Jerk Chicken Shawarma

Are you looking to try something new on the grill this Summer? Try this!

I love the bold, almost pungent flavors of chicken shawarma. I also go head over heels for the earthy, aromatic taste of jerk chicken.

So it only makes sense that I had to combine the two styles into one - the Jerk Chicken Shawarma.

Sliced jerk chicken, roasted garlic lime sauce, seasoned sweet potato fries, and pickle on naan bread.

Authenticity

This dish is styled after its Middle Eastern and Jamaican influences, but it is NOT an authentic representation of either.

Jerk Chicken

Jerk chicken is a celebration of spicy, smoky, and aromatic goodness.

Bone-in vs Boneless - While I like both versions, for the past several years my go-to has been boneless, skinless chicken thighs. They seem to take the marinade more quickly and they cook faster.
Marinade - All things equal, I like to use this recipe for Marinade for Jerk Chicken. But I also like the classic Walkerswood Jerk Seasoning and I cut that with an ounce or two of orange juice, a splash of lime juice and 2 ounces of peanut oil.
Pimento Wood - For peak authenticity, pimento wood is the ticket. However, it is a slow growing wood so Jamaica has tight restrictions on the export of pimento wood. Honestly, quality lump charcoal works for me.

The two local joints where I get my shawarma serve it with fries, a hint of pickle, and a creamy garlic sauce wrapped in warm flatbread. I swapped the traditional potato fries out with earthy seasoned sweet potato fries. I created a creamy roasted garlic lime sauce to act as a bridge between the two flavor worlds.

By www.nibblemethis.com

Published 4/13/2026

The spicy, pungent allure of jerk chicken meets the rich flavor of Middle Eastern shawarma, all wrapped in a piece of grilled naan bread. It's a journey for your taste buds that you won't soon forget.

INGREDIENTS

8 chicken thighs, boneless, skinless
1 1/2 pounds sweet potato fries, cooked
8 gherkin pickles, sliced lengthwise into quarters creating "mini-pickle spears"
4-6 pieces naan bread
1 cup jerk marinade

For the Roasted Garlic Lime Sauce

2 heads of garlic, roasted and paste extracted (about 1 ounce of roasted garlic paste)
1.5 ounces cooking oil
juice and zest from 1 lime, about 1 ounce
1/4 teaspoon Olde Virden's Red Hot Sprinkle or red chile flake
1 - 1 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
Kosher salt to taste, about 1 teaspoon

INSTRUCTIONS

Marinade the chicken. Place the chicken in the marinade, making sure to coat all sides. Refrigerate and rest for 24-48 hours.
Make the roasted garlic lime sauce. Whisk together the roasted garlic, lime juice, lime zest, chile flake and yogurt. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before using.
Grill the chicken. Preheat a charcoal grill to 500°f. Remove the chicken from the marinade and shake off the excess. Grill the chicken thighs until they reach an internal temperature of 170-175°f, about 4-6 minutes per side. Let the chicken rest for 5-7 minutes and then thinly slice it.
Grill the naan bread. Grill the bread just long enough to heat through, about 30 seconds per side.
Assemble the shawarma. Place 4-6 of the mini-pickle spears along the center of a piece of naan bread. Top that with a handful of sweet potato fries and 4-6 ounces of the sliced chicken. Drizzle of hefty amount of the roasted garlic lime sauce across the top. Roll up and serve.

Yield: 4-6 shawarma

Prep Time: 01 hrs. 00 mins.

Cook time: 00 hrs. 30 mins.

Total time: 01 hrs. 30 mins.

Tags: sauce, chicken, main, sandwich

Make sure you get the marinade all over the chicken thighs. Unroll the thighs so you get into all the nooks and crannies. This is true any time you're seasoning boneless, skinless thighs.

Another thing I like to do with my jerk chicken is using a vacuum marinating device. The theory is the suction opens up the meat to receive the marinade. Plenty of people swear by it. I haven't seen any scientific testing to back that up but it certainly doesn't hurt.

I used the original PK Grill for this batch of jerk chicken. Yeesh, I really need to clean this grill.

I used GrillGrates on the PK Grill for this cook. Partly to keep the chance of flare ups from the dripping marinade but mainly because they were already on there.