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kosta_karapinotis

Active member
For this recipe, you will need: 1 onion, chopped, 2 cloves garlic, minced, 2 pounds ground meat (lamb, pork, beef or a mixture), 1 tablespoon dried Greek oregano, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper. Gather these ingredients and have a great gyro night at home with your family and friends!

Processes onion in a food processor, add the garlic and pulse for ten seconds. Add the meat, oregano, salt, and pepper and pulse until all the ingredients are combined. Form the mixture into a the shape of a loaf. I like to make min in the oven, but if you have a rotisserie machine then by all means go ahead and make it there! Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the gyro mixture and place in the center of the oven. Bake until cooked all the way through. This should take 40-45 minutes depending on the oven.

Add your favorite toppings and place the meat on a pita with tzatziki and you have a great tasting gyro!

Homemade-Gyro-Meat-720x478.jpg
 
For this recipe, you will need: 1 onion, chopped, 2 cloves garlic, minced, 2 pounds ground meat (lamb, pork, beef or a mixture), 1 tablespoon dried Greek oregano, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper. Gather these ingredients and have a great gyro night at home with your family and friends!

Processes onion in a food processor, add the garlic and pulse for ten seconds. Add the meat, oregano, salt, and pepper and pulse until all the ingredients are combined. Form the mixture into a the shape of a loaf. I like to make min in the oven, but if you have a rotisserie machine then by all means go ahead and make it there! Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the gyro mixture and place in the center of the oven. Bake until cooked all the way through. This should take 40-45 minutes depending on the oven.

Add your favorite toppings and place the meat on a pita with tzatziki and you have a great tasting gyro!

View attachment 764
Kosta, that sounds really good & I am going to try it. I am a little confused though, as I have always eaten gyros (pork or chicken), which are usually thin slivers of the meat, not mince. Will this cut like gyros meat?
 
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Kosta, that sounds really good & I am going to try it. I am a little confused though, as I have always eaten gyros (pork or chicken), which are usually thin slivers of the meat, not mince. Will this cut like gyros meat?
It sounds like it will be more like the gyro meat that you get in the fast food places. I've made gyro at home like this and the texture is not the exact same but the flavour is there!
 
For this recipe, you will need: 1 onion, chopped, 2 cloves garlic, minced, 2 pounds ground meat (lamb, pork, beef or a mixture), 1 tablespoon dried Greek oregano, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper. Gather these ingredients and have a great gyro night at home with your family and friends!

Processes onion in a food processor, add the garlic and pulse for ten seconds. Add the meat, oregano, salt, and pepper and pulse until all the ingredients are combined. Form the mixture into a the shape of a loaf. I like to make min in the oven, but if you have a rotisserie machine then by all means go ahead and make it there! Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the gyro mixture and place in the center of the oven. Bake until cooked all the way through. This should take 40-45 minutes depending on the oven.

Add your favorite toppings and place the meat on a pita with tzatziki and you have a great tasting gyro!

View attachment 764
 
I do mine in the slow cooker. works great!
 
This looks great! When doing gyros like this, the texture isn't quite the same as the store bought stuff, but the flavor is there. Also, I like to do it at home so I can control the amount of salt and the sources of meat that go in.
 

Which Greek dishes did you love as a kid?

I’m planning a big Greek family gathering soon and there will be a lot of kids there—some of them pretty picky eaters! It got me thinking about what I used to love as a kid growing up in a Greek household.

Honestly, I was a super picky eater back then (hard to believe now!), but there were still a few dishes I always wanted seconds of. I remember loving things like koulourakia, fried meatballs (keftedakia), and avgolemono soup. Simple, comforting, and easy to eat.

Now I’m wondering, which Greek dishes did you love as a kid? I’d love to serve a few things at the gathering that will be hits with the younger crowd but still feel authentically Greek. Bonus points if they’re easy to prep ahead or good for a buffet-style setup.

Greek tomato rice - tomatorizo with fresh tomatoes?

Believe it or not, I’m about to have the first of my early-season tomatoes, maybe a week out! I got the plant from a local greenhouse, so it was a bit further along, and now I’m finally seeing ripe ones. I’d love to make domatorizo (Greek tomato rice) with them.

I’ve only ever made it with canned tomatoes or passata, but this time I want to go all in with the fresh ones from my garden. Do you peel and grate them, or just chop and cook them down? Any tips for getting that rich flavor without overcooking the rice? Do you sauté the rice first or add it straight in?

Would love a tried-and-true method—especially if it’s how your mom or yiayia made it. I want to honor the tomatoes and keep it simple. Thanks!

Handling dried gigantes?

I’m a huge fan of gigantes plaki and other dishes that use these giant beans. I am really struggling with the dried ones.

No matter how long I soak or boil them, they never seem to get quite soft enough. I’ve tried overnight soaking, longer cooking times, even baking soda in the soak water. Still hit-or-miss results. Sometimes they split before they soften, or the skins get tough.

I know canned gigantes exist, but I’d love to master the dried kind, especially for homemade plaki where texture really matters.

Any tips? Is there a soaking method or cooking trick that’s worked well for you? I am considering trying to get them soft in a pressure cooker, maybe that will help?

Best way to use Myzithra?

I recently picked up a nice wedge of myzithra cheese from a local Greek market—semi-hard, salty, and beautifully aged. I’ve used it a couple of times grated over pasta, which was delicious, but I’m curious what other traditional or creative ways you all enjoy it.

I know there’s a fresh version and a dry aged one, this one is definitely the dry, crumbly type. Are there regional dishes that really highlight its flavor? I’ve heard of it being used in pies, but I’m not sure how it’s prepared—does it pair well with spinach, like in spanakopita, or is it better on its own?

Homemade Gyro Meat?

I absolutely love gyros, but I’ve never been a fan of the store-bought meat—it always tastes a bit too processed for me. I’m thinking about trying to make my own gyro meat at home, but I’m not sure where to start. Is it as simple as roasting a leg of lamb and carving thin slices? Or is there a better way to get that classic texture and flavor?

I’ve seen some people use a mix of lamb and beef, ground and packed tightly into a loaf pan. Others say the key is in the spices and pressing the meat after cooking. I’m open to experimenting, but I’d love to hear what’s worked for others.
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