Chicken Souvlaki
An authentic chicken souvlaki recipe featuring juicy, charred chicken skewers marinated in lemon, garlic, and oregano, ready for pita, rice, or a Greek salad.
Equipment
- Skewers (metal or soaked wooden)
- grill or grill pan
- Mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 1½ lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 1-inch cubes
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- Warm pita tzatziki, and fresh vegetables, for serving
Instructions
Marinate the Chicken
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper.
- Add the cubed chicken to the bowl, tossing to coat evenly in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 8 hours for deeper flavor, keeping in mind that marinating for too much longer than that can start to affect the chicken's texture due to the acidity in the lemon juice.
Skewer and Grill the Chicken
- If using wooden skewers, soak them in water for at least 30 minutes before grilling to prevent burning. Thread the marinated chicken pieces onto the skewers, leaving a small amount of space between each piece to help them cook evenly.
- Preheat your grill or grill pan over medium-high heat.. Grill the skewers for 10–12 minutes, turning them every 2–3 minutes, until lightly charred and the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F (74°C)..
- Let the skewers rest for a couple of minutes before serving with warm pita, tzatziki, and fresh vegetables.
Notes
- Marinating the chicken for at least 1 hour makes a real difference in flavor, but try not to leave it marinating for much longer than 8 hours, since the lemon juice's acidity can start to break down the chicken's texture if left too long.
- Cutting the chicken into evenly sized pieces helps everything cook at the same rate, so try to keep the cubes consistent in size when prepping.
- Leaving a bit of space between pieces on the skewer, rather than packing them tightly together, allows for better heat circulation and more even charring on all sides.
- If grilling indoors on a grill pan, make sure it's properly preheated before adding the skewers, since a pan that isn't hot enough will steam the chicken rather than developing a proper char.
- Leftover chicken souvlaki keeps well in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and reheats nicely in a skillet over medium heat