Greek Chicken Souvlaki
Fire up the grill and transport yourself to the Mediterranean with this Greek Chicken Souvlaki! These juicy marinated chicken skewers are grilled to perfection, and they cook up in just 15 minutes! Serve with warm pita, fresh veggies and a cool, creamy tzatziki sauce!
It’s summertime, which means my grill is going into overdrive. I’m constantly making grilled vegetables, grilled bbq chicken and grilled burgers.
This Greek Chicken Souvlaki is one of my favorite things to prepare. It really doesn’t get much better than Mediterranean flavors on a warm summer evening, does it?
The Greek chicken marinade for souvlaki includes fresh lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and oregano, so the chicken soaks up all of those flavors. The chicken is then skewered and grilled to perfection.
It’s tender, flavorful, and eating off of sticks is always fun. 🙂
Why you’ll love this recipe:
- The chicken is incredibly juicy and bursting with the mediterranean flavors of garlic, lemon and oregano.
- This chicken souvlaki recipe takes just 5 simple ingredients. It’s the easiest chicken marinade ever!
- It can be prepped in advance and the chicken cooks up in just 15 minutes.
- It’s family friendly and perfect for entertaining.
Recipe ingredients
- Chicken. You’ll need about 1.5 lbs. of chicken breast for this recipe, which is about 2 large chicken breasts. Cut the chicken into 1″ chunks for quick cooking. You can also use boneless skinless chicken thighs if you prefer! This recipe is easily scaled to feed a crowd as well.
- Marinade. The marinade for souvlaki chicken includes olive oil, fresh lemon juice, garlic and oregano. It’s super simple and packed with flavor.
See the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and their quantities.
How to make souvlaki chicken
This souvlaki chicken recipe is incredibly easy to make and only require about 15 minutes of prep.
Pro tip: Marinate the chicken up to a day in advance for maximum flavor. You can also toss the cubed chicken with the Greek marinade and freeze it until you’re ready to use it. The chicken will marinate as it defrosts.
See the recipe card below for full instructions.
- Cut the chicken breast into 1″ cubes and season it with salt and pepper.
- Combine the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic cloves and oregano in a medium bowl. Add the chicken and toss well to coat, then cover with plastic and marinate for a minimum of 2 hours or overnight.
- Skewer the chicken onto wood or metal skewers.
- Preheat the grill to medium high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and grill the chicken for about 3 minutes on each side or until grill marks form and a thermometer inserted into the center of the chicken registers 160 degrees.
Recipe FAQs
Use boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs. Chicken breast is much leaner, while chicken thighs are nice and juicy. Both are great options!
The marinade for this chicken souvlaki consists of fresh lemon juice, olive oil, garlic cloves and oregano.
Marinate the chicken for a minimum of 2 hours, or overnight for maximum flavor.
You can also toss the cubed chicken in the marinade in a tip top bag and freeze it until you’re ready to use it. The chicken will marinate as it defrosts.
Chicken souvlaki is traditionally served with a side of pita bread, fresh veggies such as tomatoes and onions, and tzatziki sauce. It can also be served as a wrap or gyro, or with a side of almond rice pilaf.
This is a great make ahead recipe. The chicken can be marinated up to a day in advance, then skewered well before you’re ready to pop them on the grill.
Serving suggestions
Souvlaki chicken may be served a number of ways as outlined below.
- Serve with warm pita bread, fresh veggies and my cool, creamy Greek tzatziki recipe.
- Serve alongside pilafi pourgouri or crispy smashed potatoes.
- Served alongside Mediterranean chopped salad or Horiatiki for a tasty low carb meal.
Recipe notes
- Pro tip: Marinate the chicken up to a day in advance for maximum flavor. You can also toss the cubed chicken with the Greek marinade and freeze it until you’re ready to use it. The chicken will marinate as it defrosts!
- This Greek chicken souvlaki recipe is easily scaled to feed a crowd and the skewers may be assembled up to a day in advance.
- The chicken may be substituted with beef, lamb or pork! Cooking times will vary depending on which protein you choose.
More Greek recipes you’ll love:
Did you try this recipe? If so, be sure to leave a review below and tag me @flavorthemoments on Facebook and Instagram
Greek Chicken Souvlaki
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast about 2 large chicken breasts; cut into 1" chunks
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 lemon juiced (2-3 tablespoons)
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced (or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
- 1 teaspoons dried oregano
- Greek tzatziki recipe for serving; optional
Instructions
- Season the chicken with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste and place in a medium bowl or large zip top bag.1 1/2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast, Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Add the lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and oregano, then toss the chicken in the marinade until well coated. Marinate for a minimum of 2 hours or overnight.1 lemon, 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, 3 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoons dried oregano
- About 1-2 hours before cooking time, remove the chicken from the refrigerator and skewer onto the wooden or metal skewers and let stand at room temperature. The chicken will cook more evenly when it’s grilled at room temperature.
- Preheat the grill to medium high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and grill the chicken for about 3 minutes on each side or until grill marks form, or until a thermometer inserted into the center of the chicken registers 160 degrees. Place the chicken on a platter, cover loosely with foil, and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes. Enjoy!
Notes
- Pro tip: Marinate the chicken up to a day in advance for maximum flavor. You can also toss the cubed chicken with the Greek marinade and freeze it until you’re ready to use it. The chicken will marinate as it defrosts!
- Greek chicken souvlaki is easily scaled to feed a crowd and the skewers may be assembled up to a day in advance.
- The chicken may be substituted with beef, lamb or pork! Cooking times will vary depending on which protein you choose.
- Store souvlaki chicken in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.
36 Comments on “Greek Chicken Souvlaki”
I’m loving all of the greek recipes you’ve been sharing Marcie and would definitely love to see more 🙂 These skewers look incredible! Love the pretty colors and you can just see that they are bursting with so much flavor – pinning 🙂
I’m glad you like them, Kelly, and I’m sure there will be more! I’m definitely loving eating mediterranean-style. 🙂 The kids were all over these, too, and that’s a definitely bonus!
You’re so sweet, Mary Frances — thank you! I really don’t want to stop making mediterranean food either, and I have a few other ideas swirling around in my head. haha Thank you for the pin, and have a great day, my friend! 🙂
These look so fresh and delicious. Pinned!
Thank you, Jill! 🙂
Kabobs are festive to me, too. The colors do that for me. I didn’t grow up eating them either really, so I’m making up for it in adulthood! Have a nice day, Carol! 🙂
We don’t have too many Greek restaurants near me, so I definitely need to make Greek food more often! Thank you for stopping by, Danae, and I appreciate the pin! 🙂
These will make a nice change for our next BBQ as we always opt for ribs or asian style flavors.
I hope you enjoy them, and thanks for stopping by! 🙂
I’ve been loving all these greek recipes you’ve been posting! I don’t make kabobs enough – it’s been so long! These sound so good – and I agree, the colors are awesome! Pretty foods are the best!
I’m glad you’ve liked the Greek recipes — I could really eat like this all the time. 🙂 I do need to make kabobs more often as they’re especially perfect for grilling in the summer. Have a great day, Ashley! 🙂
I love all the colors in these skewers Marcie! I can only imagine how yummy these are – can’t wait to give them a try!
Thank you, Trish! 🙂
Again another recipe I must try! Loving the Greek theme- delicious flavours. I love souvlaki- I usually keep the recipe traditional by using lamb, but chicken sounds just as delicious!
I’m glad you’ve enjoyed the Greek inspired meals, Jessica! I love lamb souvlaki as well, and I will have to make that soon…I’m really craving it now that you mentioned it. 🙂
We are having these skewers and that fabulous tzatkiki posted tonight! I can’t wait, they look fantastic!
Thank you so much, and I hope you enjoy them, Annie! 🙂
I’m loving all of your Greek recipes! These skewers look delicious, especially with the marinade. Perfect summer BBQ food!
I’m glad you’re liking these Greek dishes, Gayle! I could certainly eat like this every day. 🙂
Oh so pretty Marcie! For some reason we haven’t had skewers yet this summer. Thanks for the inspiration!
Thank you, Melanie! These are the first this summer, and they won’t be the last. 🙂 When everybody likes something, I tend to go a little overboard. haha Have a great day! 🙂
These are so pretty and I’m sure equally as delicious! I love making skewers/kabobs in the summer…
Thank you, Ashley! Kebabs are definitely one of the best meals in the summer! 🙂
Although I spent over a decade living in Greece, Marcie, it’s still great to have a reminder to make homemade souvlaki more often … especially a yummy-looking marinated one like this. I love the idea of pulling the meat and veggies off the skewers and stuffing them in pitta pockets with tsatziki. I think pretty much anyone would enjoy this meal!
Souvlaki is one of my favorite Greek dishes, and I don’t make it at home half as often as I should. I need to go Greek more often! haha Thanks, Helen, and have a lovely day. 🙂
Thanks for the recipe, Marcie. I love to do kabobs on the grill….any time of the year, if it is raining or snowing I do them inside on the grill. 🙂
I really need to make kebabs more often — they’re so easy and also make a fun way to get more veggies in. Thanks, Pat! 🙂