Chicken souvlaki (Greek chicken skewers)

These chicken souvlaki use an easy, flavorful marinade and a quick grill to create wonderfully juicy, tender and irresistibly tasty skewers. Delicious wrapped in pita with tzatziki and tomato, or serve with grilled vegetables, rice and more.

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I've always loved Greek food and have many tasty memories form various trips to Greece and Cyprus when I was a child. But I got a whole new perspective on Greek food traveling there with young children. My kids found so much to enjoy, from nibbling on bread with hummus and baba ghanoush to calamari, Greek meatballs or some comforting youvetsi.

I think one of the things that maybe appeals is that many dishes have relatively simple flavors, but they're delicious with it. It's all about relatively fresh, gently aromatic flavors that help the ingredients shine. And these skewers are no different.

What is souvlaki?

The name souvlaki comes from the Greek "souvla" which means skewer and souvlaki means "little skewer". At it's core, they are made of chunks of meat, marinated in a mix of oil, lemon and herbs, then grilled to give a balance of a little char on the outside and juicy inside. You can make them with a range of meats, like pork, lamb souvlaki or chicken, as here.

The idea of cooking meat skewers over a flame has been around for centuries in Greece and apparently Homer even mentions it in his Odyssey. Over the centuries, they've become a popular street food that you'll find all over and enjoyed by all. The smell of souvlaki cooking on an outdoor grill really does draw you in!

Souvlaki v gyros

In North America, you might find people use the names souvlaki and gyros interchangably. But in Greece, theres a definite distinction. The souvlaki marinade is similar to what you might use for gyros, but the cuts of meat and way of cooking are different.

Souvlaki are skewers, using high quality chunks of meat. Gyros, meanwhile, are made by stacking larger pieces of meat on a vertical rotisserie, then cutting thin slices to serve. You might serve the meat in a similar way in a pita with toppings, but the cooking method is different.

Preparing the chicken

This is a dish you need to think about ahead of time to allow the marinade to do it's magic, but it's a simple mix that's quick and easy to put together. The exact ingredients vary regionally and between cooks, but you'll always see lemon and olive oil in the marinade. Oregano is also pretty standard, as is garlic. Then some add the odd additional herbs or spices, though they tend to be subtle.

Once you have your marinade ready, chop up the chicken and add it in. Trim off any excess fat or tough membrane etc and dice the chicken in relatively even sized pieces - this helps them cook at an even rate so you don't overcook some as you wait for others.

Then mix well and leave the marinade to do it's work, before skewering the pieces together and cooking. Ideally, you want to cook over an open flame, but I find a grill pan on the stove does a pretty good job, too. And if neither of those are an option, you can get close (though not quite as good) results using the oven, ideally broiled/grilled at the end.

How to serve souvlaki

You can serve chicken souvlaki in a few ways, all of which are delicious. One of the most typical is as a souvlaki wrap, where the chicken is wrapped in a warm pita bread, along with some sliced tomato, maybe a little red onion and some tzatziki. You might find a handful of fries in there too.

In Athens, in fact, the name souvlaki refers to this whole meat-filled pita, and if you are just referring to the skewers, they are called kalamaki. And enjoying just the skewer on it's own, either as a snack or as part of a selection of appetizers, is another way to enjoy.

An alternative way to make souvlaki into a meal is having them as part of a platter with various different sides. Things that work really well are grilled vegetables (like zucchini/ courgette and peppers), rice, fries and/or salad. Some pita and tzatziki on the side are pretty typical on a platter too.

Since tzatziki is always a good idea with them, I've included a simple recipe below for that, too. It, too, can have variations - yogurt and cucumber are the core, but seasonings can vary. Garlic is typical, but herbs can vary between mint and dill, and if any other additions.

Grilled chicken souvlaki with tzatziki is such an easy meal to make and easy to love. Keep it simple as a wrap, or add additional sides, it's delicious either way. Great flavors, its a kind of street food dish that's just as good at home for any excuse. Enjoy!

Try these other kebabs/skewers from around the world:

• Pinchos morunos (Spanish spiced pork skewers)
• Sosaties (South African lamb and apricot kebabs)
• Joojeh kabab (Persian saffron and yogurt marinated chicken)
• Anticuchos de carne (Peruvian chili-marinated skewers)
• Plus get more Greek recipes, as well as grilling ideas, salads and more in the summer recipes archives.

See some of my favorite cooking tools and ingredients in the Caroline's Cooking Amazon store. 

This post was first shared in May 2017 and has been updated, primarily with new photos and additional information.

Try these other grilling ideas:

• BBQ Bacon Cowboy Burgers from Tip Garden
• Gigi's Baked Beans from Family Around The Table
• Grilled Meatballs and Spaghetti from A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures
• Queijo Coalho (Brazilian Grilled Cheese) from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Grilled Marinated Tuna with Sesame Rice Steaks and Orange Cucumber Salad from A Day in the Life on the Farm

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