Greek American Lamb Gyros

Total Time: 1 hr 35 mins Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 35 mins

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground lamb (or ground 85% lean ground beef, see note)
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt (or 1 teaspoon table salt)
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons picked fresh oregano leaves (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
• 1/2 onion, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1 garlic clove, sliced
• 3 ounces thick slab bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces (or about 5 slices sliced bacon)
• 3/4 cup plain unsweetened yogurt
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 garlic clove, minced on microplane
• 1 lemons, juice of or 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley or 2 tablespoons mint
• 4 pieces soft hand-pulled-style pita bread (not pocket pita)
• fresh tomato, chopped
• onion, finely sliced
• cucumber (peeled, seeded, cubed)
• hot sauce

Recipe

• 1 combine lamb, kosher salt, pepper, and oregano in medium bowl.
• 2 mix with hands until homogeneous.
• 3 cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
• 4 meanwhile, place yogurt in fine-mesh strainer set over small bowl.
• 5 allow to drain in refrigerator for 1 hour.
• 6 adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 300 degrees fahrenheit.
• 7 place cold mixture in bowl of food processor with onion, garlic, and bacon. process until smooth puree is formed, about 1 minute total, scraping down sides with rubber spatula as necessary.
• 8 line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
• 9 with moist hands, form meat mixture into a rectangle about 1-1/2 inches high, 8-inches long, and 5-inches wide.
• 10 bake until center of loaf reads 155 degrees fahrenheit on an instant read thermometer, about 30 minutes.
• 11 allow loaf to rest at room temperature for fifteen minutes (or refrigerate for up to a week—see note).
• 12 meanwhile, make sauce.
• 13 combine strained yogurt, mayonnaise, garlic, lemon juice, and parsley; stir to combine.
• 14 season to taste with salt. refrigerate, covered, until ready to use.
• 15 adjust broiler rack to highest position (about 1-1/2 to 2 inches from broiler element). preheat broiler.
• 16 slice loaf crosswise into 1/8th to 1/4-inch strips (each strip should be about 5-inches long and 1-1/2 inches wide).
• 17 lay strips on rimmed baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.
• 18 broil until edges are brown and crispy, about 2 minutes.
• 19 tent with aluminum foil.
• 20 warm bread by placing on a rimmed baking sheet and broiling until soft and pliant, about 45 seconds per side.
• 21 spread 1/4 cup of sauce over each piece of bread.
• 22 divide meat evenly between sandwiches.
• 23 top as desired, wrap with foil, and serve.