Shawarma might be an easy snack or dinner to grab on the go, but it is far from a healthy one. The marinated strips that are shaved off from the rotating cone of meat already have fat running through them, and more likely than not, they will have been doused with yet more during the cooking process. The meat is also heavily seasoned, meaning that sodium levels are high. Slather your shawarma with traditional accompaniments and things only get worse in the health stakes: hummus and garlic sauce are both high in calories, as are the french fries that you often find nestled in the mix.
Make your own shawarma style marinated chicken kebab though and you can enjoy the flavour without feeling like you've overindulged. Chicken breast contains less fat than the darker leg meat and cooking the kebabs quickly under the grill (after being marinaded in yoghurt), means that you don't have to add extra fat to keep the meat moist. Serve in wholewheat pitta bread, with plenty of fresh salad ingredients and a sauce made from low fat yoghurt and you've got yourself a nicely balanced meal.
Healthy chicken shawarma
Serves two
For the chicken:
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons malt vinegar
1 teaspoon groundnut oil
teaspoon ground cardamon
teaspoon mixed spice
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
150g low fat natural yoghurt
180g organic free range chicken, cut into slices about 1cm thick
For the sauce:
1 tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste)
150g low fat natural yoghurt
1/2 garlic clove, peeled and very finely chopped
1 tbsp lemon juice
To serve:
wholewheat pita bread
head lettuce, shredded
3-4 tomatoes, thinly sliced
onion, peeled and thinly sliced
assorted pickles
salt and pepper
4-6 skewers, (if using wooden ones, then soak them in warm water for 20 minutes first)
Combine the lemon juice, vinegar, oil, spices, garlic and yoghurt in a bowl. Add the chicken and mix well. Cover with cling film and place in the fridge to marinate for at least two hours, overnight if possible. Preheat the grill to medium/high. Shake some of the marinade off from the meat, thread the thin chicken slices on to skewers and cook under the grill for 4-5minutes on each side - you want the chicken to be cooked through, but not dry. To make the sauce, whisk the tahini, yoghurt, garlic and lemon juice together in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. Warm the pita bread in the oven. Carefully remove the meat from the skewers and arrange in the middle of the bread, add the lettuce, tomatoes, onions and pickles and drizzle the tahini sauce over everything.
An average chicken shawarma contains:
Calories 475
Total Fat 13.2g
Total Carbohydrate 48g
Protein 41.6g
Profile of Tarabut Gateway
Founder: Abdulla Almoayed
Based: UAE
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 35
Sector: FinTech
Raised: $13 million
Backers: Berlin-based venture capital company Target Global, Kingsway, CE Ventures, Entrée Capital, Zamil Investment Group, Global Ventures, Almoayed Technologies and Mad’a Investment.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
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Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
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Price: From Dh149,900
Match info
Huddersfield Town 0
Chelsea 3
Kante (34'), Jorginho (45' pen), Pedro (80')
SERIES SCHEDULE
First Test, Galle International Stadium
July 26-30
Second Test, Sinhalese Sports Club Ground
August 3-7
Third Test, Pallekele International Stadium
August 12-16
First ODI, Rangiri Dambulla Stadium
August 20
Second ODI, Pallekele International Stadium
August 24
Third ODI, Pallekele International Stadium
August 27
Fourth ODI, R Premadasa Stadium
August 31
Fifth ODI, R Premadasa Stadium
September 3
T20, R Premadasa Stadium
September 6
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
