This Greek Souvlaki Chicken Loaf is a quick and easy way to enjoy all the flavours of traditional souvlaki or chicken gyros with minimal preparation. If you’ve ever been in a food court and drooled over the vertical stack of chicken or lamb, dripping with flavour, shaved off hot and fresh and placed in a warmed pita bread … now is your chance to replicate this at home for a fraction of the cost! Cooking the marinated chicken thighs in a loaf tin ensures a super moist and delicious dish, perfect for weeknight dinners or meal prepping. This is such a simple way to enjoy the flavours of Greece!
Health benefits
This chicken loaf is a fantastic source of lean protein, rich in healthy fats from the full-fat yoghurt, and packed with antioxidants from the herbs and spices like oregano and cumin. Marinating the chicken also enhances both flavour and nutrient absorption, making it a healthy and delicious choice.
Ingredients
With ingredients like chicken thighs, Greek yogurt, lemon, cloves garlic and a blend of herbs and spices, this dish offers a mouthwatering combination of creamy, tangy, and aromatic elements. The simple ingredients pack a nutritional punch while keeping the recipe quick and easy to prepare.
How to make Greek Souvlaki Chicken Loaf
To make this Greek chicken souvlaki recipe, mix the yoghurt, spices, garlic, and lemon to create a marinade. Coat the chicken thighs in the marinade and let them absorb the flavours for 1 to 24 hours. Then, layer the chicken in a loaf tin, bake for 45 minutes, invert the tin and slice it into perfect pieces, just like a rotisserie! It’s much easier to make than threading meat onto skewers and perfect for busy days.
Serving suggestions and how to store
Serve this delicious chicken loaf with the sides of your choice – a simple salad (or Greek Salad), kalamata olives, feta cheese, fresh herbs, rice, pita or roasted potatoes, and drizzle the yummy juices over the top for added richness. This meal is perfect for serving buffet-style, letting everyone build their own plates. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge, and it will taste just as good the next day!
Vary this Greek Souvlaki Chicken Loaf to suit your needs
For a dairy-free variation, simply use coconut yoghurt instead of Greek yoghurt. The result will still be incredibly delicious and just as moist! For garlic-free simply omit the garlic or add a tablespoon of garlic infused olive oil if tolerated. If you’d like a char flavour, the thighs can be cooked on a grill pan or on the BBQ grill if you prefer (but I find this loaf method keeps the meat much more moist and tender).
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Greek Souvlaki Chicken Loaf
Ingredients
- 250 g natural, Greek or coconut yoghurt (1 cup), or Greek yoghurt
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper – to taste, good pinch sea salt
- 3 clove/s garlic – minced
- 1 lemon/s – zest of whole lemon, juice of half
- 800 g boneless and skinless chicken thighs – up to 1 kg
Instructions
- Start by mixing the yoghurt, spices, seasoning, garlic, lemon juice and zest together in a bowl or a large container (like a glass pyrex container with a lid).
- Submerge the chicken in the marinade. Cover and leave to marinade for 1-24 hours in the fridge.
- When it’s time to cook the chicken, preheat the oven to 200°C / 390°F (fan-forced).
- Layer the chicken, overlapping, in a loaf tin and top with any excess marinade.
- Oven bake for 45-55 minutes. The temperature of the middle of the loaf should get to 85°C/190°F.
- Prior to serving drain off any juices into a jug (to serve with).
- Invert the loaf tin onto a chopping board and slice the chicken (like you would if it were on a rotisserie).
Serve
- With the juices on the side.
- Serve with your choice of sides (salad, rice, potato wedges, vegetables, coleslaw, hummus).
- This is great to serve buffet or platter style for picky eaters to self serve and build their own bowl.
- Also delicious in a pita bread with garlic yoghurt sauce or hummus shredded lettuce, red onion and tomato.
Store
- Store leftover chicken in an airtight container in the fridge. The meat can also be frozen.