Loaded Gyro Fries Recipe

Canadians have perfected the art of the loaded fry. Poutine, the country's national dish, is a cheese- and gravy-loaded fry with a much more elegant name. There's really nothing like a loaded fry — sure, you could eat the same ingredients in a regular bowl with a boring fork, but isn't it so much better with some fries? And besides, nachos already exist; fries are just another delicious vessel for piping-hot piles of toppings.

In this recipe by Michelle McGlinn, dense steakhouse french fries are topped with homemade gyro meat, tomato, onion, and a quick tzatziki sauce. Typical gyro meat is shaved from a vertical rotisserie, but McGlinn's meatloaf method is approachable for home cooks and involves roasting lamb, bacon, and plenty of seasonings together in the oven. It might sound like a lot of work for some french fries, but don't think of it that way — think of it like the best (pita-less) gyro you'll ever have.

To begin, you'll need onion, garlic, bacon, ground lamb, breadcrumbs, oregano, cumin, salt, black pepper, and Aleppo pepper. Keep the salt handy and grab some Greek yogurt, lemon juice, cucumber, olive oil, and dill to make the tzatziki sauce. From there, you'll just need tomato, onion, and french fries. We recommend looking for a thick, dense steakhouse french fry, which will hold up the heavy gyro meat. If you can't find those, try crinkle-cut or a classic hand-cut fry.

Preheat oven to 325 F.

To make the gyro meat, combine onion, garlic, and bacon in a food processor.

Pulse until finely chopped and paste-like.

Add onion mixture, lamb, breadcrumbs, and seasonings to a large bowl.

Mix together until very well combined.

Press lamb mixture into a greased loaf pan.

Bake for 50-60 minutes, until center registers 165 F.

Drain grease and let cool completely. Once cooled, slice gyro meat into thin slices.

To make the tzatziki sauce, combine yogurt, lemon juice, cucumber, garlic, olive oil, salt, and dill in a small bowl.

Adjust oven temperature to 400 F.

To make the fries, spread on a baking sheet and toss with olive oil.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden and crispy.

To assemble, spread fries and gyro meat on a platter and sprinkle with salt.

Top with tzatziki sauce and tomato and onion slices before serving.

We know an hour in the oven for some sliced meat is a labor of love, but we promise this gyro recipe is totally worth it. We recommend trying this method at least once, just to experience how good homemade gyro meat can be when made like a meatloaf. If you're really in a pinch, though, you can make a very similar loaded fry with some shortcuts. 

For the most similar flavor, use all the same ingredients — minus the breadcrumbs — and cook them in a skillet until deeply browned, crumbling things up with a wooden spoon. You can also do this with ground beef, which you may already have on hand. Similarly, you can use thinly shaved steak browned in a skillet for the familiar gyro texture. Of course, if you're lucky enough to have a store that sells frozen gyro meat, this will grant the most similar results with half the effort — but like anything, store-bought won't taste as good as homemade.

French fries are notorious for being hard to reheat, and that's why we don't recommend trying to make this ahead of time or planning this as a meal prep option. Typically, you'd serve loaded fries on football Sunday or as an appetizer for a party of friends, where the fries can be grabbed throughout the evening. If you hate the idea of being in the kitchen for an hour before serving, we recommend making the gyro meat ahead of time to streamline the process. The cooked meat will keep for 3-4 days in the refrigerator, so roast the lamb ahead of time, then slice and warm through alongside the fries in the oven. This way, the fries are fresh (not soggy), and the dish comes together in less than 30 minutes. If you do end up with leftovers, store them in airtight containers for 3-4 days, separating the tzatziki as much as possible to make reheating a breeze.