Our Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma recipe is perfect for summer. It’s super simple to make and oh so tasty with fresh salad, yogurt dressing and warm flatbreads.
Easy weeknight dinner – sorted!
I know you probably think of slow cooker recipes to be more of a winter thing. But honestly, our slow cooker shawarma chicken is just sensational for summer.
The good bit about using the slow cooker in the summer is that it doesn’t heat up your kitchen in the same way oven cooking does. One of our favourite slow cooker meals to make!
So it’s good for really hot days.
Our summer slow cooker chicken thigh recipe is just lush. It’s super easy to prepare and cook. And you just simply serve it with warmed flatbreads, salad and a yogurt dressing. So it’s almost like a chicken shawarma wrap.
Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma Recipe
Serves – 14 people
Prep Time – 15 minutes
Cooking Time – 4 hours
Total Time – around 4 hours 15 minutes
Our most popular alternative – Air Fryer Chicken Fajitas
Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma Ingredients
For The Marinated Chicken
- 6 large boneless skinless chicken thighs – choose good quality chicken, free range or organic if you can, otherwise choose high welfare meat. You could swap for boneless skinless chicken breasts if you preferred.
- 1 tbs olive oil – you can use rapeseed oil if you prefer – this is just to lightly grease the inside of the slow cooker pan.
- juice of a lemon – pick a nice juicy one
- homemade shawarma seasoning – see below
Homemade Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma Seasoning Mix
I use a simple mix of spices for the slow cooker shawarma chicken
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp chilli flakes
- pinch sea salt
- pinch cracked black pepper
For The Lemon Yogurt Dip
- 1 tbs natural yogurt – I use Yeo Valley Greek Yogurt because I just think the thicker creamy texture work really well in yogurt sauce.
- 1 tbs mayonnaise – when it comes to mayonnaise at our house it has to be Hellmanns.
- Juice of half a lemon – again, be sure to pick a nice juicy lemon.
To Serve
- 4 flatbreads – I use gorgeous flatbreads from Crosta & Mollica the Piadina breads – they just take a couple of minutes to warm in a dry frying pan and they just taste so good. These are the best shop bought flatbreads I’ve found yet! You could also serve the shawarma chicken with pita bread or naan bread.
- 2 Little Gem lettuces – these little lettuces simply shredded are ideal for serving with our tasty shawarma chicken.
- 1/2 cucumber – simply sliced into half moons
- 1 red pepper – sliced, if you prefer you could use chargrilled peppers from a jar, it’s up to you.
- 150g baby plum tomatoes – you can use red baby tomatoes simply sliced or go for a mix of heritage tomatoes in different colours.
- hot chilli sauce – okay this one is optional, I love a little added extra heat and currently my favourite hot sauce is Nando’s Garlic PERI-PERI Sauce, it says medium on the bottle, but don’t be tricked, it really packs a punch! I just adore this sauce! If you’re buying a bottle, you simply must try it on avocado toast! So GOOD!
Equipment Needed
- Teaspoon
- Chopping board
- Vegetable knife
- Lemon juicer
- Tablespoon
You might also love our 25 Easy Summer Crockpot Recipes – Spend less time in the kitchen and more time out in the sunshine!
How To Make Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma
Our Slow Cooker Shawarma Chicken just couldn’t be easier! It takes just minutes to prepare and throw in the slow cooker.
Step One – add the chicken thighs
- Simply wipe this inside of the slow cooker pan with a splash of olive oil then lay the chicken thighs snugly next to each other – drizzle over a little more olive oil and the juice of a lemon.
Step Two – add the shawarma seasonings
- Sprinkle over the ground cumin, paprika, ground coriander, ground cinnamon, chilli flakes and season well with salt and black pepper.
Step Three – cook the slow cooker chicken shawarma
- Cook on high for around 4 hours until the chicken is cooked through, heated to a minimum of 165F (check using meat thermometer – for food temperature guidelines grab the chart at Foodsafety.gov).
Step Four – serve the slow cooker shawarma chicken
- Once the chicken is cooked – shred the meat and then serve with salads and flatbreads.
Great Reasons To Make Slow Cooker Shawarma Chicken
- It’s a super easy slow cooker chicken recipe – literally 10 minutes preparation in the morning.
- Slow cooker shredded chicken is great for healthy eating as it cooks without any additional fat like fried chicken.
- Using the slow cooker in the summer means your kitchen will stay cool as there’s not heat from the oven.
- As long as you use gluten free spices then our shawarma chicken is gluten free – just be sure when serving to choose a gluten free flatbread or wrap.
Make Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma Your Way…
- Skip the spices and smother the chicken in curry paste for a more Indian flavour
- Go for smoky BBQ vibe and add smoked paprika and lime instead of lemon.
- Switch the yogurt dip for hummus, tzatziki sauce or bang bang sauce.
- Make the recipe with chicken breasts instead of thighs.
You’ll also just LOVE our Szechuan chicken noodle salad recipe.
How To Serve Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma
- Our slow cooker shawarma chicken is delicious served on warmed flatbreads or pitta breads with salads and dip.
- Or shred the chicken and stir through rice, making a simple shawarma rice bowl. I tend to add lots of fresh salad to this and a dollop of hummus.
- Load onto nachos and melt cheese over, add some salsa and guacamole dip on the side for an extra delicious treat!
- Just turn into a big shawarma chicken salad and skip the carbs altogether – add lots of shredded cabbage and lettuce, add in cucumber, tomatoes, peppers, olives, really make it delicious.
- Use the shredded slow cooker chicken to make shawarma wrap or shawarma sandwiches with plenty of salad, chopped red onions and yogurt dressing.
- Try serving with Herb And Butter Rice with a squeeze of lemon juice.
Love spicy chicken? Try our delicious chicken tikka sandwich recipe or Air Fryer Chicken Wings here.
Is Shawarma Chicken Healthy?
The way we cook our shawarma chicken in the slow cooker makes it super healthy and low fat.
If you’re watching your weight, then use the chicken to make a salad and serve with wholegrain rice or quinoa instead of flatbreads.
Get our best chicken recipes here – perfect for weeknight dinner
More Summer Slow Cooker Recipes To Try…
If you like the idea of using the slow cooker for summer recipes then you’ll just LOVE these easy family dinners.
Browse all our meat recipes here
- Slow Cooker BBQ Brisket – super tender, shredded BBQ brisket that’s perfect stuffed in crusty bread rolls with a side of fries and coleslaw.
- Slow Cooker BBQ Beer Chicken – easy weeknight recipe for lovely tender chicken, delicious served with salads and rice.
- Slow Cooker Turkey Keema – a healthy keema recipe cooked with ground turkey instead of lamb for a lower fat curry.
- Slow Cooker Chicken Curry – a super easy, healthy dump and go slow cooker recipe
Need Some Family Meal Ideas?
Check out our meal planning here – it’s filled with recipes, meal planning tips and pre-filled printable meal plans weekly or seasonally. We’ve got hundreds of the BEST family recipes and Family Meals your whole family will LOVE!
Get our BEST slow cooker recipes here
Slow Cooker Chicken Shawarma
Tasty summer slow cooker recipe with chicken thighs
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 6 large skinless, boneless chicken thighs
- 1 tbs olive oil
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- pinch dried chilli flakes
- pinch sea salt
- pinch black pepper
For the lemon yogurt dip
- 1 tbs natural yogurt
- 1 tbs mayonnaise
- juice of 1/2 lemon
To serve
- 4 flatbreads
- 2 little gem lettuces - shredded
- 1/2 cucumber - sliced
- 1 red pepper - sliced
- 150g baby plum tomatoes
Instructions
- Heat the slow cooker too high.
- Lightly oil the inside of the slow cooker pan - place your chicken thighs into the pan.
- Drizzle over a little more olive oil.
- Pour over the juice of a lemon
- Sprinkle over the spices and season with salt and black pepper.
- Cook on high for around 3 1/2 - 4 hours or until chicken is minimum 165F using meat thermometer
- To make the dip - mix together the yogurt, mayonnaise and lemon juice.
- Once the chicken is cooked - shred and serve with salad and yogurt sauce with a drizzle of hot sauce if you like.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 631Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 207mgSodium: 854mgCarbohydrates: 63gFiber: 4gSugar: 12gProtein: 50g
Nutritional content will vary depending on the exact ingredients you use and how careful you are with measuring - this nutritional information is given as a general guide only and may not be accurate - you should always calculate your own nutritional information especially if you have specific dietary requirements.
Get more chicken thigh recipes UK style here
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Disclaimer – in a lot of our slow cooker recipes we use a crockpot where the inner pan in safe to use on the hob as well as in the crockpot. If you don’t have a hob safe slow cooker – then use a pan for any hob cooking then transfer to the slow cooker pan for slow cooking.