olive oil, chopped mint, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
  • Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours, this helps the flavor.

Lamb Kabobs

  • Soak wood skewers in cold water for 1 hour, or use metal skewers.
  • In a large bowl, add diced onions, minced garlic, breadcrumbs, cinnamon, oregano, parsley, rosemary, cumin, allspice, paprika, salt, pepper, and crumbled feta.
  • Crack in one egg and add the ground lamb. Using clean hands or a spatula, combine until and mix the lamb gyro meat well until it comes together.
  • Preheat your gas or charcoal grill to medium-high heat, 400 degrees.
  • Use a medium-size ice cream scoop and then roll the meat mixture into almost 3" meatballs in size, as they will shrink on the grill.
  • Push 4-5 meatballs onto each skewer leaving space in between. Place them on a large rimmed baking sheet until you are ready to grill.
  • Preheat your grill, for direct cooking on medium-high heat. Set the lamb kabobs on the wire rack of your gas or charcoal grill for 5-6 minutes per side. Turn every 5-6 minutes until nice grill marks form on the surface of the meatballs. They are done at 160 degrees internal temperature.

Assemble Gyros

  • Warm each pita bread briefly on the grill for 20-30 seconds. Don't leave it there too long, you want a nice soft pita bread.
  • Place 3 grilled lamb meatballs onto the warm pita bread, and sprinkle on fresh toppings of chopped tomato and cucumber.
  • Dollup on the tzatziki sauce and garnish with parsley. You can serve them with some more Greek food recipes, try a Greek salad, a tabbouleh salad, or Greek fries.

Video

Notes

lamb gyro meatballs

Use a medium-size ice cream scoop and then roll the lamb meatballs to almost 3" in size, as they will shrink on the grill.
 
All these ingredients for this gyro meat recipe are easily available at your local grocery store. You can swap in some ground beef or ground pork in place of lamb, or do a blended mix. I made this recipe for young adults, and they absolutely loved the traditional way with lamb.
 

Greek yogurt

You can swap in sour cream or plain yogurt, but it really makes a difference to use real Greek yogurt.
 

ground lamb

To make your own ground lamb at home, slice the lamb meat into 1-inch cubes, and remove all bone and excess fat. Freeze the meat for 30 minutes. This helps "grind" it in a food processor or in a meat grinder.

Nutrition

Calories: 720kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 39g | Fat: 45g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 18g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 154mg | Sodium: 839mg | Potassium: 562mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 290IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 175mg | Iron: 4mg