The Grand Tour Story
The Grand Tour leaves the Caucasus behind and follows the old trading routes south until the Mediterranean
appears once again. Minarets rise above bustling streets, the smell of charcoal drifts through open markets, and
every corner seems to have a shawarma grill slowly turning from morning until well after midnight.
Welcome to Beirut.
We arrive just as the evening crowds begin filling the cafés along the Corniche. Music spills into the streets, fresh
flatbreads are stacked high in bakery windows, and a shawarma master called Samir carefully shaves beautifully
seasoned chicken from a towering spit.
He smiles as he loads another box.
"The secret isn't the chicken."
"It's what you serve it with."
After dinner, we finally understood.
You’ll Need
For the Shawarma Chicken
700g chicken thighs, sliced into strips
2 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, finely grated, 2 tbsp Greek yoghurt, 1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander, 1 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp sea salt, ½ tsp cracked black pepper
Juice of ½ lemon
For the Potatoes
500g baby potatoes, halved, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp smoked paprika, ½ tsp garlic powder
Sea salt, Black pepper
Garlic Toum Sauce
150g Greek yoghurt, 2 garlic cloves, finely grated
1 tbsp lemon juice, Pinch of sea salt
To Finish
Fresh parsley, chopped
Sliced red onion, Pickled cucumbers
Optional but dangerous
Warm Lebanese flatbread
Pickled chillies
Hummus
Cold Lebanese lager
Method
Preheat your air fryer to 200°C.
In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, garlic, yoghurt, cumin, coriander, smoked paprika, cinnamon, turmeric, sea
salt, black pepper and lemon juice.
Add the chicken and coat thoroughly. Leave to marinate for at least 30 minutes if possible.
Toss the potatoes with the olive oil, smoked paprika, garlic powder, sea salt and black pepper.
Add the potatoes to the air fryer basket and cook for 10 minutes.
Push the potatoes to one side and add the marinated chicken in a single layer.
Air fry everything together for 12–14 minutes, shaking halfway through, until the chicken is lightly charred around
the edges and the potatoes are crisp and golden.
Meanwhile, mix together the Greek yoghurt, garlic, lemon juice and sea salt to make the garlic toum-style sauce.
Divide the potatoes between serving boxes, pile the shawarma chicken over the top and finish with sliced red
onion, pickled cucumbers and chopped parsley.
Spoon over the garlic sauce and serve immediately with warm flatbread if using.