Greek Chicken Bowls
Chicken thighs marinated in Greek yogurt, lemon and oregano, baked until charred at the edges, served over rice with cucumber, tomatoes, red onion, feta and a quick homemade tzatziki. Around 40g of protein per bowl — Mediterranean flavors in one assembly.
Ingredients
- 600 gboneless chicken thighs
- 300 gwhite rice
- 200 gGreek yogurt
- 1 lemon
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 cucumber
- 100 gcherry tomatoes
- 80 gfeta cheese
- 2 tspdried oregano
- 1 tspsmoked paprika
- 2 tbspolive oil
- 2 tbspfresh dill
- 1 tspsalt
- ½ tspblack pepper
Method
- Make the marinade: combine 100g of the Greek yogurt, juice of half the lemon, 2 minced garlic cloves, 1 tsp oregano, smoked paprika, 1 tbsp olive oil, ½ tsp salt and pepper. Add the chicken thighs and coat thoroughly. Marinate at least 30 minutes at room temperature, or up to overnight in the fridge.
- Make the tzatziki: grate the cucumber and squeeze out all the moisture with your hands or a kitchen towel — this is the key step, wet cucumber will make the sauce watery. Combine the drained cucumber with the remaining 100g Greek yogurt, 2 minced garlic cloves, remaining lemon juice, 1 tbsp olive oil, dill, remaining oregano, salt and pepper. Refrigerate until serving.
- Cook the rice according to package instructions. When done, fluff with a fork and stir in a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon. Keep warm.
- Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F). Arrange the chicken thighs on a lined baking sheet. Bake for 20–22 minutes until cooked through (internal temperature 74°C/165°F). Switch to broil for 2–3 minutes to get charred, slightly crispy edges. Rest for 5 minutes, then slice.
- Halve the cherry tomatoes. Thinly slice the red onion if using. Crumble the feta.
- Assemble: rice base, sliced chicken, cherry tomatoes, cucumber slices, red onion, crumbled feta. Top generously with tzatziki and a squeeze of lemon. Scatter fresh dill on top.
FAQ
Watery tzatziki has one cause: not removing enough moisture from the grated cucumber. Cucumber is mostly water, and if you add it to yogurt without squeezing first, it dilutes the sauce within minutes. The fix: after grating, wrap the cucumber in a clean kitchen towel and wring it out firmly — you will be surprised how much liquid comes out. Salt the grated cucumber first and let it sit for 10 minutes, then wring — this draws out even more water. Use full-fat Greek yogurt, not regular yogurt; its thicker base holds the sauce together better.
Rate this
Keep browsing
More dishes from the American archive — picked by overlap with what you're cooking now.
Join the conversation
Comments (1)
The pan needs to be properly hot before the boneless chicken thighs goes in for greek chicken bowls. A lukewarm pan steams instead of sears. Wait until you see the faintest wisp of smoke — that's your signal.