Shawarma Chickpea & Sweet-Potato Pita Kits

Ingredients

Roasted filling

• 2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed, about 480 g total drained weight
• 500 g peeled sweet potato, cut into ½-inch cubes
• 1½ tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• ½ tsp ground coriander
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp fine salt

Pita kit

• 4 whole-wheat pitas, about 60 g each
• 1 medium cucumber (250 g), diced
• 200 g cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 80 g baby spinach, washed and thoroughly dried

Tahini yogurt

• ¾ cup (170 g) plain Greek yogurt
• 2 tbsp (30 g) tahini
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp water

Equipment

Two sheet pans, mixing bowls, four small leakproof sauce cups

Allergens and ingredient notes: Wheat, milk, sesame. Chickpeas are legumes; do not describe this as allergen-free.

Step by step

1. Heat oven to 425°F (220°C). Pat chickpeas very dry. Mix oil, cumin, paprika, coriander, garlic powder, and salt. Toss half the seasoned oil with chickpeas and half with sweet potato, using separate lined sheet pans.
2. Roast sweet potato 25–30 minutes until tender and browned, turning halfway. Roast chickpeas 25–35 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally, until dry at the surface and lightly crisp. They soften in refrigeration; they are not intended to remain cracker-crisp.
3. Whisk yogurt, tahini, lemon juice, and water until smooth. Divide among 4 leakproof cups. Toss cucumber and tomatoes together. Cut each pita into wedges.
4. Refrigerate cooked filling promptly in shallow containers within 2 hours. Once fully cold, divide chickpeas and sweet potato among 4 lunchboxes. Add one quarter of the salad and spinach to separate compartments.
5. Pack one pita and one sauce cup with each box, keeping bread dry and separate. At lunch, scoop filling and salad into the pita pieces and add sauce. Eat chilled, or reheat only the cooked filling to 165°F (74°C) before assembling.

The Devotti twist: A deconstructed pita keeps each texture separate until lunch, while shawarma-style spices give chickpeas and sweet potato a shared savory crust.

How to pack

Pack pita wedges in a dry wrapper or compartment. Seal yogurt sauce, drain excess tomato juice, and keep spinach dry. Everything perishable travels cold.

Swaps and preferences

Use a suitable plain plant yogurt for a dairy-free version. Tahini is sesame, so replace it with the same amount of a permitted smooth seed butter only if appropriate, then thin as needed with measured water.

For cold lunches, pack fully chilled perishable food in an insulated bag with at least two cold sources. Keep at 40°F (4°C) or below and refrigerate on arrival when possible. Discard perishables left out more than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F (32°C).

Make ahead and storage

Refrigerate filling and sauce within 2 hours and use within 3 days. Cut salad is best within 2 days. Store pita according to its label and add when packing.