Easy Chicken Gyro Recipe

Simple, nourishing, and flavorful dishes that satisfy a wide group of people can be hard to come by. Yet this easy chicken gyro recipe certainly fits the bill, and you'll undoubtedly want to start including it in your repertoire. Recipe developer Ting Dalton from Cook Simply came up with this classic Greek meal that you can recreate at home. Its one of her favorites and she shares, "This is popular with my whole family and makes for a great midweek meal." 

While the process is super basic and straightforward to whip up, you'll have to allow some time for the chicken to marinade — but we can assure you that it's totally worth it. As Dalton describes, "The yogurt makes the chicken so tender and delicious and the added Greek inspired spices add another level of flavor." Depending on your schedule, you could even get all of the prep work done the night before so that you just have to cook the meat when you are ready to eat. It sounds like you might have a new summer favorite on the horizon!

This chicken gyro recipe focuses on assorted seasonings to add plenty of flavor to the meat. For four portions, you'll need 1 ½ pounds of chicken thighs, and make sure to slice them into large bite-sized pieces for the gyros. The marinade consists of 1 cup of Greek yogurt, the juice from one lemon, 1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar, three garlic cloves (mince them first), 1 tablespoon of oregano, 1 teaspoon of paprika, 1 teaspoon of ground cumin, and some salt and pepper to taste. To maintain an authentic flavor, Dalton highlights the importance of oregano. She explains that "[it] is a staple ingredient in Greek cooking and adds a lovely strong and aromatic flavor to the chicken." 

As for the rest of the gyro ingredients, you'll need pita bread (or flatbreads), tzatziki, shredded lettuce (Dalton recommends baby gem), chopped cucumbers, and chopped baby tomatoes. You'll probably want to squeeze more lemon juice on the gyro so be sure to have some extra wedges. Dalton notes that "if you don't have tzatziki you can use plain yogurt or make your own."

Start off by making the yogurt marinade for the chicken. Set out a large bowl (you'll be adding the thighs next) and add the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, white wine vinegar, and the various spices. Use a large spoon or spatula to mix everything until it is combined and the spices are evenly distributed in the yogurt.

Now that the marinade is ready, transfer the chicken thighs to the bowl and carefully mix them in. Ensure that all the pieces are properly coated in the yogurt marinade — this is where all the flavor lies! Finally, season the meat with some salt and pepper to your liking. Now, marinate the chicken thighs in the refrigerator for a minimum of one hour or even overnight. As Dalton remarks, "The longer in the yogurt the more flavor and more tender."

When the chicken has been sufficiently marinated, it's time to get cooking. Preheat the oven to 300 F and prepare a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Transfer the chicken on top, spreading it out uniformly so that the meat cooks evenly. Once the oven is hot, bake the chicken for 30 minutes or until it is cooked and the exterior has browned.

Alternatively, Dalton says that "you can also put the chicken on skewers to roast in the oven or on the grill." She explains that this is the traditional cooking method yet her recipe eliminates this extra step. If you want to cook them on a barbecue, aim for about 5 to 8 minutes per side, and be sure to keep turning the pieces to prevent them from burning.

Now comes the fun part — assembling the gyros. To simplify the process, Dalton recommends laying out the chicken and toppings on the table and letting each person make their own. Grab a slice of pita bread, spread on a layer of tzatziki, add some pieces of chicken, a spoonful of chopped cucumbers and tomatoes, and a sprinkling of shredded lettuce. Feel free to adapt the quantities here; Dalton notes, "This is the beauty of the fixings, you can add as much or as little as you want." Finally, squeeze a bit of lemon juice on top for extra tang. 

If you have leftover chicken after your meal, Dalton advises storing it in the fridge for up to three days and heating it in the oven when you're ready to finish it off. Something tells us this might not be necessary!