Gyros Are Made, Not Born

Apocryphal isn’t the word, but it does seem at least improbable that I would have actually had my first gyro at a taverna in Greece. But I did. It was a bright June day in Athens and I’d arrived the day before having accompanied my family’s car on a three day voyage across the Mediterranean.

I met my family in Piraeus when the ship docked and that evening, before we drove to Athens, I had my first calamari — but that’s another story. On this day we’d been to the Acropolis and had stopped for lunch on our way to the National Archaeological Museum. I’d never even heard of a gyro but there was a huge chunk of meat slowly turning on a vertical spit in front of a multi-tiered charcoal grill.

Bear in mind that you should conduct yourself in life as at a feast. ~ Epictetus

The smell was astonishing and impossible to resist. I ordered “that” (pointing) and a glass of retsina. The wine, served in a tumbler, took some getting used to but the gyro tasted as astonishing as it smelled. I ordered another. And the second glass of retsina was better than the first.

I’ve made gyros before, but this evening I decided to do something different. The plan was to buy a piece of lamb then marinate and grill it. But I couldn’t find a suitable piece of lamb, so I got a small sirloin steak and marinated that. It was not a gyro, but I knew it wouldn’t be. Marinated or not. beef tastes nothing like lamb. But it was still good and a nice Memorial Day meal.

Marinated Steak Sandwich

2 rounds pita bread
1 lb sirloin
Marinade
1/2 c red wine
2 tbsp olive oil
2 sprigs fresh oregano
2 cloves garlic — crushed
salt and pepper
Tzaziki
1/2 c sour cream
1/2 c yogurt
1/4 c peeled, seeded, and chopped cucumber
1/4 c chopped red onion
salt and pepper

Mix marinade ingredients together in a zippered plastic bag and marinate steak 24 hours in the refrigerator, turning occasionally.

Mix together tzaziki ingredients.

Cook the steak over a hot grill for 2 to 3 minutes per side depending on thickness of steak. Warn pita in a microwave, wrapped in a paper towel, for 15 seconds. Slice steak very thin across the grain and stuff into pita along with tomato, onion, lettuce, and tzaziki.

Technorati: Food | recipe | sandwich | gyro | marinated steak

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