Easy 5-Minute Shawarma Marinade

Name: Easy 5-Minute Shawarma Marinade
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Ingredients: 2 pounds meat or veggies of choice; ¼ cup olive oil; 1 lemon, juiced; 3 cloves garlic, smashed; 2 tablespoons honey (or pure maple syrup or agave, if vegan); 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin; 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika; ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon; ¾ teaspoon ground ginger; ¾ teaspoon dried oregano; ¾ teaspoon ground turmeric; optional: up to ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper; kosher salt and ground black pepper, to season

Instructions

Prep:5min

This 5-minute Shawarma Marinade recipe has been loved by thousands of readers! It starts with a homemade shawarma spice blend of aromatic warm spices like cumin, paprika, cinnamon, turmeric, and more combined, in a single bowl, with a little bit of lemon and honey. The resulting marinade is a thick paste with concentrated bright, sweet, and spiced flavor – perfect for coating meat or veggies. Use it for easy chicken shawarma hummus bowls, or to marinate lamb, beef, veggies, and more!

Updated at: Wed, 29 Jul 2026 00:10:33 GMT