Iraq's own vertical-spit tradition: lamb layered with fat on a rotating spit, shaved thin and packed into samoon bread with pickles (amba optional), predating the global shawarma boom in Baghdad's street stalls. Locals insist guss is distinct from Levantine shawarma in its all-lamb stack and minimal marinade.
Also known as: gass, gus, qass, kass, guss laham, Iraqi shawarma, گص
Watch it made
Ingredients
- 800 g lamb shoulder, sliced 5 mm thin
- 100 g lamb fat, thin slices
- 150 g yogurt
- 2 tbsp white vinegar
- 1 tbsp Iraqi baharat
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1.5 tsp salt
- 4 samoon rolls (or thick pita)
- amba, pickles (turshi), tomato and onion with sumac
How to make it
- 1
Coat the lamb slices in yogurt, vinegar, baharat, garlic and salt and refrigerate overnight.
- 2
Build a home spit: stack the slices flat onto two parallel skewers stood in half an onion, layering a slice of fat every fourth layer, and press into a tight cylinder.
- 3
Roast upright on a tray at 190 C for about 50 minutes, until the outside darkens and crisps.
- 4
Shave the browned exterior off in thin ribbons with a long knife, return the stack to the oven 8 minutes to crisp the newly exposed layer, and shave again.
- 5
Split the samoon and pack it with the shaved lamb, amba, turshi, tomato and sumac onions.
Pro tip: The double-shave is the point of guss — every ribbon should carry crisped edge, so never carve the whole stack in one pass.
The story of Guss
Guss is Iraq's own vertical-spit tradition, and Baghdadis are firm that it is not shawarma. Lamb is layered with fat on a rotating spit, shaved thin and packed into samoon bread with pickles, and it predates the global shawarma boom in Iraq's street stalls by decades.
The distinction Iraqis draw is real: guss is an all-lamb stack with minimal marinade, where Levantine shawarma layers marinated lamb or chicken with a heavier spice profile and often a fat cap of tail fat at the top. Guss is plainer, more lamb-forward, and closer to the Turkish cağ kebabı in spirit than to a Beirut shawarma.
The technique that defines it
The stack is built from thin slices of lamb interleaved with fat, pressed onto the vertical spit and compacted. Because the marinade is minimal — salt, black pepper, sometimes a little baharat — the fat between the layers carries almost all the responsibility for keeping the meat moist as it turns.
The spit rotates in front of a vertical heat source and the outer layer is shaved off in thin sheets as it browns, exposing the next layer. That progressive shaving is the mechanism: each customer gets meat that has just finished cooking, which is why a busy stall serves better guss than a quiet one.
Choosing your ingredients
For a home version, the loaf method works as it does for doner: thin slices of lamb leg or shoulder layered with lamb fat in a tin, pressed hard, roasted to 65°C internal, chilled overnight, then shaved thin and crisped in a dry hot pan. The crisping step is not optional.
Seasoning stays minimal — salt, black pepper, a little baharat. Samoon, the Iraqi boat-shaped bread, is the correct vessel; a small baguette or a stout pita is the substitute. Pickled vegetables, sliced onion with sumac, and amba for those who want it.
Mistakes that ruin it
Over-marinating
Guss is deliberately plain. A heavy marinade makes it shawarma, which Iraqis will point out.
A loosely packed stack
The layers must be compacted hard so they cook as a single mass and shave cleanly.
Skipping the crisping step at home
Shaved meat straight from the loaf is soft. The dry hot pan reproduces the spit's browned surface.
Too little fat between layers
With minimal marinade, interleaved fat is the only thing keeping it moist.
How it is served
In samoon with pickled vegetables, sliced onion with sumac, and parsley — amba optional and slightly contentious among purists. Grilled tomato on the side. Tea afterwards. It is street and market food, sold from midday well into the night.
Questions about Guss
Is guss the same as shawarma?
Iraqis say no. Guss is an all-lamb stack with minimal marinade; Levantine shawarma is more heavily marinated and often uses chicken. The technique is shared, the result is different.
What is samoon?
Iraq's boat- or diamond-shaped white bread, the standard vessel for guss and for Iraqi kebab.
Can I make guss at home?
Yes, with the loaf method: layer thin lamb slices with fat in a tin, press hard, roast to 65°C, chill overnight, shave thin and crisp in a dry pan.
What goes in a guss sandwich?
Shaved lamb, pickled vegetables, sumac onion and parsley. Amba is optional and debated.
