Make Greek Chicken Gyros at home from scratch! The combo of homemade Pita bread, tender Greek-style marinated chicken, tomato, zesty onions, and refreshing Tzatziki sauce is literally addictive. No reason to go back to your local Greek restaurant!
Greek Chicken Gyros
Because of all the love my past Greek recipes have gotten over the years, I felt like I had to share another major Greek favorite: Chicken Gyros!
I used to have these all the time when I was younger and they’re delicious, it’s like eating the Greek version of tacos!
Why you’ll love these Chicken Gyros:
- Homemade Pita bread. Soft and fluffy, so much better than the store-bought Pita out there! Although you can use store-bought to save time, I really recommend you make some at home!
- Greek-style marinated chicken. Marinated in my Greek Yogurt Marinade that gives you the most tender, flavorful chicken ever. Made with olive oil, lemons, garlic, and oregano for a strong Mediterranean flavor and a little zest!
- Fresh veggies. Fresh tomatoes and red onions will add some freshness and crunch to your meal!
- Perfect Tzatziki sauce! Refreshing and creamy, made with 5 simple ingredients, this Tzatziki sauce will take your Gyros to the next level.
Ingredients for Greek Chicken Gyros
- Water. For making the pita bread.
- Instant yeast. To make the pita dough rise!
- Sugar to feed the yeast.
- All-purpose flour. For the pita.
- Olive oil. This is one of the key ingredients since this is a Mediterranean recipe so try to use good quality olive oil (some inexpensive brands taste really bitter!). You’ll need enough for the pita dough, chicken, and Tzatziki sauce.
- Salt and pepper for flavor.
- Chicken. Skinless and boneless. I like to cut mine into 1.5-inch strips but you can also dice it.
- Greek yogurt for the chicken marinade and Tzatziki sauce. Make sure you’re using full-fat Greek yogurt because this is another key ingredient.
- Lemon juice. I highly recommend using freshly-squeezed lemon juice for best flavor.
- Garlic. Use fresh garlic, you want all the flavor and freshness of fresh garlic!
- Oregano for the marinade.
- Cucumber for the Tzatziki sauce.
- Tomatoes for assembling the pita.
- Red onions for assembling the pita.
How to make Greek Chicken Gyros at home
STEP 1: Make the Pita bread dough. This is really easy. Add the warm water, instant yeast, sugar, and part of the flour to a large bowl. Set aside until puffy, then add in the remaining flour, olive oil, and salt.
Mix until a dough starts forming then knead until smooth and elastic. Place the dough into a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until double in size. If you need help with working with yeast, here’s my Beginner’s Guide to Baking with Yeast.
STEP 2: Marinate the chicken. While the Pita is rising, you can marinate the chicken. Add the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper to a ziplock bag or medium bowl and mix until combined. Add the chicken to the marinade and toss until evenly coated.
STEP 3: Make the Tzatziki sauce. Grate the cucumber and use your hands to squeeze out all its juice until it’s mostly dry, then set it aside. In a medium bowl, combine the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and prepared cucumber. Season with salt and pepper and mix until combined. Taste and adjust if desired.
STEP 4: Cut the veggies. Dice and salt the tomatoes and slice the red onions (thinly).
STEP 5: Cook the Pita bread. Divide the dough into 7-8 pieces, roll them out into about 1-inch thick discs (this doesn’t have to be perfect, you can eyeball it). Heat a comal or cast-iron skillet over high heat and cook the pitas. Place the first pita onto your comal and cook until it bubbles up, then flip and cook for a few more seconds.
Pita bread needs to cook on high heat in order to cook quickly without drying out. I like to brush my pita with olive oil as soon as it’s done cooking for extra softness and flavor.
STEP 6: Cook the chicken. Place a medium skillet over high heat, once hot, add the chicken to the skillet and discard the marinade. Cook until browned, then flip and cook until browned again. You want to cook the chicken on high heat so it’ll cook quickly without drying out!
STEP 7: Assemble the Chicken Gyros! Grab a pita, add some of the prepared chicken, tomatoes, onions, and Tzatziki sauce to it, then use a piece of parchment paper or foil to keep it wrapped up. Add more sauce on top if desired and enjoy!
Can I make these ahead of time?
Technically, yes! Here’s what you can do 1 day ahead of time:
Make the Pita bread (step 1) and place the covered bowl into the refrigerator to rise overnight. The next day, take the bowl out of the refrigerator and allow the dough to come down to room temperature, then follow step 5.
Or, you can also combine step 1 and step 5 and cook the Pita one day ahead of time and reheat it in the microwave the day of.
You can also marinate the chicken overnight (step 2).
How do I store leftover Chicken Gyros?
I recommend assembling only the chicken gyros you think you’ll need, this way if you do have leftovers you’ll be able to store and reheat them separately.
Pita bread: store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Keep in mind that baked goods tend to dry up overtime. You can reheat the stored Pita in a microwave until hot and soft again!
Chicken: store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days. Reheat in a skillet or in the microwave until hot (internal temperature should measure 165F).
Tzatziki sauce: I don’t recommend storing leftover Tzatziki sauce because of the fresh olive oil + garlic combination which is very time sensitive. I’ve heard of people storing it overnight with no issues but when I tried that, it didn’t work for me. I invite you to use your best judgment for this one.
HAPPY COOKING!! I hope you’ll love this Easy Greek Chicken Gyros Recipe as much as I do!
PS: Please leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating ⭐️ if you make it! Your comments make my day!! You can also tag me on Instagram @itsdamnspicy 🌈💘
More Greek Recipes You’ll Love:
Greek Chicken Gyros
Ingredients
For The Homemade Pita Bread
- 1 cup (250 ml) warm water
- 2 and 1/4 tsp (7 g) instant yeast
- 2 tsp white granulated sugar
- 4 cups (500 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) olive oil
- 1 and 1/2 tsp salt
For The Greek Chicken Marinade
- 2 tbsp (35 g) full-fat Greek yogurt
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) lemon juice
- 2 tsp oregano
- 1 and 1/2 tsp salt
- Pepper (to taste)
- 2 lbs (900 g) skinless boneless chicken (sliced into 1-inch thick stripes or diced)
For The Tzatziki Sauce
- 1 cucumber (peeled)
- 1 and 1/2 cups (420 g) full-fat Greek yogurt
- 1 and 1/2 tbsp (30 ml) lemon juice
- 4 tsp olive oil
- 1 clove garlic (minced)
- Salt (to taste)
For Assembling The Gyros
- 2 tomatoes
- 1/2 red onion
Instructions
- Make the Pita bread dough. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand-mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the warm water, instant yeast, sugar, and 1/2 cup (60 g) flour. Mix until combined and let sit for 10 minutes. The mixture will puff up. Once puffy, add in the remaining flour, olive oil, and salt. Knead or mix until a dough starts forming and pulling away from the sides of the bowl. Then place the dough into a clean greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise for 60-90 minutes or until double in size. Meanwhile, marinate the chicken and prepare the Tzatziki sauce.
- Marinate the chicken. While the dough is rising, marinate the chicken. Add the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper to a ziplock bag or medium bowl and mix until combined. Add the chicken to the marinade and toss until evenly coated. Place in the refrigerator to chill.
- Prepare the Tzatziki sauce. Grate the cucumber using the large side of a grater, then use your hands to squeeze out all the juice until your grated cucumber is mostly dry. Set aside. In a medium bowl, add the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and prepared cucumber. Season with salt and pepper and mix until combined. Taste and adjust if desired.
- Cut the veggies. Dice and salt the tomatoes and thinly slice the red onions.
- Cook the Pita bread. Punch down the dough, then divide it into 7-8 pieces, and roll each disc into a 1-inch thick disc. Heat a comal or cast-iron skillet over high heat to cook the pitas. Place the first pita onto your hot comal and cook until it bubbles up (about 1 minute), then flip and cook for about another minute. Pita bread needs to cook on high heat in order to cook quickly without drying out.
- Cook the chicken. Place a medium skillet over high heat, once hot, add the chicken to the skillet and discard the marinade. Cook until browned (4-5 minutes), then flip and cook until browned again (3-4 minutes). You want to cook the chicken on high heat so it'll cook quickly without drying out! The internal temperature should be 165F (73C).
- Assemble the Chicken Gyros! Grab a pita, add some of the prepared chicken, tomatoes, onions, and Tzatziki sauce to it, then use a piece of parchment paper or foil to keep it wrapped up. Add more sauce on top if desired and enjoy!
Notes
Pita: store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Keep in mind that baked goods tend to dry up overtime. You can reheat the stored Pita in a microwave until hot and soft again!
Chicken: store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days. Reheat in a skillet or in the microwave until hot (internal temperature should measure 165F).
Tzatziki sauce: I don't recommend storing leftover Tzatziki sauce because of the fresh olive oil + garlic combination which is very time sensitive. I've heard of people storing it overnight with no issues but when I tried that, it didn't work for me. I invite you to use your best judgment for this one.
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