Chickpea Gyros
Chickpea gyros are delicious vegetarian gyros that incorporate all the things you love about Greek food: cucumbers, tomatoes, flat bread, feta cheese, and tzatziki sauce.
While I love having a vegetarian option, I also love meat! Check out these amazing lamb gyros and chicken gyros that taste better than any Greek restaurant I’ve been to!
If you are looking for a delicious meal that takes only minutes to make, here it is! It took me only 15 minutes to whip this up, and my entire family loved it.
I’ve been fascinated by the idea of Meatless Monday and love the opportunity to make meals that are healthier options, by reducing meat and adding more vegetables and legumes. This recipe is a definite winner for that. It’s easy, it’s super flavorful, and it’s so quick to make! That’s what I call a win-win-win. 😏
My family used to live by a Greek place, and I really enjoyed their gyros. However, I thought it could be even better! So, I set out to find the perfect tzatziki sauce recipe (✔️) and realized chickpeas would be a great substitute for the gyros meat (✔️).
If you don’t know what gyros meat is, I’m sure you’ve seen it before. It’s a big cylinder of meat that’s vertical and rotating on a rotisserie. You’ll see people use a big knife and shave some of that meat off for gyros sandwiches and wraps.
I’m not really sure what’s in the meat, and part of me probably doesn’t want to know, 😂 — which is why we are sticking to chickpeas! Chickpeas are a clean protein option that are also high in fiber and essential vitamins and minerals.
Ingredients
- Olive oil
- Canned chickpeas, drained
- Yellow onion, diced
- Oregano
- Rosemary, ground or crushed
- Garlic powder
- Kosher salt
- Pepper
For Serving
- Greek flat bread
- Tzatziki sauce – this is an authentic recipe that you will absolutely love! I promise.
- Fresh cucumbers
- Crumbled feta
- Grape or cherry tomatoes
How to Make Chickpea Gyros
- Place the drained chickpeas on a large paper towel. Do your best to dry them thoroughly.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Once the oil is sizzling, add the chickpeas and the diced onion to the pan and season with salt and pepper.
- Cook the chickpeas for 5-8 minutes, stirring frequently (to prevent them from burning).
- Reduce heat to medium and add the oregano, rosemary, and garlic powder. Stir until the chickpeas are evenly covered. Continue cooking the chickpeas until they are crispy but not burned.
- Remove from heat and serve the chickpeas on Greek flatbread topped with tzatziki sauce, cucumbers, chopped tomatoes and crumbled feta cheese.
Tools Used For This Recipe
Recipe Tips
If you prefer raw onions to cooked onions, you can leave out the diced onion when cooking the chickpeas and add raw onions for topping the vegetarian gyros.
If you’re looking for a gluten-free option or don’t have any flatbread around, you can forgo the flatbread and do a chickpea gyro bowl with cooked barley topped with cucumbers, tomatoes, and tzatziki sauce.
FAQ
Are chickpeas good for you?
Yes! Chickpeas are legumes, and legumes are a great, clean source of protein. They are also high in fiber and vitamin B.
How do you make homemade tzatziki sauce?
That’s a great question! I have a separate post on how to make the best tzatziki sauce.
How do you pronounce gyros?
Don’t worry, I had to look this up. It’s pronounced, yee-roh. And, another fun fact: gyros is the singular and gyri (yee-ree) is the plural! I know, I know.
More Delicious Recipes
Chickpea Gyros
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 15 oz can of chickpeas - drained
- 1/2 cup yellow onion - diced (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- kosher salt
- fresh cracked black pepper
For Serving
- Greek flat bread
- Tzatziki sauce
- fresh cucumbers - chopped
- crumbled feta cheese
- grape or cherry tomatoes - halved
Instructions
- Place the drained chickpeas on a large paper towel. Do your best to dry them thoroughly.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Once the oil is sizzling add the chickpeas and the diced onion to the pan and season with salt and pepper.
- Cook the chickpeas for 5-8 minutes, stirring frequently (to prevent them from burning).
- Reduce heat to medium and add the oregano, rosemary, and garlic powder. Stir to combine until the chickpeas are evenly covered. Continue cooking the chickpeas until they are crispy but not burned.
- Remove from heat and serve the chickpeas on Greek flatbread topped with tzatziki sauce, cucumbers, chopped tomatoes and crumbled feta cheese.
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One Comment on “Chickpea Gyros”
This recipe is a really fresh vegetarian option we like to make! It goes together really quick if you can remember to make your tzatziki sauce ahead of time.