The Greeks are mad about Chicken Souvlaki. As am I. And after you’ve tried it, you will be too!
Simple to make, loaded with classic Greek flavours: chicken marinated in lemon, garlic and dried oregano then threaded onto skewers. Served with a homemade Tzatziki, all bundled up in pita bread. Or in my case, a simple homemade flatbread that’s made without yeast!
Chicken Souvlaki
“Just make something quick and easy,” I told myself sternly. “Your To Do List is out of control at the moment. You don’t have time to blog something that will take too long.”
So I flicked through my “MUST BLOG SOON!” list to choose something that would be quick to make and picked this Chicken Souvlaki.
Got the chicken marinating, then sat down at my Mac to get on with my other tasks. But I couldn’t concentrate.
I had an itch. Not literally. Figuratively speaking. “I should make the flatbreads to go with the Chicken Souvlaki,” I thought. “It will save me a trip to the store to get pita bread.”
So I jumped up to make my Easy Soft Flatbreads – made without yeast that comes out lovely and soft so it’s perfect for using as a wrap.
I wrapped up the flatbreads to keep them warm and settled back down at my Mac. Clicked on “Create New Post” and stared at a blank screen. I couldn’t write. I had another tingling feeling of dissatisfaction. “I really should make a Greek Salad to go with this. I need more salads on my site. Plus it will look lovely and bright in the photo.”
So I jumped in the car and dashed out to get olives and feta for the Greek salad. It didn’t occur to me for a second that I had just made flatbreads to avoid going to the store.
Dashed home and chopped up the Greek Salad.
And while I was chopping up the Greek Salad, I had yet another thought. “I usually serve Lemon Rice with my Greek dishes. Wouldn’t it be nice to share that with everyone? It’s so fresh and yummy.”
Yes I did. I made Lemon Rice too.
So here you have it. This “quick Chicken Souvlaki” recipe that I intended to do has ended up being a complete Greek feast menu. *Eye roll*
This is so typical of me. I tend to get a little over-excited when I get ideas into my head.
And while it meant that my “quick little recipe” ended up evolving into a looooong cook/shoot/clean day, boy was it worth it. Because really, look at that spread. It was totally worth working late into the evening to do everything I was supposed to do during the day to be able to share this with you.
And the homeless guy at the dog park was rather appreciative too. 😉 – Nagi x
And to rehash – here’s what I made for the Greek menu
This chicken souvlaki recipe
Lemon Rice (pictured with Garlic Prawns/Shrimp)
And – more chicken on sticks!
Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce – also Indonesian Satay
Yakitori (Japanese skewers) – on my mother’s Japanese cooking website, RecipeTin Japan!
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Chicken Souvlaki with Tzatziki
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1.5 lb / 750 g chicken thigh fillets (or breast), cut into 1″/2.5cm pieces
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 3 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 tbsp dried oregano
- 1/2 – 3/4 tsp salt
- Black pepper
To Cook / Serve
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Flatbreads / wraps / pita bread
- Lettuce
- Tomato slices
Tzatziki
- 2 Lebanese cucumbers (to make about ½ cup grated cucumber after squeezing out juice)
- 1 1/4 cups / 300 g plain Greek yoghurt
- 2 tsp white wine vinegar (or red wine or apple cider vinegar)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 garlic clove , minced
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (or more if you want richer)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Black pepper
Instructions
- Place chicken and Marinade into a bowl and set aside to marinate for at least 3 hours to overnight.
- Thread chicken onto 8 skewers.
- Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat (or BBQ). Cook skewers for 3 minutes on each side, or until cooked through.
- Serve Chicken Souvlaki with tzatziki, flatbreads (make your own!), lettuce and tomato slices.
Tzatziki
- Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise. Use a teaspoon to scrape the watery seeds out. Coarsely grate the cucumber using a box grater. Then wrap in paper towels or a tea towel and squeeze to remove excess liquid.
- Place cucumber in a bowl. Add remaining ingredients then mix to combine. Set aside for at least 20 minutes for the flavours to meld.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
Look who’s in his usual position…..
I hadn’t made this in soooo long, decided to make it for dinner tonight. I found a recipe for No Cucumber Tzatziki – cucumbers and I are not friends!! – and it was a wonderful meal. Love every recipe of yours I have made.
Perfect Leslie!! You and Dozer are on the same page about cucumbers 😂 N x
Where is the flat bread recipe? As i would like to make my own flat bread
Hi Amalia, you can use this one here: https://promotown.info/easy-soft-flatbread-yeast/%3C/a%3E N x
Hi Nagi,
We love this recipe. I was initially worried about the amount of oregano used, but it was spot on. My son will be here for his birthday in a few weeks and has requested lamb souvlaki. Can this marinade be modified to use for lamb? I really want his birthday dinner to be a homerun! Thanks! Katy
That’s so good to hear Katy, I’m so happy you enjoyed it!! You could use lamb but the cook time will be different – Lamb souvlaki needs to go on my recipe list!! N x
By marinading the chicken in lemon juice for so long, doesn’t the meat get tough as the acid starts to break down the meat?
No it doesn’t here – it makes it super tender without over tenderising (the acid is minimal here) N x
This was seriously delicious, the marinade was on point & I also made the flatbread as well. I’ll definitely be making chicken souvlaki’s again.
We made these all last summer & they were delicious. I hadn’t realized what a family favourite they’d become until my son – away for his first year at university- asked for the recipe. His roommates love it, too!
Hi Nagi,
This is amazing. I was worried about the amount of oregano for the chicken marinade, but it was spot on! Your tzatziki recipe is perfect. I’ve tried many recipes and this is hands down the absolute best. I know what I’m requesting for Mother’s Day dinner :).
seriously delicious. We serve it once a week and my fussy boys can’t get enough! The marinade makes all the difference
Hello Nagi !! I really appreciate your marinades and visit your website for new ideas ( especially for chicken menues ).
I actually want to try oven baked sckewers and it seems to me thats the sckewers in this recipe were oven baked when i saw it 4 years ago.. i still remember the photos with them covered with foil. I am sure it is your recipe ( i don’t accually visit plenty of websites to get confused)
Maybe was ot an other recipe and if not how would you make your oven baked chicken sckewers ??
Thanks for inspiering us!!
When making tzatziki, squeeze the cuke juice into a tall glass and add ice and club soda for a refreshing drink.
I have made the chicken many times before but never the tzatziki until tonight
My mistake cause the tzatziki is as amazing as the chicken
Flatbread was great too
Made Greek Salad to make this a delicious hot weather feast
I’m so happy you enjoyed it Jodi! N x
Very very tasty dish, you could really taste the greek flavours. Easy peasy to make. I made your flatbreads and tzatziki recipe-i added some chopped mint- so delicious, made our salad a wow! Will i make it again? Absolutely!!
This is literally the best thing I’ve ever eaten! I pair it with onion & garlic dip and a few olives/cucumber slices and chuck it all in a home made flatbread. I guarantee this will become a new favourite once you try it!
Sounds perfect Laura!! N x
Really tasty recipe that was a huge hit with the whole family – even my very hard to please 6 year old!
Wahoo, thats awesome to hear Justine!
Hi Nagi! What steps should we follow to bake this in the oven instead? Thank you!
Hi Dawn! For this, I would crank the oven up real high, say 250C/480F or as high as it will go. Then I think about 15 minutes will be more than sufficient and you should get some nice colour!
I made this again today, but used pork neck, that a Greek friend recommended. It was delicious. I previously made it with chicken which is amazing also. Nagi, I love your blog, I love to cook, you have given me so much inspiration and everything has turned out exactly as planned. My daughter and I have made so many of your recipes together, let me tell you, you’re a life saver. I honestly thought she’d inherited my mother’s awful cooking gene, now she’s enjoying cooking, it works and I’m so happy watching her learn that cooking is fun and can be quick – or slow. We are working our way through your collection and we are making some of your finger food for her 18th, the wonton wrapper recipes look fantastic. Thank you
Hello Nagi.Even though I come from Greece and I have tasted them many times I believe they will be delicious when I make them.
Oooh I feel the pressure! 😉
I made this tonight, along with your flatbread recipe, and everything was delicious! I’ve never made homemade tzatziki before and I love this recipe. I foresee this being a regular meal this summer! Thanks!
I loved this recipe!! Your recipes are always amazing. Thank you again!! BTW..I made the salad and rice in the links. They were all yummy!!
That’s great to hear Laura! So glad you enjoyed it! N x
I just made this for the first time and the pita breads too and it was absolutely fantastic I can’t thankyou enough. We were addicted to this meal on our honeymoon in Zante and this recipe is so incredibly close to that and the best I’ve made yet. Thankyou again.
That’s great to hear Julie! Thanks for taking the time to leave your feedback! N x ❤️