This Easy Chicken Souvlaki Will Take Over Your Summer BBQs

Lemony grilled chicken, Tzaziki, Hummus Two Ways and Gluten Free Tabbouleh (Video)

It’s about to hit triple digits here in Texas. Heavy meat dinners, even cooked in an Instant Pot, aren’t quite as appealing. What I find myself craving instead are light dinners that require very little cooking other than a quick hit on the grill. And more importantly, dinners highlighting the vegetables overflowing at Farmers’ Markets which also happen to be full of water and natural electrolytes - tomatoes, cucumbers and melons.

Mediterranean cuisine highlights these ingredients, too, so I find myself creating recipes and meals with them on repeat throughout the summer like my Greek Salad with Za’atar Chicken. This week’s dinner is a bit different even though many ingredients are the same.

Mediterranean Summer Supper Menu

Don’t let the number of components overwhelm you. You DON’T have to use all of them. See “Ways to Serve” below for how to use them interchangeably for anything from a quick lunch wrap to a full Mediterranean Dinner. (And see the Quickie Version in Notes for the super speedy version.)

• Chicken Souvlaki - grilled chicken in a delicious lemony marinade that doubles as a drinkable dressing. The chicken is traditionally cooked on a skewer, but I like to just cook chicken tenders if I’m just serving for weeknight family dinner or wrap-style. Grilling and chilling the chicken with an extra dose of the leftover marinade after cooking will make it even more tender and flavor-packed whether you serve it cold or hot.

• Tzaziki - This herb and yogurt based sauce offsets the punchy chicken perfectly.

• Hummus - I’m including both traditional and roasted red pepper versions, plus for those who don’t eat beans, I’ve got a bean-free hummus that will fool even the diehard hummus lover!

• Quinoa Tabbouleh - Since bulgur has gluten, I substitute quinoa for the herb-forward salad. It has almost identical texture and flavor so unless you’re a bulgur enthusiast, you won’t miss it at all.

• Marinated Olives - Mixed olives quickly marinated in olive oil and herbs.

• Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Red Onion - Including these veggies shows off the seasonal produce and fills out the table but they are entirely optional

• Other Ingredients - Flatbread, such as MyBread brand gluten free flatbread, and regular or dairy free feta cheese are optional but can be included depending on how you’re serving.

Notes

• Make Ahead - Make lemon dressing (see video below for my super easy method), hummus and tzaziki up to 3 days in advance. Chicken can be marinated for 24 hours. If you want to cook it ahead, do so up to 3 days in advance but pour extra dressing over the chicken immediately after grilling to reverse marinate it and keep it juicy.

• Meal Prep - Follow Make ahead instructions. To make single servings for lunch: Cut chicken into bite sized pieces and add to Quinoa Tabbouleh. Serve hummus and tzaziki on the side with flatbread and/or veggies.

• Quickie Version - See full instructions below

• Carnivore - Make a double batch of chicken. Make yogurt sauce by making Tzaziki without cucumbers if you are eating yogurt. Serve chicken with a little yogurt sauce.

• Dairy Free - Use CocoJune yogurt instead of Greek Yogurt for tzaziki. Use VioLife Feta instead of regular.

• Vegan - Use Abbot’s Butcher Chik’n instead of chicken and follow dairy free recs above. As an alternative to Abbot’s Butcher chicken, you could use extra firm tofu if you tolerate soy (I don’t.) Just make sure to run it through a tofu press or really dry it out with paper towels before marinating.