Chicken Souvlaki Pitas

Chicken souvlaki is a delicious Greek grilled chicken recipe, made on skewers. Anything skewered is automatically 10 times better, but top these chicken souvlaki pitas with delicious homemade tzatziki, served in a warm, soft and chewy pita? I could eat these everyday!

Jump to:

• Why You'll Love This Recipe
• Recipe Overview
• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Tips and Tricks
• FAQ
• Chicken Souvlaki Pitas

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• It can be made ahead of time! The longer this chicken marinates, the better it gets! This is perfect to prepare the night before, and to throw on the grill the next day. You just need to top the pitas with the chicken souvlaki, tzatziki and toppings of your choice!
• You don't need a grill! Believe it or not, I achieved the perfect colour and golden-brown-deliciousness with my air fryer! If you don't have a barbecue, you can use a grill pan, the oven, or the air fryer - talk about versatile!
• Store-bought pita is fine! You do not need to make every element of a recipe for it to be amazing. I used some of my favourite store-bought naans to make these wraps, but you can use practically any flatbread you have on hand. Better yet, you can skip the wrap all together if you want, and make this into a dinner with some smashed potatoes, and a salad!

Recipe Overview

• Flavour: This chicken is the perfect blend of garlic and citrus-y notes. It will remind you of the fresh flavours you associate with mediterranean cuisine, which makes this chicken so perfectly versatile for multiple meals.
• Ease: The chicken marinade is fuss-free! If you are barbecuing the chicken, the only extra work would be to soak wooden skewers and skewer the chicken. If you are using an air fryer or the over/stove, you don't even need to do that much! Chicken souvlaki pitas are really that easy!
• Time: The longer the chicken can marinate, the better. I recommend marinating the chicken for a minimum of 30 minutes, but always feel free to adjust with your schedule and what works for you!The chicken itself takes about 10-15 minutes to cook, making this a super easy meal that can be prepared ahead of time.

Ingredients

• Boneless, skinless chicken breast: Chicken breast works best for chicken souvlaki, in my opinion. By cutting the chicken in uniform pieces, the chicken cooks quickly and stays juicy and tender! I recommend cutting the chicken breast into three vertical strips, and making cubes from that. If you are going to skewer the chicken for the barbecue, make sure that the pieces are big enough that they can skewer properly! Bite size is really what you are looking for here.
• Minced garlic: In my humble opinion, there is no limit to the amount of garlic that you can use in any given recipe. You will want to use about 4-5 minced cloves of garlic. If you find you are sensitive to the taste of garlic, or it just isn't your jam (No idea how, but I am not here to judge!) you can definitely use less!
• Lemon juice and zest: Lemon juice is a pretty standard addition to most chicken souvlaki recipes, but the addition of lemon zest really brightens up the marinade. As a tip, always zest your lemons before you juice them! It is very difficult to zest an already-juiced lemon!
• Mayonnaise: Ok - chicken souvlaki with mayonnaise. You probably think I have lost my mind. I have not! Mayonnaise is simply eggs and oil, emulsified together. If you have not tried marinating chicken with mayonnaise, it is a true game changer! The chicken comes out moist and juicy- even white meat! If you are still apprehensive, just remember that most chicken souvlaki marinades use olive oil as a main ingredient!
• Spices and Seasonings: You will need dried dill. and oregano, and onion powder. If you have fresh dill on hand, feel free to use it! Make sure you chop it finely though, so it mixes well with the marinade.

Instructions

1. Prep the chicken: Cut the chicken breasts into even, bite-sized pieces. I recommend cutting the chicken breast vertically (length-wise) into three pieces (if it is a large chicken breast), and cutting cubes off of that.
2. Marinate: In a mixing bowl, mix the chicken with the mayonnaise, lemon juice and zest, garlic, and seasonings and spices. Marinade for at least 30 minutes, but if you have less time that is ok! The longer the chicken marinates, the better the flavour!
3. Skewer the chicken: If you are going to use skewers on the barbecue or on a grill pan, make sure you soak the wooden skewers for approximately 30 minutes. This prevents burning when on the barbecue! Skewer 6-8 bite-sized pieces per skewer.
4. Cook the chicken: In general, these skewers take approximately 10-15 minutes to cook through. If you are making these in the oven, I recommend preheating the oven to 375 degrees, and if in the air fryer I would preheat to 400 degrees, to get a good crust on the chicken.

Tips and Tricks

• Cut the chicken in the same size pieces: chicken breast can dry out, that is no surprise. By keeping the pieces around the same size, you will not end up with super dry pieces, and some pieces that are undercooked!
• Pat off extra marinade before cooking: To avoid either burning the chicken, or causing the chicken to steam if making in the oven, try to take off some of the excess marinade before skewering and cooking.

FAQ