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How do you make Trader Joe’s chicken shawarma in air fryer? Make air fryer Trader Joe’s chicken shawarma by cooking for 15-20 minutes at 400F (200C). Add additional air fryer time if the chicken hasn’t reached the safe temp of 165F (74C).
Air fryer chicken shawarma is an easy, healthy, and delicious recipe you’re going to love. Make an air fryer chicken shawarma plate for a low calorie, low carb, keto, and gluten free option, or make air fryer shawarma wraps with flatbread or pita bread and enjoy the carbs!
Have made this so many times, absolutely love it! 
– Rachel
What is chicken shawarma? Authentic shawarma recipes are made by taking meat slices and slowly cooking them while stacked on a vertical spit. If you’ve had take-out shawarma from a Middle Eastern restaurant, you may have seen the cooked meat being shaved off the spit while it rotates.
Lamb and mutton are classic meats used, but beef and chicken shawarmas are becoming more common.
⭐ How to Cook Trader Joe’s Chicken Shawarma in Air Fryer
Here’s what you need for this chicken gyro air fryer recipe:
- Trader Joe’s shawarma chicken thighs (one package from the refrigerated meat section)
- Shawarma wrap filling ingredients
- Flatbreads or pita pockets (optional)
Get a printable recipe card at the end of the post!
Air fryer Trader Joe’s shawarma chicken thighs are full of flavor and stay extra juicy and moist. They’re so good!
You’ll also need an air fryer and a meat thermometer for this chicken shawarma air fryer recipe. You can make air fryer chicken shawarma in a Ninja Foodi, Philips, Nuwave, Pampered Chef, Actifry, Instant Pot Vortex, Cosori, Breville, or another air fryer. However, you may need to adjust these cooking time instructions depending on the air fryer you use.
⏲️ Cooking Time and Temperature
How long to cook Trader Joe’s shawarma in the air fryer? What temperature to air fry chicken shawarma? Air fry shawarma chicken for a total of 15-20 minutes in an air fryer at 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200C).
Make sure the chicken pieces are in a single layer in the air fryer basket. There is no need to preheat the air fryer or flip the chicken.
After cooking, check that the chicken’s internal temperature reaches at least 165F (74C) with a meat thermometer. Add additional cooking time if needed.
You can also grill (7-10 minutes on medium-high heat) or use an oven (20 minutes at 400F) to bake Trader Joe’s shawarma chicken thighs. However, air frying chicken shawarma is more hands-off than grilling and takes less time than baking (since no preheating is needed).
➕ How do you eat Trader Joe’s shawarma chicken thighs?
Serve air fryer shawarma chicken thighs over rice or a salad. Alternatively, make a shawarma wrap! Here’s what I like to use for this classic street food:
- Baby lettuce
- Chopped Persian cucumbers
- Chopped tomatoes
- Pitted kalamata olives
- Crumbled feta cheese
- Lebanese pickles (or dill pickle slices)
- Lemon-tahini sauce
For years, I assumed the pink pickles in shawarma were red pickled onions. Later, I learned they are actually pickled turnips! These can be hard to find in stores, but luckily I have a recipe for pink pickled turnips right here.
The lemon tahini sauce I make is 2 parts tahini, 2 parts lemon juice, and 1 part water. It is quite strong and meant to be used sparingly. Since you’re making shawarma at home, you could use tzatziki yogurt sauce or hummus instead.
You could also use these same ingredients but skip the wrap for a low carb bowl.
🌡️ How to Reheat Shawarma in Air Fryer
Reheat chicken shawarma in the air fryer for 2-5 minutes at 400F (200C). Alternatively, reheat the cooked chicken in the microwave for 30-60 seconds on high. You can keep leftover shawarma chicken in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
This shawarma chicken thighs air fryer recipe also freezes well. Place the leftovers in a freezer bag with the air pressed out and you can store it in the freezer for months.
Watch How to Make It!
Trader Joe’s Chicken Shawarma Thighs (Air Fryer Wrap or Bowl)
Ingredients
- 1 package Trader Joe's chicken shawarma thighs (1-1½ lbs or 454-680g)
For the shawarma wraps or bowls:
- 2-4 cups baby lettuce
- 4 Persian cucumbers, quartered and chopped
- 2 plum tomatoes, chopped
- 25-30 kalamata olives, pitted (packed in vinegar)
- 3 ounces fat-free feta, crumbled (85 grams)
- ½ cup Lebanese pickles
- 4 whole wheat pita bread (skip for bowls)
Tahini-lemon sauce:
- 2 tablespoons tahini
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
- Air fry Trader Joe's chicken shawarma for 15-20 minutes at 400°F (200°C). Add additional air fryer time if the chicken hasn’t reached the minimum safe internal temp of 165°F (74°C) using a meat thermometer.
- While the chicken cooks, whisk the tahini-lemon sauce ingredients together. Set aside.
- For chicken shawarma wraps: Pile the lettuce, chicken, cucumbers, tomatoes, feta, olives, and Lebanese pickles on pita bread. Drizzle with lemon-tahini sauce, wrap, and enjoy.
- For chicken shawarma bowls: Divide the baby lettuce between the bowls. Top with the cucumbers, tomatoes, feta, olives, and Lebanese pickles. Add the chicken once it has finished cooking. Drizzle with tahini sauce and enjoy.
Equipment
Notes
💭 Expert Tips from Dietitian Summer Yule
This is a level 1 recipe (may help support fat loss). The calorie count below includes a whole-wheat pita. If you make an air fryer chicken bowl instead, your meal will be 324 calories (a small low-calorie meal). In other words, if you’re not trying to lose weight, the pita adds about 180 calories to the meal. If you want a moderate calorie gluten-free option, you could make air fryer chicken shawarma bowls with rice. If you have kids, adding some grains can help ensure their energy needs are met. (We generally don’t want kids eating low calorie meals, since they need to grow!) What I do sometimes is make a shawarma salad bowl for myself, but have flatbreads available for the family. Those following a low-carb plan will either want to use a low-carb wrap alternative or skip the wrap. Another way to lighten the meal is to skip the tahini sauce. The marinated chicken and pickles provide a lot of flavor, even if you choose to omit the sauce. I love this meal as an example of a healthy dinner idea that can easily be used for family meals or meal prepping salad bowls. Don’t be afraid to make it your own! Nutrition information is for one air fryer chicken shawarma wrap.
nutrition info disclaimer
All recipes on this website may or may not be appropriate for you, depending on your medical needs and personal preferences. Consult with a registered dietitian or your physician if you need help determining the dietary pattern that may be best for you.
The nutrition information is an estimate provided as a courtesy. It will differ depending on the specific brands and ingredients that you use. Calorie information on food labels may be inaccurate, so please don’t sweat the numbers too much.
“To taste” means to your preferences, which may have to be visual to follow food safety rules. Please don’t eat undercooked food x
Nutrition
📋 Chicken Shawarma Wrap Calories
One serving of this Trader Joe’s shawarma chicken air fryer recipe has 160 calories, 3 grams net carbs, and 21 grams protein. This is for a 4-ounce (112g) serving of the chicken only.
One air fryer chicken shawarma wrap provides 504 calories, 35.3 grams net carbs, and 37.4 grams protein. This nutrition information will vary depending on the brand and size of pita bread you use.
FAQs
How much does Trader Joe’s chicken shawarma cost?
Trader Joe’s chicken shawarma costs $6.99 per pound, or about $10 per package. Prices may vary by location and are correct at the time of writing, but are subject to change.
What are the ingredients in Trader Joe’s shawarma chicken thighs?
The ingredients in Trader Joe’s shawarma chicken are:
- Boneless skinless chicken thigh
- Shawarma spice marinade (shawarma seasoning made of dehydrated onion, dehydrated garlic, sea salt, spices, paprika, turmeric, and parsley; annatto oil; lemon juice; vinegar powder; natural rosemary flavor)
How to make a chicken shawarma air fryer rotisserie recipe?
For a rotisserie shawarma recipe, experiment with threading the Trader Joes chicken on the spit and cooking for 20-30 minutes at 375F (190C). Add additional cooking time as needed if the chicken didn’t reach 165F (74C).
👨🏾🍳 More Air Fryer Chicken Recipes
Looking for more air fryer recipes using chicken? Here are some ideas:
- Trader Joe’s Orange Chicken in the Air Fryer (Trader Joe’s mandarin chicken)
- Air Fryer Rotisserie Chicken
- Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Thighs
- BBQ Chicken Breast in the Air Fryer
Be sure to check out the entire collection of Air Fryer Recipes while you’re here!
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Hello! I’m Summer, a registered dietitian and home chef who loves to cook, eat, and create recipes for you! Every recipe on this site has been tested by me to help ensure your success in the kitchen. All eaters are welcome here 🙂
Hi there! I’m at work surfing around your blog from my new apple iphone!
Just wanted to say I love reading through your blog and
look forward to all your posts! Carry on the fantastic work!
Have made this so many times, absolutely love it! (The dressing not so much, we use our own). So happy to have found this.. thank you!
Yay! Thank you so much for leaving a rating, you’ve made my day! If you happen to see this, I’d love to hear about what you ended up doing for the dressing 🙂
Beautiful, Summer! A great way to satisfy those yearnings (and yes, they are ,mighty) when current immobility makes such expeditions…difficult.
Even in the not-too-distant future, when we’re past today’s nonsense, you’ve given us an Option B when winter snowstorms or summer thunderstorms interfere.
You mentioned once you’ve cooked recipes from the world over. This is a magnificent benefit of the experience you won satisfying your curiosity. Even if we don’t live in Manhattan, you’ve given us all the food options we’d enjoy of we did.
Thank you! I am really hoping that by summer things will be back to normal. I do love to experiment with new (to me) ingredients from around the world.
Luckily, there are also so many ways to combine the familiar in unique ways, so I don’t always have to seek out esoteric ingredients. 🙂 If nothing else, I expect the coming months will encourage culinary creativity!
Fantastic recipe! A variation on the shawarma method, but carries the shawarma taste and spirit!
Thank you so much! I’m thinking this is a good one to save for summertime- no need to heat up the house with the oven!