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Think juicy, well-spiced chicken tucked into toasty pitas with a cool, herby sauce and lots of crisp veg. It’s weeknight-easy, but still feels like something special.
These are the gyros I reach for when I want big flavor without fuss—saucy, satisfying, and ready to pile high at the table.
Why You’ll Love These Gyros
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Big flavor, minimal effort: a short marinade + high heat = juicy chicken and caramelized edges.
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Customizable bowls or wraps—great for picky eaters and meal prep.
Marinate the Chicken
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Toss chicken with oil, lemon, garlic, oregano, and spices until glossy and evenly coated.
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Tip: Even a short rest helps; the chicken should look well coated with no dry patches.
Make the Sauce
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Stir Greek yogurt with lemon, garlic, herbs, and a pinch of salt until smooth.
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Cue: Sauce should be thick enough to cling to a spoon; thin with a splash of water or lemon juice if needed.
Cook the Chicken
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Use a hot skillet or grill; arrange pieces with a little space for good browning (avoid crowding to prevent steaming).
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Doneness cues: edges browned, juices run clear, and no translucent centers when sliced.
Warm the Pitas & Assemble
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Warm pitas until soft and steamy; spread sauce, add chicken, pile on veg, and a final drizzle of sauce.
Make-Ahead, Storage & Reheat
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Make-ahead: Sauce keeps well; flavors bloom by the next day.
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Storage: Keep chicken, sauce, and veg separately in airtight containers in the fridge; assemble to serve.
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Reheat: Warm chicken gently in a skillet until hot and edges re-crisp.
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Leftovers: Turn into bowls with rice, or a chopped “gyro salad” with crunchy pita chips.
Saucy Chicken Gyros
Servings: 8 gyros
Calories Per Serving: 448 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 4 cloves garlic smashed
- juice of 1 lemon
- 3 teaspoons red wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons plain greek yogurt I used full fat
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried dill
- Salt and pepper
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken cut into thick strips
For the tzatziki
- 16 ounces plain greek yogurt I used full fat
- 1/2 hothouse cucumber or 1 regular cucumber peeled and seeded and diced small
- 2-3 cloves garlic grated (or finely minced)
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- half a fresh lemon juiced
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Tapenade (optional)
- 1/4 cup pitted kalamata olives
- 1/4 cup pitted green olives
- 1 clove garlic grated
- 1 pepperoncini diced (optional)
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 6-8 homemade pita breads or store bought
- fresh cherry tomatoes halved
- feta cheese for serving
Instructions
- Prepare the chicken, combine the garlic, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil, greek yogurt, oregano, dill, salt and pepper to taste in a medium bowl. Whisk together until mixed well. Add the chicken pieces to the bowl and mix well to coat. Cover and refrigerate for about 1 hour or overnight.
- To prepare the tzatziki sauce pour any liquid off the surface of the greek yogurt. (I find it is best to use full fat greek yogurt for this, but 2% works ok as well. You want the yogurt to be thick, so if your greek yogurt seems thin strain it through a fine mesh strainer.) Mix together the greek yogurt, diced cucumber, garlic, white wine vinegar, dill, oregano, salt and pepper to taste, and lemon juice. Drizzle with olive oil. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to meld.
- If making the tapenade, dice the olives and mix in a small bowl with the garlic, pepperoncini, and parsley. Set aside
- To cook the chicken preheat your broiler. Remove the chicken from the marinade, reserving the marinade. Place the chicken on a baking pan and broil the chicken for 5-7 minutes until cooked through. Pour the remaining marinade in a medium size skillet and bring to a boil. Simmer for 3 minutes and then toss the cooked chicken with the sauce.
- Heat pitas (I just poped them in the microwave for a few seconds). Top with chicken, tzatziki sauce, sliced tomatoes, feta cheese and tapenade if using. Serve immediately.
Notes
Here is the link to my Homemade Pita.
So how was your Saturday night? Hope it was better than ours.
Shared with: Inside BruCru Life, Lil Luna, Chef In Training, Buns In my Oven, Foodie Friday Friends, Tidy Mom, Taste and Tell, Cheerios and Lattes, Somewhat Simple, Mom on Timeout, I Heart Nap Time, Fine Craft Guide, The Country Cook, Whipperberry, Chef In Training
This post was originally published on February 18, 2013
Oh my heck. They look wonderful! I could put tzatziki on just about anything and devour it. It’s my favorite condiment. Thanks for the recipe!
Yum! I adore gyros. All kinds. Thanks for the great recipe and I hope you get your car back in one piece!
That is so crazy about your car!! What if you passed the thief on the road. Crazyness!
You had me at pita bread and feta. I love recipes like this, because I think gyro’s look sooo good but I don’t do lamb. The olive tapenade looks delish too.
I was a little scared to buy a whole leg of lamb, so I went with chicken. chicken never fails!
So sorry to hear about the car! Hopefully, it’l turn up soon :/
These gyros look amazing 🙂 Yum!
whoooooooooooa hold the phone, your car was stolen?? I don’t get how people can be so disrespectful of other’s things and space. By golly, I’m so sorry to hear your crazy story and am amazed you’re so up-beat about the whole thing – way to look on the bright side! I hope it turns up soon with a pot of gold inside of it! 🙂 Your gyros look aaaaamaaaaaaaaaaaazing!!! Love the pillowy pita bread with the chicken and delicious olives! I’m sure these bad boys could brighten a bad day!
ha, you are toc cute!
Ugh how awful! My sister and her now husband had their car stolen a few years ago from a parking lot – same kind of thing. The car was used in a string of robberies. The car was finally recovered but it was in terrible shape 🙁 I hope yours turns out better!!!!!!!
Lucky for us it turned out much better!
Well, I’m sure sorry about your car. How shocking!
But I do need to thank you for sharing these gryos. My family loves Greek food.
Visiting from Recipe Sharing Monday.
Oh no no no no no!! I am so sorry!! Holy cow – that is so rotten 🙁 I seriously hope you guys get some good news about your car soon!
Wow on both! I’m so sorry about your car, I wish you the best. Your gyro’s look and sound delicious. I would love for you to share tomorrow at my link party http://www.memoriesbythemile.com/
Wanda Ann @ Memories by the Mile
Wow, what a cruddy thing having your car stolen! So glad no one was in the car, though. That would be terrifying!
These chicken gyros look amazing. I’ve saved the recipe and plan to make them soon with homemade whole wheat pita. Thanks for sharing!
That sucks about your car–maybe some teen took it for a joyride?
Hopefully, it turns up ok.
Anyway, I’m definitely making these soon!
aahhh those pita’s again! Thanks for sharing at Show Me Your Plaid Monday’s!
ugh sorry to hear about your car! Good luck and great recipe…had plenty of gyros but not with the olives so its a nice touch!
This looks like a wonderful recipe. I hope you get your car back in one piece, but thankfully, everyone is okay.