Monday, October 13, 2014

Gyro Meat for SRC

It's that time of the month again;
REVEAL DAY!!!!
Yup, it's Group B's turn to shine.  We're all members of the Secret Recipe Club and we all have blogs and love to Cook and Create in the kitchen.  Or is that Create and Cook?

The Secret Recipe Club consists of bloggers, who are divided into groups, and are randomly assigned another blog every month to explore and make a recipe or two from.  We then 'reveal' our choice on a set day at the same time.  I've been a member of the club for almost 2 years now, and have to admit to the fact that I rarely check out other food blogs, but the SRC means I have to do so at least once a month.  And I am grateful.  I've gotten a lot of new recipes, had my mind blown by some of the incredibly busy and talented and amazing people out there.   All I can say is WOW.

Every month I get a great blog to explore and believe me when I say I explore it.    I've bookmarked and 'pinned' more recipes and ideas than I have time to make, but it's all good.

And this month I hit yet another jackpot.  Grandma Loy's Kitchen.  I've actually gone there for inspiration on more than one occasion in the past, and have already 'pinned' a few ideas from her.   I do like a good recipe source like her blog.   I'm going to try making her recipe for DIY Buttermilk, if I can keep myself from drinking it all when I buy it.  I do love buttermilk, and like to cook with it as well.   And it would be great to have some 'on hand' all the time.   My local grocery store doesn't always have it available for purchase.  And I want to try my hand at her DIY Sweetened Condensed Milk as well.  I think I see a theme going here, hmmmm
Gyro  (homemade)
For today's reveal, I decided to make her DIY Gyro meat.   I've been craving a Gyro for quite some time now, and this recipe just jumped out at me.  I even ducked. 

Sorry, couldn't resist that one. 

And now for my SRC reveal:

DIY Gyro Meat.

1  small onion, cut into chunks
1 lb. ground beef, 
1 lb. ground lamb, (I ground my own)
1 T. minced garlic
1 t. dried oregano (I used some fresh oregano from my garden)
1 t. ground cumin
1 t. dried marjoram
1 t. ground dried rosemary
1 t. ground dried thyme
1 t. coarse ground black pepper
1/4 t. ground allspice (I cut this in half as I don't care for the taste of the allspice)
1/2 t. ground coriander
1 1/2 t. salt

Grind your lamb and hamburger if needed.   I did grind up some lamb. 



Using my new toy to make finely minced garlic.
I 'smooshed' up the fresh oregano with my mortar and pestle before putting it in with the onion.

Place the onion in a food processor (I use my small chopper) and process until very finely chopped. 











Place meat and onion in a large mixing bowl.  Add all seasonings and mix with your hands until everything is well combined. 


Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour to allow the flavors to blend.  Grandma suggested putting the meat into food processor and processing it until it was a thick paste, but I just put the meat into my KitchenAid mixer and walked away for a few minutes while it mixed up.  I did keep an eye on it, but I let it mix for a little while.   Pack into a 9x5-inch loaf pan, making sure there are no air pockets.(Next time I make this, I will form it into a loaf, and then put it into the pan, as I did get a couple of air pockets.)

  Line a roasting pan with a damp kitchen towel.  Place the loaf pan on the towel inside the roasting plan and place in a 325 degree oven.  Fill the roasting pan with boiling water to reach halfway up the sides of the loaf pan. You are basically making a 'Bain Marie' here.  I don't have a roaster so used an aluminum bake pan set on a rimmed baking tray.    Bake 1 hour or until the temperature reaches 165 degrees on a meat thermometer.  Safety Note Here:  Remove loaf pan from the roasting pan, when done.  Don't even try to take out the hot water, let it cool in the oven for a little while.  They will be very hot.  Be very careful if removing immediately. Drain the loaf pan of any accumulated fat, or just fork up the baked loaf and set to cool.  Grandma Loy said to place several 1lb. cans on top of the meat and place in the refrigerator to cool and set up overnight.  I didn't do that, real life got in the way and I had to hurry up and just get the loaf into the fridge.   

Gyro  (homemade)Slice meat very thinly and grill or brown in a skillet before serving.   I sliced up the whole loaf and froze most of it.   I can now have Gyro's anytime I want to, giggle.
Serve on flat bread with lettuce, tomato, onion and sauce of your choice. 
The flavour of the meat was spot on.  I've had worse Gyro's in restaurants.  My only quibble with this was the pita bread I made.   I need to try a different recipe.   But the Gyro meat was great.   As was the Tzatziki Sauce I made to serve with it.   Serves 8 to 10.
 *And it also makes a easy breakfast, especially if you're hungry.  All you need to do is slice up some lettuce, tomatoes and onions.  
Sidsel Munkholm - Author
Sidsel Munkholm - Author

Sid loves to cook, feed people and have fun in the kitchen. She shares her successes and the involuntary offerings she sometimes gives the kitchen goddess as well. And she's still looking for the mythical fairy to help her clean the kitchen after a marathon cooking session. Currently working on a cookbook showcasing the recipes from her Danish heritage.

19 comments:

  1. I think it is awesome that you made your own gyro meat. What I wouldn't give for a bite of it.

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    1. It is good, and I'm so glad I have a recipe for it, come on over for a taste.

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  2. I love this! What a wonderful recipe- thanks for sharing.

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    1. It was good, and best of all, I have lots in the freezer for more Gyros' when I'm in the mood for some.

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  3. It took a little while, but it was so worth it. Best of all, I have the makings for several more gyro's in the freezer so the next time I get a craving...

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  4. Thanks for stopping by my blog. I see you took on one of the more "involved" recipes. I am so glad that you liked it. Your wonderful step-by-step photos make the process very clear. It is difficult finding ground lamb here and it is pricey when I do, so I haven't made this one in a while. Your post makes me want to make some more soon. Have a great week.

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    1. It was a little involved, but so much fun to make. And I love your blog, so many great recipes for me to keep looking at and making stuff from. I have to admit to being 'shocked' at the price of lamb when I went to buy it, but my mind was set on making Gyros.

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  5. We love gyros but I usually make them with turkey. I'll need to try them using this recipe!

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    1. I'm thrilled to have this recipe for gyro's but am always up for more variations. In fact if I couldn't locate lamb, I was going to try for either pork or turkey for this.

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  6. I love gyros and it would never occur to me to make my own meat, but this looks awesome!

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    1. I love gyros as well, and until I read this recipe, would never have dreamed of making this myself, I guess I thought there was some major secret component to it. It's a little labour intensive, but worth it, especially since you can get a few meals from it.

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  7. Grandma Loy does have great recipes and this is one that we would really enjoy. I just love a good gyro. It's fun cooking with you in the SRC!
    Miz Helen

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    1. It's fun cooking with you as well. And yes Grandma Loy does have some great recipes, but so do you. The gyro meat was great, and I love having the meat in my freezer, ready and waiting for another gyro attack.

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  8. What a delicious SRC choice! I had fun looking through Grandma Loy's blog, when it was my SRC assignment.

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    1. It was delicious. And Grandma Loy has a wealth of recipes, so glad she was my assignment this month.

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  9. This sounds so yummy!!! I think I am going to bookmark this one... My husband would love it too! Awesome to be in SRC B with you.. heading over to visit Grandma Loy too!

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    1. Thanks it was and is yummy. I will make this again, and do visit Grandma Loy's site. So glad to be part of Group B as well. So many recipes, so little time, lol.

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  10. I ADORE gyros and while I've seen recipe for this on Pinterest, I never saw one that was this easy. Thanks for picking this for SRC!

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  11. This is really easy, and best of all, tastes good.

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