Gyro Meat | The Modern Proper

Skip to Content menu Home Recipes About Contact Newsletter Get Our Cookbook Go to Homepage

• Follow TMP on Instagram
• Follow TMP on Pinterest
• Follow TMP on Facebook
• Follow TMP on TikTok

Get Our Cookbook

• The Modern Proper ≻
• Recipes ≻
• Dinner

(5) Gyro Meat

Updated September 17, 2025 / By Holly Erickson

If you have a loaf pan, you can make the most juicy, deliciously flavorful gyro meat at home — no rotisserie needed! Categories

• Lunch
• Dinner
• Dairy-Free
• Gluten Free
• Low-Carb
• Whole30
• Kid Friendly

Photography by Gayle McLeod Jump to Recipe Save Recipe Share this recipe on Pinterest

Gyro meat is made of a juicy, flavorful lamb and beef mixture, seasoned with salt, herbs and spices, cooked on a rotisserie and sliced to order. At home, though, you can make restaurant-level gyro meat easily in a loaf pan! My easy gyro meat recipe is all about using lots of classic Greek seasonings and the traditional gyro meat combo of ground lamb and beef.

Perfect for meal prepping or freezing, you can serve that juicy homemade Gyro meat in so many ways! Pile it into pita with Greek Tzatziki or Muhammara, or, make healthy gyro bowls by serving it over Lemon Rice. For a lighter version, try Chicken Gyros next! 

Easy Gyro Meat Ingredients

• Ground lamb and beef: Ground lamb is traditional, but if it’s too expensive or hard to find, just do all beef. It won't have the same flavor, but it’s still great!
• Onion: Grated onion is a key element of this recipe. More on this below!
• Gyro meat seasonings: Garlic, oregano, cumin, garlic powder, thyme, marjoram 

How To Make Gyro Meat At Home

1. Grate an onion. You can do this with a box grater, but it’s much easier in a food processor. Wrap the grated onion in a kitchen towel and squeeze out as much of the liquid as you can.
2. Mix the onion with the lamb, beef and all of the gyro meat seasonings.
3. Blend the meat mixture in a food processor until it looks like a coarse paste. Processing it like this helps the meat to bind together into a sliceable loaf. 
4. Press the gyro meat into a loaf pan. 
5. Bake! It’ll take about an hour for it to reach 165° F on an instant-read thermometer. 
6. Cool, slice and enjoy! Serve with Za'atar Roasted Cauliflower, a Greek-inspired Cucumber Salad, Whipped Feta Dip and a hearty Antipasto Salad. 

How To Freeze Gyro Meat

• Cool the baked loaf completely. 
• Wrap it tightly in a few layers of plastic wrap. 
• Label it with the date. 
• Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. 
• To defrost and serve: Defrost the loaf of gyro meat in the fridge for 24 hours. When you’re ready to serve it, slice the meat and pan-fry it until crispy.  

Tips For The Best Gyro Meat 

• Let the gyro meat cool completely before you slice it. 
• Leftover gyro meat is delicious! You can keep it in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days. 
• Gyro meat releases juice as it bakes. To make it extra delicious, pan-fry the sliced meat until crispy in those excess pan juices before serving. Yum!
• If you don't have a food processor, you can very finely mince everything and knead the gyro meat mixture by hand, but the texture of the finished meat won't be quite as authentic. It’ll be a little more like meatloaf rather than dense and juicy like gyro meat. 
• If you don’t have a loaf pan: grill the meat in patties or shaped logs (similar to these Beef Kofta Kebabs). Slice and serve!  

More Meaty Mediterranean Recipes

• Chicken Shawarma Meatballs Well, friends. It’s been at least 15 minutes since we last shared a meatball recipe, and so it’s time for yet another incredibly delicious meatball recipe! Meet chicken shawarma meatballs!
• Beef Kofta Kebabs with Tzatziki Big, bold herbs and spices make these beef kofta kebabs with tzatziki perfect for a super satisfying centerpiece for a Mediterranean-inspired feast.
• Greek Shrimp Fresh, plump shrimp tossed with blistered, garlicky cherry tomatoes, feta and herbs, Greek shrimp is the kind of dinner that we could eat every single night.
• Meatball Shakshuka Ground beef is mixed with the same herbs and spices used in the classic North African shakshuka and then simmered in a smoky, tomato-y shakshuka sauce for a one-pan dinner that everyone will love.

Zero to Gyro!

For more recipe inspiration, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest or order our cookbook. We love when you share your meals. Tag us on Instagram using #themodernproper. Happy cooking!

5 Days of Winter Comfort Food

FREE EMAIL BONUS: Five easy ways to warm up your week!

Join Our Newsletter Follow Us Follow TMP on Instagram Follow TMP on Pinterest Follow TMP on Facebook Follow TMP on TikTok (5)

Gyro Meat Recipe

Updated September 17, 2025

By Holly Erickson

• Serves: 8
• Prep Time: 20 min
• Cook Time: 1 hr
• Calories: 252

Description

If you have a loaf pan, you can make the most juicy, deliciously flavorful gyro meat at home — no rotisserie needed! Print Recipe Pin Recipe

💌 Send yourself this recipe

Enter your email and we'll send Gyro Meat right to your inbox.

Send

Ingredients

• ½ yellow onion, grated
• 1 pound ground lamb
• 1 pound 80/20 ground beef
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons ground thyme
• ½ tablespoon ground marjoram
• 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
• 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F with a rack in the center position.

   

2. Place the onion in the center of a clean kitchen towel and wring it out. Transfer the onion to a large bowl and add the lamb, beef, minced garlic, oregano, cumin, garlic powder, thyme, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Mix well with wet hands. 

   

3. Transfer the meat mixture to the base of a food processor and pulse until a paste forms, about 2 minutes.

   

4. Press the meat mixture firmly into a 9x5-inch loaf pan. Bake until the internal temperature reaches 165°F on an instant-read thermometer, about 50-60 minutes. 

   

5. Let the meat cool for 20-30 minutes, then slice very thinly.

   

Notes

Want extra crispy gyro meat? Heat a little of the reserved pan juices in a large skillet over medium heat, then fry the meat slices until crispy.

Related Recipes

• Gyro Bowl
• Mediterranean Turkey Burger
• Grilled Chicken Shawarma Kebab

Nutrition Info

• Per Serving
• Amount

• Calories 252
• Protein 23 g
• Carbohydrates 3 g
• Total Fat 17 g
• Dietary Fiber 1 g
• Cholesterol 35 mg
• Sodium 209 mg
• Total Sugars 0 g

Scroll to Top

Gyro Meat

Questions & Reviews

Rated 4.8 stars by 5 readers

Ask a Question or Write a Review Name* Email* Comment Rating 5 4 3 2 1 Submit

This form is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Questions 10 Reviews 5 Avg: 4.8 / 5

• Tom

  If you eliminate the beef will the mixture turn out ok?

  You will need to replace it with more lamb.

• Lisa

  Could this be done in the pressure cooker somehow?

  Not sure. I assume it can, but I'd have to play around with it, because pressure cookers create a lot of moisture.

• A

  Do you think I can prep in the morning, place in the fridge and cook later in the day?

  Sure!

• Tasnima

  Usually which part of the meat do you need to make gyro meat?

  Our recipe uses a mixture of ground lamb and ground beef.

• Bernie

  It didn't say how to assemble in the peta bread..how to serve

  We have a gyro bowl recipe using this meat or if you want it in the pita you can just layer the gyro meat, hummus, tzatziki sauce, tomatoes, and feta cheese on a large pita bread. Hope you enjoy Bernie!

• Suzie

  What temperature convection oven ‘C do you bake the gyros? What temp. Standard oven ‘C do you bake the gyros Perhaps I missed something….if so sorry

  We don't list celsius on our site. But 350 F would convert to 176 C. Hope you enjoy Susie!

• Heather

  I made this when it first came out and it was amazing but my 23 yr old food processor just died and have this planned for Mothers Day. How long do I have to mix it by hand? Thanks so much

  Hi Heather, we haven't mixed it by hand before so couldn't give you an exact time. You'll just want to mix it until it is fully combined. The texture will be a bit different than when using a food processor but it will still taste great! You could also use a stand mixer if you have one.

• Emma

  Is it okay to use only ground beef for this recipe?

  Hi Emma, we haven't tried it with just beef but that should work fine. Hope you enjoy!

• Nikki

  Instead of cooking this in a loaf pan, could you use the recipe for kebabs or kofte?

  Hi Nikki, yes you definitely can! We also have a Beef Kofta Kababs recipe on our site. The main difference is we just use ground beef in the kofta recipe instead of a mix of beef and lamb.

• Doozer

  This looks like great recipe! I have just bought a spit/rotisserie for my BBQ. Would this work on there?

  Oh, how fun! I have never tested it that way, but I am very curious! Let us know how it turns out.

• Almeera

  5-star rating

  I just love this recipe thanks so much..

  Thanks Almeera, we are so glad you love it!

• Jason

  4-star rating

  Solid recipe. Great flavor. Pretty spot on really. For not having a standing spit roaster, the oven did a great job.

  Thanks Jason, so happy you enjoyed it!

• Megan

  5-star rating

  I like the flavor but it seems to be missing something savory to me. Perhaps after it sits for a day it will have a better flavor.

  Thanks Megan! Glad you liked it!

• Sherrie

  5-star rating

  Absolutely the best recipe! We are so critical going out to eat greek and I came upon this recipe and it's authentically crazy awesome! Thankyou!

  Oh my goodness! That's the best news. Thanks for the review. Glad you liked it.

• Cheryl

  5-star rating

  OMG. This recipe is the best. Made it for my family - Our house is now the best Greek restaurant in town!!! Thank you! Cheryl

  Yay! That is wonderful to hear!

Write a Review

Save this Recipe

Enter your email below & we'll send Gyro Meat to your inbox. Plus get great new recipes from us every week!

SAVE

We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time.

5 Days of Winter Comfort Food

FREE EMAIL BONUS: Five easy ways to warm up your week!

Our Recipes, Your Inbox

Subscribe to our Newsletter for weekly recipe inspiration as well as seasonal menu tips and resources.