Veg Shawarma Wraps – 3 variations
Shawarma has become one of the world’s most popular street foods. It is a Middle Eastern dish usually consisting of thinly sliced meat and various vegetables, herbs, sauces and spices wrapped in a thin and soft flatbread called lavash. But don’t get discouraged, because today you will learn how to prepare a delicious and nutritious shawarma made exclusively with vegetarian and vegan ingredients! If you have been looking for the best veg shawarma recipes, look no further, as today we will share 3 incredible variations that will include 1 vegetarian and 2 vegan shawarma wraps.
You may be wondering about some items in our ingredients list, so let us explain J For our Asian-inspired vegan shawarma wrap, we’ll be using the Korean-style marinated carrots, eggplant and bean curd. In Russia and other surrounding countries you can find these items at any supermarket, but they are especially good home-made by Russian Koreans who sell them in small batches at the farmers' market. You’d be surprised to learn however, that Koreans living in other countries have no idea what these dishes are! This is because Koreans who began migrating to Russia from the mid-19th century had to adapt their recipes to the foods that were available in their new home and so they invented entirely new dishes, which became much loved by many living in Russia and beyond.
For this recipe, you can use marinated Korean cabbage called Kimchi and other marinated or pickled vegetables available at your local grocery store. However, if you do feel adventurous, try marinating Korean-style carrots, eggplant and bean curd yourself! There are lots of recipes available online. For our Georgian-inspired shawarmas, we’ll be using three authentic ingredients that no Georgian dish can do without!
These are:
Satsebeli - a Georgian sauce made of tomato paste, cilantro, garlic, vinegar, pepper, khmeli suneli, water and adjika chili paste. This is a hot sauce so you can substitute it with any other hot sauce you have on hand or try making satsebeli yourself!
Khmeli suneli - a traditional Georgian spice mix, typically containing ground coriander seed, celery seed, dried basil, dill, parsley, fenugreek, summer savory, bay leaf, mint and marigold. Again, any other spice mix will do or you can just omit and use only the curry powder to marinate the tofu.
Suluguni - a brined Georgian cheese from the Samegrelo region. It has a sour, moderately salty flavor, a dimpled texture, and an elastic consistency; these attributes are the result of the process used, as is the source of its nickname "pickle cheese". Its color ranges from white to pale yellow. Sulguni is often deep-fried, which gives it an amazing flavor. You can also try frying any other similar cheese available in your area.
If you do have a Russian delicacies store in your city, you will be sure to find all these ingredients there, but as noted above, you can easily substitute these with something similar or replace with your own favourite shawarma fillings.
Step-by-step instructions
1 Wash and prepare all vegetables: shred the cabbage into very thin strands, cut the tomatoes into wedges, slice cucumbers lengthwise into ½ cm strips, cut onion into thin strands, finely chop dill and cilantro. Keep spinach leaves whole to add to your wraps.
2 Cut up tofu and suluguni cheese into long bricks about 1 cm thick.
3 Mince garlic and add to your mayo. Mix well.
4 Marinate tofu bricks in some oil mixed with curry powder and khmeli-suneli or other spice mix of your choice.
5 Separately fry the marinated tofu and the suluguni cheese on an oiled skillet, turning often until golden brown on each side.
6 . Spread the garlic mayo onto three lavash sheets and add the ingredients as follows or according to your liking: - For the Asian-inspired vegan shawarma: add spinach, cucumbers, marinated carrots, eggplant and bean curd, cilantro, dill, some more spinach, some cabbage, satsebeli sauce and more mayo. - For the Georgian vegetarian shawarma: add cabbage, cilantro, dill, suluguni cheese, onion, cucumbers, tomatoes, marinated carrots, satsebeli sauce and more mayo. - For the Georgian vegan shawarma: add cabbage, tofu, onion, cilantro, dill, tomatoes, marinated carrots, satsebeli sauce and more mayo.
7 Carefully wrap the lavash sheet closing from all sides like an envelope and roll slightly pressing to compress the filling.
8 Toast each wrap on a dry or lightly oiled skillet or use a Panini or grill press to brown on both sides.