Baked Chicken Shawarma Tacos feature crunchy taco shells stuffed with savory shawarma chicken and melty parmesan cheese. Topped with refreshing shirazi salad and a generous drizzle of tahini, they’re a crowd-pleasing twist on traditional tacos!
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What is Chicken Shawarma?
Shawarma is a popular Middle Eastern street food. Traditionally, it features meat stacked and slow-roasted on a vertical spit. Then, the meat is shaved off as the spit rotates.
Shawarma is typically made with lamb, mutton, or chicken. However, you can also find beef shawarma recipes. Most commonly, you will find shawarma served as wraps or on a platter with seasoned rice or fries and salad like we do with our sheet pan chicken shawarma.
However, for these chicken shawarma tacos, we combine two favorite dinners, adding seasoned shawarma chicken meat to crisp taco shells. They bake until warm and melty, it’s a great family-friendly recipe that will tantalize your tastebuds!
Ingredients You Need
Chicken Shawarma
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts – We prefer to use chicken breasts because they absorb the taste of the marinade well. However, boneless skinless chicken thighs also work.
- Seasonings – Smoked paprika, cumin, onion powder, coriander, salt, and black pepper create a bold, savory, slightly smokey flavor.
- Yogurt – Plain full-fat yogurt forms the base of the marinade, adding a tangy flavor and keeping the chicken moist.
- Tomato Paste – Adds richness and depth.
- Lemon – Use freshly squeezed lemon juice to tenderize the chicken and add a bright, refreshing taste.
- Olive Oil – Combines all the ingredients and enhances the flavor of the marinade.
- Garlic Cloves – Use whole garlic cloves, and mince them yourself for the best flavor.
For the Tacos
- Hard Taco Shells – Do not substitute soft taco shells, or your tacos will become soggy!
- Cheese – Freshly grated parmesan cheese adds a satisfying, cheesy flavor.
Toppings
- Shirazi Salad – Use this as a topping for nutrients, a refreshing flavor, and a slight crunch.
- Tahina Sauce – Drizzle tahini over the tacos for a nutty taste and a boost of healthy fats.
Upgrade Your Taco Tuesday with this Baked Chicken Shawarma Tacos Recipe
- Create the marinade. Combine the seasonings, yogurt, tomato paste, lemon juice, olive oil, and garlic cloves in a bowl.
- Marinade. Place the chicken in a baking dish, and coat it with the marinade mixture. Let the chicken marinate overnight.
- Bake. Arrange the chicken on a greased baking sheet, and transfer it to a preheated oven. Bake until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Shred. Allow the chicken to rest for at least five minutes. Then, use a hand mixer or two forks to shred it into pieces.
- Fill the tacos. Arrange the taco shells upright in a baking dish. Fill each shell with shredded chicken, and sprinkle parmesan cheese on top.
- Bake again. Transfer the baking dish to the oven, and bake just until the cheese is melted and the tacos heat through.
- Serve. Top your shawarma tacos with shirazi salad, optional red onions, and tahina sauce, and enjoy!
Can I Store Leftovers?
These tacos are best enjoyed right away while they’re still warm. They tend to become soggy as they sit.
However, if you have leftovers, you can transfer them to an airtight container and store them in the fridge for one to two days.
Reheat your shawarma tacos in the oven just until heated through. If they start to brown, cover the dish with foil, and continue to bake.
More Taco-Inspired Recipes
Need more ways to satisfy your taco cravings? We have you covered with these incredibly easy recipes!
- Greek-Inspired Smashed Tacos
- Baked Shredded Chicken Tacos
- One Pot Taco Pasta
- Slow Cooker Beef Birria
Chicken Shawarma Tacos
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 2 teaspoons salt to taste
- 1 teaspoon black pepper to taste
- 3/4 cup yogurt
- 3 Tablespoons tomato paste
- Juice of 1/2 lemon or 3 tablespoons
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves
- 4 large chicken breasts
For Serving:
- Hard shell tacos
- 1/4 Parmesan cheese
For Topping:
- Shirazi salad
- Tahina sauce
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix together smoked paprika, cumin, onion powder, coriander, salt, black pepper, yogurt, tomato paste, lemon juice, olive oil, and minced garlic cloves.2 teaspoons smoked paprika, 2 teaspoons cumin, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon coriander, 2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 3/4 cup yogurt, 3 Tablespoons tomato paste, Juice of 1/2 lemon, 1 Tablespoon olive oil, 2 garlic cloves
- Place the chicken breasts in a baking dish, and coat it evenly with the marinade mixture. Marinate overnight.4 large chicken breasts
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Bake the chicken in the preheated oven for about 30-35 minutes, or until cooked through.
- Once cooked, remove the chicken from the oven, and use a hand mixer to shred it.
- Arrange hard shell tacos in a baking dish.Hard shell tacos
- Fill each taco with the shredded chicken mixture, and sprinkle 1 tablespoon of Parmesan cheese over the top.1/4 Parmesan cheese
- Bake the tacos for an additional 8-10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the tacos are heated through.
- Remove the tacos from the oven, and top them with Shirazi salad and Tahina sauce before serving.Shirazi salad, Tahina sauce
Equipment
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
We have made this twice, but it’s a big miss for us. We feel like the seasoning isn’t enough, yet I added more of each spice the second time we made it … and it was still disappointing.
We did love the shirazi salad that was mentioned as a topping linked above, & that recipe will be added to the rotation.
This taco recipe will be a skip though.
We’re sorry to hear this but appreciate the feedback! We hope you continue to enjoy our other recipes. 🙂
Xo,
Alia & Radwa
Does the recipe have plain Greek yogurt or plain regular yogurt?
Thanks
Regular yogurt! We hope you enjoy, Deanna!
Xo,
Alia & Radwa
This was the BEST recipe! I couldn’t stop eating them. The Shirazi made the tacos fresh and flavorful. My husband loved them too!
We’re so glad! Thank you for trying it out, Penny!
Xo,
Alia & Radwa
tryed chicken shawarma this it the best. Will be making this over and over again.was so easy to make . I didn’t use the tahina sauce instead I put sour cream on top. and I used stand n stuff shells.
Thank you, Deborah! We’re so glad you enjoyed it!
Xo,
Alia & Radwa