Souvlaki Roast Chicken with Lemon Mint Tzatziki

Souvlaki Roast Chicken with Lemon Mint Tzatziki

We are huge fans of souvlaki at our house and this tasty Monday night dinner did not disappoint. We skewer souvlaki marinated diced chicken in the summertime and enjoy a quick and flavorful meal from the backyard grill and while we still do that under the broiler or in a cast iron grill pan on top of the stove, I decided a winter roast chicken version of or family favorite was worth a try. Boy was it ever. I broke down a whole chicken into pieces for this recipe and kept the skin on but you can easily use whatever  skinless chicken pieces you like or even a whole roast chicken and it will still work well. In the relatively high heat the skin crisped up nicely and rendered quite well but the skinless version would definitely be a lower fat, healthier choice.

The lemon mint tzatki was a delicious accompaniment to the meal as was the simple Greek salad of spinach, red onion, tomatoes, peppers, olives and feta cheese in a little balsamic dressing that we served with it. I will confess that I did miss the homemade flat-breads or pita bread that we normally serve with souvlaki but I'm cutting back on carbs this month (sigh), so none served this time but feel free to indulge if you like.

This was also quite an easy meal for a weekday dinner. We marinated the chicken overnight in the fridge so it was only a matter of popping it into the oven after work for about an hour after work. We also drained the yogurt overnight too, which left plenty of time to throw together the tzatziki and salad while the chicken roasted.

Serves 4

• 3 lbs chicken pieces, well trimmed or skinless

Souvlaki Marinade

• 12 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 6 tbsp olive oil
• 4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 3 rounded tbsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 6 cloves minced garlic 

Mix all of the ingredients together and pour over the chicken in a Ziploc bag. Toss the chicken around well in the marinade to coat on all sides. Marinate in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight. 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place the chicken pieces on a wire rack on top of a baking sheet and roast for about 60-75 minutes depending on the size of your chicken pieces. I like to turn the pieces over once during the cooking time.

Serve with a Greek Salad, flat-bread and tzatziki.

Lemon Mint Tzatziki

• 3 cups Greek yogurt, drained.

Draining the yogurt removes much of the liquid and produces an end product about the consistency of thick sour cream. To drain the yogurt, line a colander with several layers of cheesecloth (or in a pinch, several large coffee filters) Pour the yogurt into the colander and place it in a large bowl or in the sink for an hour or two. this should produce about 2 cups of thick yogurt.

• 6 inch piece of English cucumber

Peel the piece of cucumber and remove the seeds and pulp at the center with a teaspoon, then dice the outside flesh of the cucumber into small cubes of  1/8 inch or less.

Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of kosher salt over the diced cucumber and toss together well. Let this rest for about a half hour , stirring occasionally. This process removes some of the liquid from the cucumber so that it will not water down the consistency of your finished tzatziki. Drain all of the liquid off the diced cucumber before adding it to the drained yogurt along with:

• 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• pinch salt and pepper to season

Mix well, cover and store in the fridge for at least a half hour before serving.