Traditional Greek Gyro Meat
Hi guys! You’re really gonna get more than you paid for today! Its another food science soapbox (should I make this a new segment?) Today we’re going to be talking actin and myosin. A couple things I haven’t given much thought to since back in the old days of studying biology. Well it turns out actin and myosin are very much responsible for how meat behaves in the kitchen.
In the animal (including you) actin and myosin filaments make up muscle fibers. Myosin is loaded up with binding sites where it effectively latches on to the actin(in the presence of calcium ions and electrical impulses from our nerves)—this is a muscle contraction!
In the kitchen when we have an understanding of how myosin behaves, we can use it to our advantage. Due to the binding sites on the myosin it is very sticky. It is by this property that when you overmix a meatloaf it will get tough, rubbery and fatty, and why adding veggies into the equation will keep it tender. Traditional Gyro meat uses this stickiness to its advantage, as do most sausages.
If you’ve ever attempted making sausage before and the texture was less than appealing after you cooked it, well now you know why. A greasy, grainy, gritty sausage that crumbles when you cut in to it can be a signal that its undermixed. Since I’m a huge fan of letting machines do the hard work for me I like to utilize none other than my kitchenaid fitted with the paddle attachment to do the mixing, and my eyes and ears to know when to shut it off depending on the desired result.
Traditionally gyro meat is formed as a cone, then broiled in an upright rotisserie, but since I don’t have that fancy equipment I had to find another way to do it at home. We still have to be able to thinly slice gyro meat so it needs to be quite dense and bound together. Since it essentially roasts in its own fats we need to ensure that the meat is well seasoned, well hydrated and effectively emulsified! What always seemed like super processed meat is nothing more than a little smart science! Lets get cooking!
Ingredients
2 lbs ground beef (Hipwell Ranch)
1 medium red onion, finely minced or grated
2 Tbsp Greek Seasoning from A Pinch of Idaho
1 /4 cup crushed ice+ water to 1c
1/2 brick Yaya’s Halloumi
AIP Reintro Options
Season with Salt, Marjoram, Thyme, Rosemary and Oregano, plus the zest of one lemon in lieu of the Greek Seasoning
Method
You want your meat cold! Like frozen but defrosted enough to break it apart into the bowl of your mixer is great. Add onion (and any reserved liquid) and Greek Seasoning.
Turn the mixer to medium speed, once everything is pretty well incorporated slowly add in the ice+water. I know, adding ice water, to ground meat? Hear me out! It helps brine the meat keeping it moist and juicy when it cooks as well as keeping the fats emulsified so they don’t all end up stuck to the bowl.
Let it mix until it gets good and sticky, you may even begin to notice streaks that look like threads forming, thats OK! When its good and sticky and nicely homogenized transfer the bowl and paddle to the refrigerator and rest for 1-2 hours.
Place the bowl back on the mixer and add in 1/2 block grated halloumi cheese, mixing just until combined.
Transfer meat mixture into loaf pans, I’ve used 3 mini loaf pans for this amount of meat.
Cook at 400f until a thermometer inserted into the center reads 165f. Its hot as hades this week, breaking records here, so I decided to cook them on the grill. I have a four-burner gas grill. I preheated all four burners on high, then turned off the center two, and adjusted the outside two to low temp, don’t let that deceive you it was still pretty dang hot. It will depend on the size of your loaves but the mini’s took about 25 minutes.
Let them cool, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap, or weighted down. This helps us achieve that dense meat that we are looking for. Once cooled slice thinly and heat in a skillet until crispy!
Enjoy atop a flatbread with some tatziki, fresh tomatoes and lettuce, marinated shallots and some more halloumi if you fancy!