Shawarma - ahhh! The word itself conjures up images of dexterous chefs shaving off meat, which slowly gets grilled over an open pit, with unbelievable frequency and flair! For those of you who have experienced the gastronomic pleasures of this heavenly fast food dish, it is needless to go into great depths of discussing the euphoric emotions that are stirred up when the aromatic fumes creep inside the nostrils and when the wrap itself enters the oral cavity and makes sensual love to the by-now-fervently-eager taste buds! For those of you mortals who are yet to get a tour of this gustatory heaven, shawarma is a kind of wrap or sandwich with a filling of shaved meat (lamb, beef, chicken, turkey or a mixed combination of these) wrapped inside either pita, taboon or Lavash bread.
It can also be had alongside salads like fattoush and tabbouleh. Dips like Tahini, hummus and amba and shawarma sauces like falafel and tarator are most popularly paired with shawarma. I'm sure that after reading this description, assuming you have an imagination that is anywhere near average, you must be drooling by now! Ok, before we totally give in to gustatory temptations and get reduced to bundles of taste buds and salivary glands, let's move on to take a look at chicken shawarma nutrition facts.
Chicken Shawarma Nutrition
One standard serving of shawarma (which is, by no means, frugal in terms of quantity and gastronomic gratification!) is rich in a whole lot of wholesome nutrients. Besides fats and cholesterol (which, of course, it's bound to be high in, considering it is a fast food that is exposed to a lot of grilling and intense heat, not to mention the inherent fat content of the meat filling), a regular chicken shawarma wrap has a high protein, carbohydrate, sodium and calcium content. Due to the chicken filling, it also becomes a good source of dietary fiber and some amount of iron. So, approximately how much of each nutrient do you get into yourself when you hog on a standard chicken shawarma? Scan the estimated figures in the following table to get an idea.
| Nutrient | Content Per Serving |
| Calcium | 106 mg |
| Carbohydrates | 40 g |
| Cholesterol | 64 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Fats | 10 g |
| Iron | 4 mg |
| Proteins | 35 g |
| Sodium | 800 mg |
The fat content mentioned in the table above is inclusive of saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. The total calories in chicken shawarma, per serving, comes to somewhere between 380 and 400 kilojoules. The values mentioned here are approximate and an exact figure is not possible because variations may occur depending upon the different types of mediums and other ingredients used. If the chicken filling is make from skinned chicken, the fat content may be lower and using low-fat cooking mediums can also bring down the calorie count considerably. Also, preparing the accompanying bread using whole grains can raise the amount of dietary fibers and proteins in the shawarma.
The values given here are closest to what should be expected if the shawarma is prepared as per standard, traditional cooking procedures using conventional cooking mediums and ingredients. So, as you can see from the above mentioned nutrition facts about chicken shawarma, this one's a winner as far as taste and nutrition goes. However, its high fat and cholesterol content requires the patron to display some restrain in terms of the frequency of indulgence and the quantity consumed at one go in order to avoid inviting health issues. After all, a heavenly delight as this deserves to be enjoyed throughout one's lifetime and it would be a pity to get a medical ban on indulging in this Middle Eastern delight just because you got sick hogging on it without restraint.
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