Greek Style Chicken Gyros
Greek-style chicken gyros are known around the world in different guises, for some it might be a chicken kebab, and for others, it might be a chicken yiros; one thing we can all agree on is that they are easy to make and taste great!
“The gyro as we know it more or less today first arrived in Greece in 1922, with the hundreds of thousands of Greek and Armenian refugees from Asia Minor (present-day Turkey). Most came from Constantinople (Istanbul) and Smyrna (Ismir). The best gyro masters were Armenian, or so the legend goes. As the refugees began to settle in their newfound homeland, many became merchants. They opened small shops, among which were the small holes in the wall on every street corner selling gyro. After WWII, gyro started to travel west following the immigration patterns of the Greeks themselves, so shops began popping up across Europe, in the States, and Australia. It became one of the first global fast foods, although no such label could really describe it at the time because most shops were mom-and-pop run.
Greeks, Arabs, and Turks alike all make gyro. The Turks know this delectable street food as doner kebab and make it with lamb or beef. The Arabs know it as shawarma and make it either with beef, lamb, goat, or chicken. In some parts of the Arab world gyro/doner kebab/shawarma is served neither with yogurt nor tzatziki but with a thin, delicious dusting of seasoned pistachios. Yum. That’s universal for delicious!” [1]
While this recipe is easy to prepare it will soon become a family favourite. The combination of meat, salad, sauce, and flatbread combine for a taste sensation that is suitable for all ages and all tastes. The fresh herbs, chicken, peppers, red onion make this dish healthy, too.
One thing I like about preparing this dish is that it is tactile, everyone gets a flatbread and they build their own Gyros from the plates of meat and salad, adding whatever sauce combination they wish. I like a little chili sauce with mine, and there are any number of other condiments which will go perfectly with these Greek Style Chicken Gyros.
Click here for the Flatbread recipe.
Greek Style Chicken Gyros
Equipment
- Electronic digital scales
- Citrus Juicer optional
- Pastry Brush optional
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 380 - 440 grams skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into strips 13 - 15 1/2 ounces
- Olive Oil for cooking
For the marinade
- 125 gram Greek Yoghurt 4.4 ounces
- 1 medium Lime, juiced approx 35 ml
- 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon Cidre Vinegar
- 2 medium Garlic cloves, smashed and minced approx 7 grams
- Generous pinch of salt
- Generous Pinch of black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Oregano, fresh, minced 1.5 teaspoon dried
- 1 teaspoon Mint, fresh, minced
- ¾ teaspoon Smoked paprika or use sweet paprika
- ½ teaspoon Ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon Ground coriander
- Sweet cinnamon - small pinch optional
- Generous Pinch of cayenne pepper
- Note 1
Options
- Sliced peppers use raw or lightly pan fried
- Cucumber, Red Onion, Tomatoes, Mint [Note 2] Feta Cheese, optional
- Lettuce or Roquette [Arugula]; chopped fresh dill
Instructions
For the chicken marinade
- Gather and weigh your ingredients. Combine all the marinade ingredients [Note 3] into a large mixing bowl, stir well and add the prepared chicken; ensure the chicken is covered completely by the marinade.Cover the bowl and pop into the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes, or overnight.
Cooking the chicken
- Remove the marinated chicken from the fridge. Let stand for at least 15 minutes before cooking as you don't want to try and cook cold chicken- the meat can seize and may produce a tough bird!
- When you're ready, place a colander over a medium mixing bowl and pour in the chicken- marinade and all, this will help you to remove the excess marinade so that when you cook the chicken it won't burn the pan. [I use a brush to then remove any other excess marinade]
- Heat about 1 tablespoon olive oil in a heavy bottom non-stick skillet over medium/high heat. When the pan is hot, but not smoking, add the chicken pieces, Do not over crowd the pan and cook in batches if you need to.Cook on each side for 3-5 minutes [depending on the size of your chicken pieces] or until there is no pink in the middle.
- In the meantime, pour the strained marinade sauce into a small saucepan. Bring up to the boil, then reduce the heat and cook through- the sauce should be a bit thick at this point.
- Serve with flatbreads and any other options [Note 4] For the flatbread recipeDuring the kneading process in Step 2, I like to add ½ teaspoon each of fresh mint and dill, finely minced. A dash of lime zest gives it a nice subtle zip!
