This beef shawarma bowl is a healthy spin on a popular Middle Eastern recipe. Make this shawarma recipe in your slow cooker or pressure cooker (Instant Pot).

PIN FOR LATER
Updated 2019 with Instant Pot instructions
To say I like shawarma is an understatement. There’s a really good Lebanese restaurant around the corner from my house and no joke, I order their chicken & beef shawarma at least once a week. Shawarma in general is one of my all-time favorite foods. I had shawarma 3 days in a row for dinner during my last to the Middle East. I’ve been thinking about this recipe pretty much since then.
What is Shawarma?
Shawarma is a Middle Eastern dish made of sliced meat stacked in a cone-like shape, and roasted on a slowly turning vertical spit. Shawarma can be made from beef, chicken, lamb, or turkey. Traditionally, thin slices of meat are shaved spit as the continuously rotates and cooks the meat. Technically real shawarma isn’t made in the slow cooker so this is more an ode-to shawarma because I love it so much.

before (slow cooker)
What Type Of Beef To Use
As with most of my recipes you can use your preferred cut of beef here. It’s already not a traditional shawarma anyway. I used beef sirloin; other suggestions include round or flank steak. I encourage you to use ingredients that you can find easily and that fit your budget. The key is to slice the beef into even strips.

after (slow cooker)
Other Middle Eastern recipes you might enjoy:
Slow Cooker/Instant Pot Shaksuka (Low-Carb, Paleo, Whole30)
Chicken Kofta Kebabs (Low-Carb, Paleo, Whole30)
Slow Cooker Kofta Casserole (Paleo, Whole30)
Serving Shawarma In A Bowl
No, this is not the normal way to eat shawarma. It’s the healthy way! Shawarma is usually served as a sandwich in a pita wrap or some sort of bread. For the garnish, while it differs depending on the Middle Eastern country, the garnish ingredients are cucumbers, tomatoes, and red onions with a tahini or garlic sauce. In certain countries it’s even common to add french fries to the shawarma sandwich. To keep this recipe low-carb, paleo, and whole30 I ate my beef shawarma in a bowl. My husband however went the traditional route with a pita sandwich.
How you serve this is up to you. I added cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, and tahini sauce to my beef shawarma bowl.
Slow Cooker Beef Shawarma VIDEO:

{VIDEO} Slow Cooker/Instant Pot Beef Shawarma Bowl (Low-Carb, Paleo, Whole30)
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 3 hours
- Total Time: 3 hours 10 mins
- Yield: Serves 4 1x
Ingredients
- 2 lbs beef, sliced
- 1 small onion, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 tbsp white vinegar
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1 tsp cardamom
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp za’atar (optional)
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- Fresh parsley chopped finely for garnish
- 1 tbsp oil (for pressure cooker)
- 1/2 cup low-sodium beef broth (for pressure cooker)
Bowl ingredients:
- Lettuce
- Red onion
- Tomatoes
- Cucumber
- Tahini sauce
Instructions
Slow Cooker
- Add all the ingredients to the slow cooker. Stir to mix well.
- Cook HIGH 2-3 or LOW 4-6.
Instant Pot
- Turn on the IP and select Sauté. Once hot add oil to the pot.
- Add beef and cook 3-5 minutes until browned. Remove beef from the pressure cooker.
- Add onion and cook 5-7 minutes or until soft. Add beef back into the pressure cooker along with all the other ingredients. Stir to mix well.
- Close lid and seal valve. Set high pressure, 9 minutes. Natural release pressure.
I used a 6-quart slow cooker or Instant Pot.
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Made this the other night with petite sirloin and it was delicious! Mine turned out very saucy so we put it on brown rice with the veggies. Found a yogurt based Dill and Feta dressing to drizzle over the top and it was really yummy. Thanks for the recipe!
★★★★★
Can you recommend a good tahini sauce recipe or a prepared one?
I made this for dinner tonight and it was absolutely delicious and took minimal hands-on time. This recipe will definitely be a keeper. Thank you!
You’re welcome! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe. It’s a personal favorite 😉
This looks really good. I never heard of shawarma until Iron Man mentioned it in both avengers movie.
This looks wonderful! And I love that it is cooked in a slow cooker, they are so convenient for busy days!
This looks delicious and it’s very nice that this is a crockpot meal!
This looks good!! I so need to use my crockpot more, oh and take my InstaPot out of the box, lol.
Yum! This looks amazing and super easy with the slow cooker!
wow this looks so delicious!!! I think I´m going to try this this weekend 🙂
I’ve never thought of making shawarma in a slow cooker and i’m glad you shared this because it’s my fave too! And I’m glad I don’t need to wait for Fall for a slow cooking dish. Yum!
This looks amazing! Love my crockpot… will have to try this for sure!