What cooking method gives shawarma its characteristic flavor in Middle Eastern cuisine?

Shawarma gets its characteristic flavor from vertical spit roasting seasoned meat.

Thin slices of meat are stacked on a tall rotating spit, traditionally with pieces of fat between layers. The outside cooks against a heat source while the spit turns, allowing the vendor to shave off browned slices as needed. Chicken, lamb, beef, and mixtures of meats are all used in different places.

The technique is related to the Turkish döner kebab and Greek gyros. The Arabic word shawarma is commonly linked to the Turkish word çevirme, meaning “turning.” Shawarma spread widely across the Middle East and later became popular internationally.

A shawarma sandwich often includes pita or another flatbread, pickles, vegetables, and sauces such as tahini or toum. It should not be confused with a seekh kebab, whose minced meat is shaped around a skewer and grilled rather than shaved from a rotating stack.