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Pot Roast Gyros – street food inspired, oven-roasted pot roast stuffed inside fresh pitas with all the “extras”. Add delicious creamy tzatziki sauce and all of the desired toppings you love. This Greek-inspired loaded beef gyro is SO GOOD. It makes for a quick, fun, delicious, and different weeknight meal. Seriously, this recipe is perfect for any night of the week. Serve each gyro with homemade fries + ketchup for dipping for a meal that everyone will truly love.
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I’ve been excited to share this recipe all month long. It’s, without a doubt, my favorite recipe of April, and my family has been greatly enjoying it.
This past fall, I discovered a new love for slow-cooked pot roast. I made this cider braised pot roast, and that recipe officially sold me on cooking more pot roast recipes, whether it’s fall, winter, spring, or summer. There are so many ways we can cook affordable meat and make it delicious!
I’ve made classic pot roast, pineapple pot roast bowls, and even pot roast tacos, but again, this gyro is by far my favorite. A very simple and straightforward recipe that’s so delicious.
Creighton, Mom, Dad, Asher, and even Oslo love this recipe! We love any kind of loaded “street food” style wrap/sandwich/bowl. The idea with these gyros is that they’re simple. Nothing too fancy, but they use such delicious flavors. Slow-cook the meat in the oven or the crockpot, then toss with sauce. Assemble your pitas and enjoy them with so much Tzatziki sauce.
Ingredients
- Yellow onion
- Shallots
- Garlic
- Sweet/smoked paprika
- Ground cumin
- Dried oregano
- Fresh thyme
- Cayenne
- Pink Himalayan salt
- Chuck roast
- Beer (or use chicken broth)
- Lemon juice
- Salted butter
- Fresh pitas or naan
- Pickled red onion, lettuce, and fresh herbs
- Tzatziki for serving
These are the Details
Step 1: the seasoning
My go-to gyro seasoning blend is smoked paprika, cumin, oregano, fresh thyme, cayenne, and salt.
I use this for most of my gyro wraps/bowls; it’s my favorite blend.
Step 2: slow-cook the meat
You can braise the meat in the oven or use the crockpot. Both methods are almost identical and equally delicious.
Arrange lots of sliced onions, shallots, and garlic in the bottom of your pot. Add beer, then lemon juice. If you prefer not to cook with beer, use broth. Slow braise the meat for 2-3 hours in the oven or 5 hours in the crockpot. As the meat is slowly cooking, the braising liquid turns into a yummy sauce. Save this sauce.
Step 3: shred the meat
When the roast is falling apart, remove it from the pot and shred the meat.
Step 4: the sauce
Now take the sauce in the pot and add butter, then simmer until it’s just barely reduced.
You can make homemade Tzatziki sauce or use store-bought. I always make my own, then add crumbled feta cheese. It makes it even yummier.
Step 5: assemble
Stuff the meat, onions, and sauce into warm pitas. Add Tzatziki sauce, shredded lettuce, pickled red onion, maybe some feta cheese, and then lots of fresh herbs.
I always, always serve with homemade french fries + ketchup for dipping, the perfect dinner! For more color on your plate, seasonal fruit on the side or vegetables like roasted broccoli or roasted bell peppers works too!
Looking for other easy dinners? Here are some favorites:
Easy Greek Sheet Pan Chicken and Potatoes
30 Minute Spicy Indian Butter Chicken
Sheet Pan Sticky Sweet and Sour Chicken
Sheet Pan Chicken Gyros with Feta Tzatziki
Lastly, if you make these Pot Roast Gyros be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Pot Roast Gyros
Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion, sliced
- 2 shallots, sliced
- 8 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 tablespoon sweet/smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon pink Himalayan salt
- 4 pound chuck roast
- 1 (12 ounce) beer (or use chicken broth)
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 6 fresh pitas or naan, warmed
- pickled red onion, lettuce, and herbs for serving
- Tzatziki, for serving
Instructions
Oven
- 1. Preheat the oven to 325° F.2. Arrange the onions, shallots, and garlic, in the bottom of a large, oven-safe Dutch oven.3. In a bowl, mix the paprika, cumin, oregano, thyme, cayenne, and season with 2 teaspoons of salt. Place the roast on the onions, then rub all over with the spice mix. Pour over the beer and lemon juice. Add 1/3 cup water. Cover and roast for 3 to 4 hours or until very tender.4. Crank the heat on the oven up to 425° F. Uncover and cook for 10 minutes, until deeply caramelized on top. Remove the meat from the pot and shred it using two forks.5. Simmer the remaining sauce left in the pot with the butter, until just barely reduced. Toss the beef with the sauce. 6. Stuff the beef and onions into warmed pitas with tzatziki. Then add lettuce, red onions, and herbs. Drizzle over more tzatziki. YUM! Enjoy!
Crockpot
- 1. Arrange the onions, shallots, and garlic, in the bowl of the crockpot.2. In a bowl, mix the paprika, cumin, oregano, thyme, and cayenne, and season with 2 teaspoons of salt. Place the roast on the onions and rub all over with the spice mix. Pour over the beer and lemon juice. Cover and cook on LOW for 5-6 hours or on HIGH for 3 hours.3. Remove the meat from the pot and shred it using two forks.4. Crank the heat on the crockpot to HIGH and cook the remaining sauce with the butter until just barely reduced. Toss the beef with the sauce. 5. Stuff the beef and onions into warmed pitas with tzatziki. Then add lettuce, red onions, and herbs. Drizzle over more tzatziki. YUM! Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Hello 🙂 looks yummy! 🤤 My boyfriend doesn’t eat beef, would this meal work with chicken breasts instead?
Hey Anna,
Sure, chicken would be yummy! I hope you love this recipe!
Hello,
What brand of naan or pita is in your photo or do you make homemade?
Hi Jac,
I make my own:) Here is the recipe:
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/herbed-garlic-butter-naan/
Please let me know if you have any other questions!
This was great! Thank you so much for it! A celebratory meal for my husband. He loved it!!
My one question had to do with the salt amount. The ingredient list had 1 teaspoon but your step-by-step had 2 teaspoons. We did one tonight and that worked well!
Hey Alayna,
Thanks for the thoughtful feedback after trying this recipe—happy to hear it was a win!
I like to do 2 teaspoons, but 1 is perfectly okay too!
Enjoy your weekend!
We have made this one so many times!
Hey Jill,
Perfect! Love to hear this recipe is always enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it so often!
Happy Tuesday!
This recipe has good potential. I followed it to a “T” but cooking the meat on high for 3 hours in a slow cooker just makes for an undercooked, tough chunk of meat. I ended up cooking it several more hours on low in the slow cooker, but it just wasn’t as tender as it could have been. The only reason I cooked on “high”was because of time constraints. I would recommend not fooling with cooking on high for 3 hours; and, Tieghan, please take those instructions off the recipe. Thanks.
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear you had issues with the meat cooking.
The 3 hours on high was not enough. Big bummer.
Everyone in my family enjoyed this. I used a dill sauce made with sour cream as my family doesn’t like cucumbers.
Hey Jamie,
Awesome! So glad this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it! Happy Monday!
Hi! Could you make this in an instant pot? And if so, what would the timing be?
Hey Rachel,
Sure, I would do at least 60 minutes on high pressure. Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it!
WHAT PITAS DO YOU USE ? PLEASE DON’T SAY YOU MAKE THEM ! :0) AND DO YOU TOAST THEM PRIOR TO ASSEMBLY ? THEY ALWAYS SEEM TO HAVE A BIT OF A NAAN CHAR. CANADIAN MARKETS DON’T SEEM TO HAVE SIMILAR.
THX ………….. LUV YOUR STUFF !
Hey Toni,
Lol these are my homemade naan:)
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/herbed-garlic-butter-naan/
Let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe!
Made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious! Just the meat alone was perfect, but as a gyro… divine! I added the lettuce, pickled onions and tzatziki, but also added feta and chopped tomatoes. Sooo good! Thank you!
Hey Kelly,
Awesome!☃️ I am so glad to hear this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it!
One of my favorite gyro recipes! I make pickled onion and carrot and homemade tzatziki for this recipe, it’s a 10/10 every time.
Hey Amber,
Fantastic! I’m so glad to hear this recipe always turns out well for you!
Thanks for making it so often and your comment! Have a great week ahead!