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Doner Kebab recipe chicken dirndl kitchen
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5 from 28 votes

Döner Recipe with Chicken

This is the BEST Döner recipe & the EASIEST way to make this German-Turkish fast food at home! Stop your cravings with this Döner recipe!
Prep Time40 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Resting Time2 hours
Total Time3 hours
Course: Dinner, Entertaining
Cuisine: German, German-Turkish, Turkish
Keyword: authentic german doner recipe, german doner kebab recipe, german doner recipe, German fast food recipes, german turkish recipes
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 1236kcal

Ingredients

Ingredients for homemade Pide (Turkish bread):

Ingredients for creamy garlic sauce

  • 150 grams Greek yogurt I use 5% Greek yogurt, but you could also use 0% Greek yogurt
  • 150 grams sour cream I use full fat sour cream, but you could also use light sour cream
  • 100 grams mayo
  • 1 Tablespoon onion finely grated
  • 2 cloves garlic finely grated
  • sea salt & freshly ground pepper

Ingredients for Döner Meat

Other Döner Ingredients

  • 1 tomato sliced
  • onion thinly sliced
  • ½ head white cabbage thinly sliced, I'll marinate it for about 1 hour in some white wine vinegar, olive oil, a little sugar, salt and pepper
  • feta cheese sliced or crumbled
  • spicy seasoning In German "Scharf" I use the "Posole Spice Blend" seasoning by Los Chileros, as I think it tastes most authentic to what is used at German Döner restaurants.
  • pepperoncini peppers for garnish

Instructions

Homemade Pide Bread

  • Combine lukewarm water, yeast, and sugar, give it a good stir, and allow it to sit and bubble up for 5 minutes.
    7 grams active dry yeast, 1 teaspoon sugar, 250 grams lukewarm water
  • Combine the yeast mixture with the remaining pide ingredients, then knead for 5 minutes. Cover and allow to rise in a warm spot for about an hour or until doubled in size.
    500 grams all-purpose flour, 50 grams butter, 2 teaspoons sea salt
  • Prep two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Divide into 2 balls, then roll out each ball into 10-inch rounds (25 cm). Cover with a clean linen towel and allow to rest in a warm spot for one more hour. In the meantime, preheat your oven to 390° Fahrenheit (200° Celsius).
  • Prepare a shallow bowl with water and have the sesame seeds handy. Wetten the outer edge of your hand, then use it to make a diamond-like pattern into your doughs (this is super easy, and it's probably best to watch my video for this one).
  • Now sprinkle the top of your doughs generously with more water and finally, sesame seeds.
    sesame seeds
  • Bake for about 20 minutes or until the tops are just starting to brown.
  • This makes 2 flatbreads, which means you will likely have some leftovers! For storing, keep them airtight (and possibly refrigerated if you need to store them for longer than 2 days). When ready to use, carefully cut a pocket in the middle, then reheat on low on a panini press or in your oven or toaster.

Döner Meat

  • Par-freeze the chicken breasts for 2 hours (this helps with thin slicing), then slice thin, small slices. Add all other ingredients for the marinade, then combine with the sliced chicken until all chicken is covered. Store in the fridge for at least 2 hours before cooking. This will help develop incredible flavor and tender texture.
    600 grams chicken breast, 1 onion, 3 Tablespoons Greek yogurt, 6 Tablespoons olive oil, 1 teapsoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon ground paprika powder, 1 teaspoon sea salt, 1 teaspoon pepper
  • Heat 1 tablespoon of a high-heat cooking oil, such as avocado oil, in a sauteeing skillet over medium-high heat. Add just enough chicken to cover the bottom of your skillet (you may have to cook it in 2 shifts) and cook for several minutes until cooked thoroughly and browned. If you have a griddle, you can cook the chicken on it instead as well.

Make Your Sauce

  • Whisk together all Döner sauce ingredients, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Allow marinating for at least 1 hour to allow the garlic and onion flavors to establish in the sauce.
    150 grams Greek yogurt, 150 grams sour cream, 100 grams mayo, 1 Tablespoon onion, 2 cloves garlic, sea salt & freshly ground pepper

Serve Your Döner

  • For one sandwich, cut open ¼ of one pide bread to the outer edge, but not all the way through (warm for a couple of minutes on low on a panini grill if you have one), then open the "pocket." Start by adding some sauce on the bottom half, then working with tongs, stuff the pocked with the meat, then marinated cabbage, lettuce, tomato, onion, and feta cheese. Optional: Sprinkle with "scharf" (I always have to add tons of this seasoning to mine!). Guten Appetit!
    1 tomato, onion, ½ head white cabbage, feta cheese, spicy seasoning, pepperoncini peppers

Notes

Beef (& Lamb) Döner variation
plate with doner kebab sandwich with beef and lamb meat
You can easily make this Döner Kebab using ground beef (and lamb if desired). For this version, use the following for marinating and freezing the meat:
  • 1000 grams (2 pounds) ground beef and ground lamb (I used ½ & ½, but feel to use just beef as well)
  • 1 large onion, finely grated
  • 4 Tablespoons Greek yogurt
  • 3 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 teapsoon dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 teaspoon ground paprika powder
  • 2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 2 teaspoon pepper, freshly ground is best!
Purée onion & Greek yogurt. Mix together with all other ingredients. Let marinade in the fridge for 2+ hours or overnight. Form a log on parchment paper and roll it up about 2 inches thick. Place in freezer for 2 to 6 hours before thinly slicing and sautéing in a skillet or on a griddle. 

Nutrition

Calories: 1236kcal | Carbohydrates: 112g | Protein: 54g | Fat: 63g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 15g | Monounsaturated Fat: 25g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 155mg | Sodium: 2245mg | Potassium: 1181mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 1231IU | Vitamin C: 51mg | Calcium: 196mg | Iron: 8mg