Ground Beef Gyros

To make this a little more authentic looking (and easier IMO) I put the meat, onions and seasonings in a food processor an pulse to a soft consistency, then pack it firmly into a loaf pan and bake it like a meatloaf. Let it cool and chill in the fridge a few hours or overnite. Then slice thinly and saute the slices in a skillet to get them nice and browned. I have made them many different ways and we like these the best.

Wow, this is a terrific recipe for Gyros. I wanted to use ground beef as ground lamb is so expensive and hard to find around here. You couldn't tell the difference in the taste! I think the oregano and garlic were the key. I almost added real onion instead of onion powder and am glad I didn't. Real onion would have made the meat too loose to cut into slices. Instead of making burger patties, I made it into one long low loaf and baked it in the oven at 350 for about 35 minutes. Came out perfect. It was nice and dense and as a result was very easy to slice for the sandwiches. The cucumber sauce was delish. I also used Recipe #79388 for the pita bread as it's such a delicious bread for gyros. My 11 year old dd was in heaven eating this. Thank you for posting. It will be a repeat in our home.

I would leave the sugar out of the Cucumber sauce. I have never understood why Americans feel they need to add sugar to everything.

generally speaking, I would say if you are going to try to emulate a Gyro with a mundane flavored meat like burger, you at least need to hold true to the spices that make it what it is. Marjoram, Rosemary, Thyme, Cumin etc... these are all flavors that this recipe is missing. Other than the normal 'fabulous four' of salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders this only has oregano. Not sure how this is actually supposed to represent the authentic version? You have basically created a poor mans hamburger on a pita....

This was a delicious recipe, the only reason why I gave it four stars is because I had to make some modifications as suggested by other reviewers. For the meat, the smell wasn't quite there (pre-cooked) so I added some cumin, italian seasoning, oregano, onion salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. Then as suggested by another reviewer I kneaded the meat for about 10 minutes and pounded it on the counter for 10 minutes (I believed this gave it the gyro rotisserie look, as my first batch I omitted this step and it resembled a cooked meatloaf texture) forming afterwards into a rectangle loaf.
Now for the Tzatziki sauce: I used 8oz of plain greek yogurt, minced cucumber/garlic (used about 3 cloves), salt/pepper, and a pinch of dill (might use a little lemon juice next time).
Aside from that we topped them off with baby spring salad mix, tomatoes, feta cheese on grilled Naan bread (which I brushed with homemade bread oil).