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Make your own homemade chicken souvlaki with fluffy pita bread and creamy tzatziki sauce with this easy to follow Greek chicken souvlaki recipe, now with my hands on video as well!
Souvlaki ( skewers / suvlaki / suflaki ) is one of the most popular street foods in Greece, together with the traditional moussaka and for good reason. It’s stuffed with a deliciously marinaded and seasoned meat, garnished with a cooling tzatziki sauce, wrapped in a delicious crispy pita and best of all? It tastes like heaven!
Souvlaki stands for “meat-on-a-skewer”. However the majority of Greeks and especially those from Athens call any type of pita wrapped meat a souvlaki, specifying the type of meat and method of roasting separately. For example Souvlaki with chicken Gyros or Souvlaki with pork Skewers etc.
Greek chicken souvlaki recipe – Preparing the marinade
The most important step in making the perfect, traditional Greek chicken souvlaki is nothing else but the marinadeFor this traditional chicken souvlaki recipe, the chicken is first marinated to soak up all the wonderful Mediterranean flavours and then grilled to high temperature, to get all crunchy, nicely coloured and juicy.
To prepare the marinade, select some good quality chicken breasts and season with my favourite Greek spice, oregano, coat with extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice and flavour with some chopped garlic.
Tip: Marinading your chicken souvlaki in the fridge for at least half an hour will allow the aromas to infuse the souvlaki and give it the desired flavours.
Tips for the best Greek Chicken Souvlaki Skewers
This is my list of tips that I’ve traditionally used to make my chicken souvlaki and for you to make it to perfection from the very first time!
First of all it is important to marinade the pieces of chicken for at least half an hour in the fridge, to soak up all the wonderful flavours from the marinade.
When cooking the chicken souvlaki skewers try not to overcook them, to avoid becoming dry and tough. Juicy, tender chicken is entirely a function of cooking it just enough. And this means to reach internal temperature of 165 F (74 C). An inexpensive kitchen thermometer is a handy tool to have to prevent your meats from overcooking and drying out!
When threading the chicken pieces on the skewers it is essential to thread the pieces loosely, rather than smush them tightly together. This will allow the chicken cook evenly in between the pieces.
If you like peppers you could thread some pieces of green and red bell peppers and red onion in between the chicken. Cut them in the same size as the chicken to help them cook through and caramelise. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Chicken Souvlaki recipe – Serve your Chicken souvlaki (skewers) the traditional Greek way
The best way to serve your traditional Greek chicken souvlaki is nothing other than with some delicious traditional Greek pita. Finding the original Greek pita can be quite challenging as most supermarkets stock only the arabian style ones but you can most likely find them at your local Greek deli or amazon (here and here).
However as we all know, nothing compares to home-made, so you can also make your own homemade pita bread with this super easy recipe, including video!
Chicken Souvlaki with Τzatziki sauce
Of course tzatziki is the preferred sauce to garnish your chicken souvlaki and we have included one below. Also here is my short video on how to make it to perfection!
Finally don’t forget to sprinkle some paprika on your souvlaki before serving, either sweet or spicy if you like an extra kick. Most Greeks enjoy their traditional Greek chicken souvlaki with some potato fries, so feel free to try adding some as well. Finally don’t forget to pair itwith a refreshing Greek feta salad, or aGreek Orzo Salad (Orzo feta salad).
More souvlaki recipes for you to try:
Love Greek souvlaki? Then give these delicious and super easy recipes a try and let me know what you think!
- Marinated Greek Beef Souvlaki Skewers (Beef Kabobs) recipe
- Marinated Greek Lamb Souvlaki recipe (Skewers) with Pita and Tzatziki
- Pork Souvlaki (Skewers) with Tzatziki Sauce
- Homemade Greek Pork Gyros Souvlaki recipe
- Homemade Greek Chicken Gyro recipe
- Vegetable Skewers (Souvlaki) with Halloumi and Pita Bread
- Spicy minced Lamb Kofta Kebab Recipe (Giaourtlou)
- Easy Beef Gyro recipe wrapped in Pita Bread
Greek Chicken Souvlaki recipe (Skewers) with Tzatziki
(1,303 votes, average: 4.74 out of 5)
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- Author: Eli K. Giannopoulos
- Prep Time: 80min
- Cook Time: 10min
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 10 skewers 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: Grilling
- Cuisine: Greek
Description
This Greek Chicken souvlaki recipe (skewers) takes you back to your favourite Taverna! Complete with best chicken souvlaki marinade and what to serve along.
Ingredients
Scale
For the chicken souvlaki
- 4 boneless chicken breasts (approx. 1 kg/35 ounces)
- 4 tbsps olive oil
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp dried oregano
- salt and freshly ground pepper
For the tzatziki sauce
- 1 cucumber
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1/4 of a cup extra virgin olive oil
- 500g of strained yogurt (18 ounces)
- 1–2 tbsps of red wine vinegar
- a pinch of salt
To serve
- 8 pita breads
- olive oil
- 1–2 tsps dried oregano
- 1 tomato sliced
- 1 red onion sliced
- fried potatoes (optional)
- romaine (cos) lettuce (optional)
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- 8–9 wooden skewers
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- Homemade Greek Pork Gyros…
- Vegetable Skewers (Souvlaki)…
- Homemade Greek Chicken Gyro recipe
- Pork Souvlaki (Skewers) with…
Instructions
- To prepare this chicken souvlaki recipe, start by preparing the marinade. Cut the chicken breasts into 2-3 cm pieces and place them in a large bowl, along with all the marinade ingredients. Use your hands to mix really well, cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge for 30-60 minutes.
- In the meantime prepare the tzatziki sauce for the chicken souvlaki. Pour in a blender the olive oil and grated garlic and blend until combined. Remove the skin and the seeds of the cucumber and grate it into a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper and leave aside for 10 minutes. Wrap the grated cucumber in a towel and squeeze, in order to get rid of the excess water. In a bowl, add the cucumber, the blended garlic and oil, the yogurt, 1-2 tbsps of red wine vinegar, a pinch of salt and blend, until the ingredients are combined. Store the tzatziki sauce in the fridge and always serve cold.
- To assemble the chicken souvlaki (skewers), cut the wooden skewers to fit your griddle pan and soak them in water. (This will prevent them from burning.) Thread the chicken pieces, comfortably, on the skewers.
- Preheat a grill or griddle pan on a high heat. Cook the chicken souvlaki (skewers) for about 8 to 10 minutes, turning occasionally, until nicely coloured on all sides and cooked through.
- While your chicken souvlaki is cooking, prepare the pita breads. Preheat the oven to 250C. Use a cooking brush to oil the pita breads on both sides and season with salt and oregano. Place a large oven tray (upside down) at the bottom of the oven and place the pita breads on top of the tray. Bake for 2 minutes. (Alternatively you can use a griddle pan or a grill.)
- To serve the chicken souvlaki (skewers), slice 2 red onions and place on a platter; top with the chicken souvlaki (skewers), drizzle with some extra virgin olive oil and a good squeeze of lemon juice. Serve while still warm with some pita breads and tzatziki sauce. You can also serve the chicken souvlaki (skewers) wrapped, like a sandwich. Spread some tzatziki sauce on the pita breads and top it with the chicken souvlaki (skewers), sliced onions, tomatoes and fried potatoes and wrap. Enjoy!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 skewer
- Calories: 191kcal
- Sugar: 0.3g
- Sodium: 279.8mg
- Fat: 8.3g
- Saturated Fat: 1.4g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5.8g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 5.6g
- Fiber: 0.8g
- Protein: 23.3g
- Cholesterol: 72.4mg
Keywords: Chicken souvlaki recipe, Greek chicken skewers, Chicken souvlaki marinade
Recipe image gallery:
Vegetables for Greek Chicken Souvlaki recipe
32 Comments
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June 1, 2014 at 19:00 ·Reply
i can add lemon in the tzatziki.this recipe is great i have try it with baasamic glaze.but without pita.
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Karen M.
October 15, 2014 at 02:31 ·Reply
I’m so very happy to have “found” this site!!!! So many of the food’s i love and other’s to try! 🙂
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Eli K. Giannopoulos
October 16, 2014 at 19:21 ·Reply
ah thank you Karen! Hope you find many dishes that you love! And don’t forget to spread the word around to your friends and family – its what keeps me going 🙂
Love
Eli
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Διάκονος
January 5, 2017 at 10:58
Γεια Ηλί, ποτέ δεν έχω δοκιμάσει Σουβλάκι Πίτα πριν και κάνω σύντομα. Σας ευχαριστώ Eli τόσο πολύ για τη σύστασή σας.
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Διάκονος
January 5, 2017 at 11:03
Ω, και θα μπορούσε να σας παρακαλώ στείλτε μου από την ακόλουθη διεύθυνση ηλεκτρονικού ταχυδρομείου DMeuross123@gmail.com. Ακριβώς έτσι μπορώ να επικοινωνήσουμε μαζί σας όταν χρειάζομαι
κάποια βοήθεια σε ορισμένα ελληνικά πιάτα αν αυτό είναι εντάξει μαζί σας. Ευχαριστώ
πολύ και πάλι. Η αγάπη Διάκονος.
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Michelle
June 29, 2015 at 18:28 ·Reply
Just made chicken souvlaki,Greek lemon roast potatoes and homemade pittas ! It was wonderful ! Thank you ! I’m back in a Greek taverna !
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May 17, 2016 at 08:22 ·Reply
Looks and sounds delicious! Your photo and its’ source have been featured on the World Food Guide website: http://worldfood.guide/photo/souvlaki_1083/
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Frances
June 6, 2016 at 16:27 ·Reply
Just come across this website, makes me very happy. Since leaving England, it’s just too expensive to consider a holiday to the Greek Islands which does NOT make me happy. Hopefully these recipies will help to transport me back there – at least my taste buds anyway!
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Eli K. Giannopoulos
June 9, 2016 at 09:51 ·Reply
Hi Frances!
For sure it will! Hope you find many dishes that you love and bring back fond memories! And if you need any help drop me a note using the contact form and I’ll come back to you!
Love
Eli
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July 27, 2016 at 07:10 ·Reply
Wow these look soo good. Bet they taste amazing. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Simon
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Martin
August 20, 2016 at 19:59 ·Reply
One word for these.: Yummy. Already a favourite in our house
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Kirsten
May 14, 2017 at 00:36 ·Reply
Delicious! I haven’t done chicken souvlaki before… and this was delicious. Perfect marinade.
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Alia
June 6, 2017 at 07:07 ·Reply
Love this recipe! Thank you (: im on a masdive weight loss journey and use this recipe (slightly altered) to brighten up our boring weekly meals. I lighten calories and fat by not squeezing out the cucumber and omitting the oil in the tzatziki. Also i halved the oil in the marinade and i use turkey instead of chicken. But thats just because i prefer turkey (:
I use your tzatziki all the time. Its my go to salad dressing and veggie dip. Im addicted!
Thank you, again.
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Mike
May 13, 2019 at 14:15 ·Reply
This is really good! It’s somewhat difficult to find a marinade for JUST the souvlaki so thank you for sharing!!
If anyone is interested, I smoke the chicken on the BBQ with olive wood, gives it a real Mediterranean punch!
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Lisa
September 19, 2020 at 14:20 ·Reply
Those look awesome!
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Jacqui
December 13, 2020 at 17:18 ·Reply
As with the lamb souvlaki, this chicken version is amazing. My husband is not a big chicken fan but absolutely loves these skewers. A great dush
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Eli K. Giannopoulos
December 22, 2020 at 10:33 ·Reply
Thank you Jacqui, so glad you and your husband loved them 🙂
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Sonya Beaushene
February 13, 2021 at 20:58 ·Reply
What if I used pork instead of chicken?
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Eli K. Giannopoulos
February 14, 2021 at 10:00 ·Reply
H! You could use pork instead of chicken. Try this one https://www.mygreekdish.com/recipe/pork-souvlaki-skewers-with-tzatziki/
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Mel Weaver
September 10, 2021 at 20:16 ·Reply
Made the souvlaki & tzatziki tonight, and it was fabulous! Thanks, I’ll be making the pitas next to try 😊
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Jen
May 31, 2023 at 15:06 ·Reply
If i don’t have a grill, could I bake or pan cook the pieces?
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Katherine Karsina
December 23, 2021 at 05:23 ·Reply
Would you happen to have a red sauce recipe for the souvlaki in Corfu?
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Eli K. Giannopoulos
December 24, 2021 at 19:56 ·Reply
Red sauce? Is it like a feta and chilli pepper sauce?
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Sara
July 22, 2023 at 04:24
Any idea on the lemon juice amount by measurement?
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Ann
March 20, 2022 at 17:26 ·Reply
The souvlaki tastes great, but your tzatziki should not include olive oil and red wine vinegar, it totally ruined it. Those 2 ingredients do not belong.
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Jen
June 4, 2022 at 23:25 ·Reply
Should I marinate the chicken over night? Or is that too much…
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rebecca
October 20, 2022 at 00:06 ·Reply
did u marinate overnight? how did it turn out if you did?
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Edit(h)
June 5, 2022 at 12:22 ·Reply
Hi Eli,
I’ve just made your souvlaki, we had it with tzatziki (an old recipe I already had) and fries, it was awsome. My husband told me several times that I should keep this recipe, and not change anything!
Thanks a lot, kind regards from Budapest / Hungary -
Hannah
January 30, 2023 at 22:41 ·Reply
Can you bake/roast the chicken instead of cooking on a kabob?
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Julia
March 11, 2023 at 14:01 ·Reply
Thank you for the recipes, they are the best I’ve tried. The chicken was flavorful and juicy and will make great leftovers for salad. We paired it with your Traditional Greek Salad recipe for a low cal meal! Delicious!!
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Miki
April 20, 2023 at 13:42 ·Reply
This is my go to. Honestly, I cannot tell you how great this recipe is. And how easy it is.
We make a huge batch because the chicken keeps well in the fridge and is great on salads as leftovers. I’ve shared it with everyone I know because everyone needs to know about it!
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Sheryn
June 4, 2023 at 04:28 ·Reply
Absolutely delish! I also made the pita per the recommended recipe above and it was spectacular. The tzatziki was really good too. Definitely a recipe to keep. Thanks for sharing!
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Over the past 8 years you have made My Greek Dish the number one destination for anyone searching for authentic Greek recipes! For that I cannot thank you enough!
It all started with an idea… To collate and publish all those recipes that I loved when I was young, the ones I made with so much love for my children and grand children!
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With love,Eli
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