Smoky yogurt-marinated grilled chicken thighs served over quinoa and Mediterranean-inspired tomatoes, cucumbers, and olives with tzatziki and Feta.
Chicken Tzatziki Bowls
Chicken Tzatziki BowlsThis yogurt-marinated chicken has become one of my favorites and always on rotation. We crave Greek and Mediterranean food, and eat it at least once a week! I make it all year long on the grill or grill pan and serve it over quinoa or rice, depending on my mood. Some other recipes in my rotation are this Chicken Kebab Salad, Grilled Chicken Shawarma, Greek Turkey Meatballs, just to name a few!
This chicken recipe is slightly adapted From What’s Gaby Cooking: Everyday California Food by Gaby Dalkin. Her book is gorgeous and filled with so many great recipes it was hard to pick which recipe I should try! I am glad I chose this dish, it will now be part of our rotation!! The seasoning and marinade are wonderful, and because it uses chicken thighs, the meat is tender and juicy. Tommy said it’s better than any Greek take-out in my neighborhood, and I agree! I had mine in a bowl as pictured here. Tommy skipped the quinoa and had it with a grilled pita instead.
Cooks Notes:
You’ll need eight wooden or metal skewers for this recipe. (If you are using wooden skewers, make sure to soak them in water for about 30 minutes before using).
Chicken Tzatziki Bowl
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1/4 cup 1% plain Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1/2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
- Freshly cracked black pepper
For the salad:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
- 3 Persian cucumbers, thinly sliced
- 1 cup 145 g cherry tomatoes, halved
- ¼ red onion, thinly sliced
For the bowls:
- 2 cups cooked quinoa
- 1 cup Skinny Tzatziki, from my blog
- 1/4 cup authentic feta, the kind that comes in brine, crumbled
- 12 smashed castelvetrano olives
Instructions
To make the chicken:
- Cut the chicken thighs into 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, oil, vinegar, garlic, oregano, turmeric, salt, and red pepper flakes.
- Add the chicken and stir to coat. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours.
- Preheat an outdoor grill or grill pan to medium-low heat.
- Thread the chicken pieces among 4 wooden or metal skewers, discarding the marinade in the bowl.
- Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Grill the chicken, turning the skewers occasionally, until golden brown and cooked through in the center, about 15 minutes.
To make the salad:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the oil and vinegar and season with salt and pepper.
- Add the cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, and red onion and toss to combine.
To make the bowls:
- Divide the quinoa among 4 bowls, 1/2 cup each.
- Top with the cucumber salad, followed by a spoonful of tzatziki, 1 tablespoon crumbled feta, and 3 olives.
- Top with 1 chicken skewer and serve immediately.
Followed your recipe to a T and it was absolute PERFECTION!! Used my air fryer to cook the chicken (used breasts) and removing the seeds from the cucumber for the tzatziki sauce was a game changer, don’t know why I never thought of that before. So filling and satisfying, making it again for dinner tomorrow. Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
One of our favorites. Your recipes never fail to amaze me!
Thanks Kelly!
Absolutely amazing, this is my second time to make this. The tzatziki recipe was great also.
Love this, but i do some mods to make it lower carb/ cal: eliminate quinoa, double both chicken and other veggies. The dressing is honestly not even necessary and that simplifies meal prep for me. One of our favorites, eat it about every other week!
Wow! An amazing recipe. Grilled the chicken and it came out incredibly moist. Adding this to my must cook again list 🙂
Can this chicken be air fried??
I’ve done mine like the a couple of times when the weather didn’t allow for grilling and it was awesome! Depending on the size of your fryer you might need to do two batches.:)
This recipe is amazing — thank you so much! It had such an amazing blend of flavors. The chicken marinade was particularly delicious.
I used chicken breasts instead of thighs and didn’t skewer them — just sautéed on the stovetop. I also used rice instead of quinoa, and everything still came together beautifully.
Can this recipe be made with chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs?
Such a great flavorful dish! I’ll definitely use this marinade regularly, even with other dishes.
My wife made this and I thought it was so good I made a batch of chicken sausage with it. Served it on a roll with the tzatziki sauce.
Wow! Wow! Wow! Gina, you never cease to amaze me with your awesome recipes! This one is definitely a keeper! The chicken is aaaaaawesome and all the flavors blend together so well….totally hit the spot on this summer evening! Thank you for making our weeknight meals sooo much better and with much more variety!!!
Can you sub the yogurt?
We loved it! The chicken was so flavorful! I bought the tzatziki sauce from Trader Joe’s, left out the quinoa and served the Greek salad on a bed of arugula. I did include 1/2 low fat pita for a little carb treat. Thanks so much!
So unbelievably good! I used fat free yogurt because that was what I had. I omitted the turmeric, because I didn’t have that. I am not a griller, so I cooked the chicken in batches on the stovetop.
On the other hand, this recipe was VERY time consuming. It took me about 2 hours start to finish. There are lots of things that could be prepped in advance to spread out the work. In fact, it could all be done in advance and make a great cold salad. I might even add some lettuce to stretch the meal…just so I could enjoy it longer.
Thank you for this delicious recipe it really helped me out because I had a project due in my nutrition class for culinary school we had to make a healthy meal under 500 calories. Now I am addicted to this recipe i cook it for my family once a month now.
Loved this! I will definitely make it again, a family favorite.
Really excellent!! Even my husband enjoyed this. Definitely going to add to the rotation!!
Absolutely delicious! Great flavors and pretty presentation with all the colors. Will definitely be making this again! I also LOVE the homemade tzatziki sauce and plan to make this with other dishes.
Hi! Every time I make this, the chicken sticks to the grill pretty bad. It’s going to be warm this week, so I want to do it again, but any suggestions?
Make sure your grill grates are scraped clean, oil the grates, and maybe not turn too quickly so the chick can develop a crust. Hope this helps.
Made this for dinner tonight and it was a hit! Snowy weather and was short on time so I baked the chicken instead of grilling it and bought Rojo’s brand tzatziki at the grocery instead of making it from scratch. Threw a few rounds of naan in with the chicken for the last 5 minutes of baking and it was perfect for soaking up all the flavors in the bowl!
This will definitely be a weeknight staple.
Did you still skewer the chicken? How long did you bake?
Can you air fry the chicken??
If you wish.
I airfried the chicken tonight, I have an insert with skewers and cooked for 8 minutes at 400 degrees. Chicken came out so juicy .
I can’t say enough good things about this recipe! My entire family, including my picky five year old loved this recipe. The tzatziki was definitely a labor of love, but it was some of the BEST I’ve ever had.
This was the best recipe ever. I subbed in brown rice, and also added a little aged balsamic vinegar to the veggies. Otherwise left it the same. So so delicious. It will definitely make its way into our regular rotation of recipes.
OMG!! So delicious! I was so impressed with this recipe! The chicken—, oh the chicken! The flavors all pair well with each other. Thank you for sharing this recipe. It will be a weekly dinner at my house:)
Thanks Jennifer!
Another winning recipe! I have yet to go wrong here. Super easy, delicious, and healthy! Used chicken breasts instead of thighs and cooked in a contact grill. Will be making this again and again.
Oh my goodness this is the most delicious chicken. My husband loved it so I made it again for my folks on Father’s Day- everyone kept saying how good it was! Thank you for a new family favorite!
You’re welcome! Glad everyone enjoyed it!
These are so easy and tasty!! I made these every week for about 2 months straight they were that good. I don’t have access to a grill but cooked the chicken on the stovetop and it was still delicious. The taziki sauce is addicting.
What are your thoughts on marinating and grilling the chicken, then freezing it for a freezer meal? I would prefer to have it already cooked prior to freezing it. Then, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and warm it in the oven, wrapped in foil? Thanks 🙂
I made this last weekend (subbed brown rice for the quinoa) and we are already making it again this weekend! It’s too early to grill in my area so I baked the thigh pieces on cookie sheets at high heat for 15 mins, flipped them and cooked for another 10 until they were “sizzly” for a grill like feel.
Made this tonight and it was delish! It was raining so we couldn’t use the BBQ and I don’t have a grill pan. So I took the chicken of the skewers and cooked them in a pan on the stove top. Still turned out great. Also used garlic salt instead of regular salt in the salad and used Kalamata olives. Will definitely be making this again.
I made this last night and the flavor was terrific. I marinated the chicken for 6 hours and I would definitely do it again for at least 6 hours. I served it with wild rice and haricot vert for a nice, light meal. The one change that I made was to use chicken breast instead of thighs, only because I didn’t have the later. All of the ingredients are ones that (I think) most people have in their pantry and the use of the yogurt tenderizes the meat, making it very succulent.
I know this one has been asked a million times about the 0% yogurt, BUT can someone confirm that the yogurt didn’t curdle when cooked? Our did you do something special to avoid that? I’ve subbed 0% in the past with recipes and as soon as heathits hits it I have a curdled mess… So I’d like to avoid that! 😊
This was awesome. Used 0% yogurt, was perfect. The chicken was so yummy.
Made this tonight and it’s my new favorite dish! Super easy and a light yet filling dish.
I wanted to love it. Unfortunately, my husband and I found it underseasoned despite 6 hours of marinating. Not enough garlic to start. We will not make again.
Big fan, first time commenter. This recipe was absolutely fantastic!! I made the portions larger (by 1.5) and felt the perfect amount of fullness. Also went great with French red table wine. Thank you for sharing this, Gina.
Do you have a recommendation for a grill pan? I’m in an apartment and can’t grill, but I’d to try out a grill pan!
This is delish! Surprisingly easy to put together. I only marinaded the chicken for about an hour and used an indoor grill pan. I also didn’t have as much quinoa as I thought and had to sub brown rice. The family LOVED it!
Thanks for sharing great recipes that are healthy. I always know my family will love them. I have a gluten allergy, so the search feature is a HUGE help for me. THANK YOU!!
Can it marinate longer than 8 hours?
Sure
So delicious! Amazing flavors! I made it according to the recipe except that I used kalamata olives that I had on hand and used remade tatziki sauce from Trader Joe’s. Makes a beautiful colorful meal in a bowl. Will make again.!
This is the EASIEST most delicious recipe I am not a cook by any means. I can burn the outside of something while it’s still frozen on the inside :). This was easy, and a family pleaser. Thank you so much for your meal plans and your detailed reciepes. Your a lifesaver!!!!
Loved it and I quote my husband, “it was amazing.” Thanks! ?
These are delicious! I omitted the olive oil from the cucumber salad and added an extra dollop of tzatziki to mine. I would definitely allot more time to make these, though. I’m a pretty competent cook and they took for-ev-er to make all of the different components. I’m glad I have them for the week though, and I love the healthy modifications from the original recipe!
Wasn’t going to make it because I’m not a fan of cucumber and the prep time didn’t seem worth the trouble. While shopping I had a screw it moment and decided to stick with this weeks meal plan. Well it was worth it! So delicious! The quinoa went so well with the salad. Everything really worked well together. My husband loved it too..thanks for another great meal.
I made this dish last night for my hubby…he loved it! I’ve been struggling to get my groove back in the kitchen but last night he said, “You’re back babe, you’re back! And when did you become Greek?!” So, Canadian/Cali not even funny! Since it was just the two of us, I used our grill pan on the stove, worked perfectly! Thanks for the recipe, it’s going to be in the rotation fo-sho!
Thinking about making the chicken for a work potluck, so would have to make it the night/day before. Do you think it will be too dry the next day? It looks amazing!!
I would marinate it the night before but cook it the day of.
Absolutely delicious! So flavorful, kids love it too! This will be on the short list of favorite meals!
Another hit! We loved this. I substituted cauliflower rice in leu of quinoa.
Love your recipes…this is one of the best!!
Great!
what can I add to make the chicken A LOT more flavorful. I think I tired this before and could have used more spices of some type.
Made this tonight for dinner. First time ever cooking with chicken thighs. My husband and I both loved it! I i be this site and your recipes Gina!
About to make it for the third time since Gina posted it!!! SO flavorful. My parents don’t really like exotic flavors and they seriously fell in love with this chicken. The Tzatziki is amazing, as well. Would recommend to everyone! Perfect summer meal
Thanks Lexi!
We loved this! It’s great for meal prep for lunches. A very delicious, filling and healthy meal!
Delicious!!!! my favorite skinnytaste recipe. The chicken is fantastic, better than a Greek restaurant
Thanks Kristen!
Hi everyone!
I made this last nite and it was fantastic!
I accidently added 1 cup of greek yoghurt (read directions wron) but marinated for 5 hours. Superb and I think the more yoghurt added moisture. I also added curry powder-maybe about 1/2 teason and sprinkled it on before baking too. It was storming here so we cooked skewers in oven first-about 15-20min on 350 then on broil for about 4 minutes to crispen up! Turned out great. Will definately the skewers again. The dressing on the salad ws very broing so I added greek spices and a bit of purchased greek dressing as well.
And I love quinoa so its a WINNER CHICKEN DINNER!
Elaine Sowa
Lol glad you enjoyed it Elaine!
I made this for lunch today, using Tofu in place of the chicken, and oh my gosh, it was absolutely divine. This will be a summer staple for sure.
VERY delicious. I made them using 0% yogurt and chicken breasts to reduce the points to 6 freestyle points. Leftovers were also amazing! Mixing the salad in with the quinoa was good even 2 days later (like a couscous salad). This will definitely be on regular rotation. Thanks for all of the great recipes!
You’re welcome! 🙂
Ny husband & I loved this dish!! So much flavor.
Brought these to a family paety this weekend and they were a huge hit! I cooked them the day before and refrigerated them overnight. To serve, I microwaved them to get the chill out. Will definitely make these again.
We really enjoyed this meal and it was pretty easy to put together. I cooked the chicken on a grill pan inside and that worked great. I will make this again.
Excellent recipe! Will definitely make again.
This was absolutely delicious. I pretty much made it exactly as written except I didn’t bother skewering the chicken–I just cooked the thighs whole. I also used 0% yogurt because that is what I had. Yum. So good.
can I swap brown rice (today’s leftovers) for the quinoa???? l
sure!
Girlfriend and I just made this tonight, holy mother of god. I don’t think I’ve inhaled something this fast in a long time. My stomach is very happy.
Glad you enjoyed them!
I made these a couple of nights ago and wow, they were amazing!! My husband said that they smelled just like the restaurants and he had wanted to snatch the raw chicken a couple of times. We swapped the bowl part with some naan bread for the leftovers and it was great too.
My husband also said that the cucumber salad was delicious and has asked me to make it again this week and for our bbq party!
This may be my new favorite Skinnytaste recipe!! I used 0% Siggis plain Skyr (because that is what I had on hand) for the marinade, and it was delicious! My husband doesn’t like grilling kabobs so we just kept the thighs whole (I also use bone-in skinless) and it was amazing. My husband already asked me if we could have this again next week! So good!!!
Absolutely delicious!! My family of 4, two teens, all devoured this tonight!! We will be making this again very soon!!!
This was fabulous & a great summer dinner that I will be making again. My husband devoured it! Thank you!
This. Was. AMAZINGLY delicious. Made exactly as specified, and will be making it again. (Toddler approved too!)
Whoops—we forgot the feta & olives on top. Something to look forward to on tomorrow left overs!
This was really delicious! I had to postpone it the first night after reading the instructions for the tzatziki at the last minute (it requires some prep), but it was super easy and I’m glad I took the time to do it right. The flavors were fantastic. I am really glad we used chicken thighs — I think that little extra boost of flavor and moisture in the meat was perfect with the bowl.
I made the entire recipe: chicken, salad and sauce. Everything outstanding!
I made this today and it was AMAZING. Every component is very flavorful. The chicken was so savory and tender, and I will buy store bought tzatziki again after making Gina’s version (you could really taste the fresh herbs better). The tomato, cucumber and onion salad was so fresh and summery. My husband took one bite and said, “please make this one again.” My family LOVES Mediterranean food so thank you Gina – this was so yummy and very filling.
Yay! Glad you enjoyed it!
Hello, I’m wondering what the Freestyle Points would be if you used chicken breast rather than chicken thighs?
Thanks!
Sorry, I don’t have that info handy!
I think if you use breasts and 0% plain green tougher the only points would be for the quinoa and oil…everything else is zero??? ??♀️
Sorry, auto correct – that should say Greek Yogurt!
Would this be okay to try with cauliflower instead of chicken?
This was really delicious! My grill broke, so I ended up just broiling the chicken-great flavor!
Can I do it in the oven?
You can broil it!
Made it and it’s delicious! I marinated overnight by mistake and now I don’t know if marinating for only a few hours will produce the same flavors or if I always need to marinate overnight – lol. The thighs were very tender but I found them awkward to cut and get on a skewer – totally my issue. I am wondering how breasts would be with this.
I made this with chicken breast (less points!) and made it into a mason jar salad for lunches. Dressing at bottom, olives tomatoes and cucumbers, quinoa (with lemon and parsley), lettuce, feta, and cooked chicken. I kept the tzatziki separate. Absolutely delicious!!
Great!
Delicious! It cured our craving for Greek food without all the calories. We will definitely be making this again soon!
Made this tonight and the chicken tasted so good.
Pro tip for anyone who has their nails done: Tumeric will stain them!! I have half yellow and half pink nails now hahaha
Oh no!
Good to know!!! I’ll wear gloves.
It says to marinade for up to 8 hours. What happens if I marinade for longer (say the night before to cook the following night?)
Should be great
It’s sitting in my fridge as we speak for tomorrow afternoon!
Do you think I can make the cucumber salad the night before? I know sometimes cucumbers release water and make things a little soupy…
I like it fresh
Can you make this with chicken breasts?
I’m going to try it with chicken breasts tonight. I’m not a fan of chicken thighs.
chicken breasts are totally fine and work really nicely. The recipe was very good.
How would the calories adjust for chicken breasts instead of thighs?
AHH YAY! Looks so good! Thanks so much for sharing 🙂
I am lactose intolerant therefore I use plain coconut milk yogourt in my cooking instead of greek yogourt. Would this be a good replacement for this marinade?
I have not tried but I think it might be ok
Is there something I can substitute for the turmeric? I am having a hard time finding it. Thank you!
leave it out!
In the Cooks notes, you recommend soaking 8 skewers. Yet it looks like the recipe o key uses 4????
ack, correct!
Do you think this would be ok without the yogurt in the chicken? I didn’t get some at the store but I have thighs I need to eat and this looks delish!!
Hi Gina,
Would you recommend sour cream instead of yogurt for the marinade?
Thanks!
yogurt is typical
What a wonderful idea for light suppers during the summer. Thanks
Could you use fat free Greek yogurt to save on points?
sure
Just curious as to why you used 1% greek yogurt? I always use 0%, then it’s free. Fage is really dense and creamy and would work well. Also, although I LOVE thighs, I think I would do this with breast meat so it’s 0% too 🙂
You can! She used full fat
Could you divide this recipe into four and freeze individually. Cooking for one can be difficult sometimes.
you can make half and eat the leftover the next day.
So excited and intrigued to try marinating chicken in yogurt!! Looks delicious.
Do you have the points for the chicken only?
I’m wondering the same thing! Maybe just points for the yogurt in the marinade?
There shouldn’t be any points if you use non-fat greek yogurt (which did, and it was delicious!). If you use 1% as the recipe says, it will be 1 point per serving.
I put everything into the recipe builder on WW and came up with only 6 freestyle points, but I was able to get it down significantly. I used brown rice, only 1/4 cup in each bowl, didn’t put on olives because I don’t care for them, just plain forgot to add the feta and didn’t notice it was gone at all – and it came out to a 3 points each bowl.
My other comment hasn’t posted yet, but hopefully it will so this will make sense – also, chicken breasts are 0 points, chicken thighs are 4 points for 4 ounces – I used thin sliced breasts and it was fantastic.
What other olives do you recommend?
kalamara
we finally have grilling weather after 5 rough months here in the N.E. Printing out this recipe, because it looks SO good! looks even better than the tasty chicken kabobs i get at zoe’s kitchen. (expensive!) thanks a lot – Amy
I noticed the marinade for the chicken calls for 1% Greek yogurt but the skinny tzatziki recipe calls for fat free Greek yogurt. Is there a specific reason for the difference? Just didn’t know if it would be fine to swap so I don’t need to buy different types! Thanks!!!!
she used full fat in her original recipe, but honestly 0% will be fine
This looks amazing. I love your recipes. Did you use an indoor grill pan? If so what kind? Thank you!
Yum! Looks really good but can you offer advice about how to cook this without a grill? Can it be done in a skillet?
Sure or a grill pan