A yogurt marinated chicken that’s beautifully tenderized and infused with terrific garlic and oregano flavours! If you’re new to the magical powers of yogurt marinades, this baked Greek Chicken is going to convert you for life! Brought to you in partnership with Farmers Union Greek Style Yogurt.
Welcome to GREEK WEEK! Every now and then, I like to do themed menus where I share all the recipes for a feast, and this week it’s all about the bright fresh flavours of the Mediterranean. Think – lemons, oregano, yogurt, lemons and plenty of garlic!
Are you ready to see what I’ve got in store for you for Greek Week?? Here you go….
GREEK MENU
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Greek Chicken – Garlicky lemony oregano flavours infused right through the chicken from a flavour loaded Greek chicken marinade;
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Greek Salad – the juicy tomatoes, fresh cucumbers, that red wine vinegar dressing and the pops of feta!
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Tzatziki – for dipping and dolloping (recipe in Notes of Greek chicken)
Coming Thursday; -
Greek Lemon Roasted Potatoes – crispy, lemony potatoes. It’s your dream come true!
Coming Friday;or -
Lemon Potato Salad (pictured in first photo)– terrific alternative to mayo based Potato Salads. Bonus: No need to peel the potatoes.
And for dessert….
Greek BUTTLOVER!!!!
Oops, I mean Baklava. Butt-lover / Baklava. Same thing. 😂 Coming your way on Friday…. (Psst It does take time to assemble but you’re going to be amazed how straightforward it is!!)
SECRET WEAPON: YOGURT GREEK CHICKEN MARINADE
I first introduced readers to the magical powers of yogurt marinades with Greek Chicken Gyros. I bleated* over and over again about how the yogurt marinade is so awesome, I use it even when I’m not making Gyros. (*Honestly, there is no other way to describe the way I harped on about it other than to say I was bleating.)
Yogurt is a brilliant marinade. The Greeks know it, Middle Easterners have embraced it, the Persians love it, the Indians live by it (Butter Chicken, Tikka Masala, Biryani!).
What’s so good about it? Well, it tenderises quickly and more evenly than liquids with harsher acidity like lemon juice and vinegar, and is also a fabulous flavour carrier, injecting herbs and spices into the flesh.
This is the yogurt I use, and have always used for as long as I can remember – Farmers Union Greek Style Yogurt. It would be rare to find my fridge without a tub of this. More likely you’d see two: current in use + a restock.
There’s enough flavour in the Greek Chicken Marinade such that you don’t need to marinate for a full 24 hours to get the benefit of the tenderising and flavour injection. Overnight is definitely recommended but if you really need to rush it, even 3 hours is enough. Just do extra basting!
I’ve baked this chicken because I’ve used bone in, skin on chicken thighs and drumsticks here. I love how the skin goes crispy, and any cut of meat with the bone is extra juicy.
But this is one of those recipes that is truly terrific with any cut of chicken. Especially breast – because it adds juiciness and flavour. I’ve popped directions and cook times in the recipe notes.
Go forth and enjoy! Back Wednesday for the next instalment in this weeks’ Greek Feast – Greek Lemon Roasted Potatoes! – Nagi x
MORE GREAT YOGURT MARINADES
– Greek Chicken Gyros
– Lamb Shawarma – flavour loaded fall apart lamb!
– Doner Kebab (homemade version of post-pub midnight kebab run…)
– Butter Chicken
– Tikka Masala
– Chicken Biryani
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Greek Chicken
Ingredients
- 1.25 kg / 2.5 lb drumsticks and chicken thighs , bone in skin on (Note 1)
Marinade:
- 6 garlic cloves , minced (~ 2 tbsp)
- 2 tbsp white wine vinegar (or red wine or apple cider vinegar)
- 1/2 cup / 125 ml lemon juice
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3/4 cup Greek yogurt (I use Farmers Union)
- 1 1/2 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Serving (optional):
- Plain Greek yogurt or Tzatziki
- Fresh oregano leaves (optional)
Instructions
- Mix Marinade ingredients in a large bowl.
- Add chicken and coat well. Marinade for 24 hours (3 hours minimum).
- Preheat oven to 180C.350F.
- Line a tray with foil (trust me), place rack on tray (optional).
- Place chicken on rack (reserve marinade), skin side up. Bake 30 minutes,
- Remove from oven. Brush with marinade - do not flip.
- Return to oven for 20 minutes or until golden and a bit crispy. Give it a spray of olive oil just before it's done if you want an extra crispy, shiny coat.
- Rest for a few minutes before serving. Juicy and tasty enough to serve plain but extra great with tzatziki or even some plain yogurt.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
Getting right in there to make sure it’s sparkling clean before I pop it into the recycling bin!
Today’s recipe is brought to you courtesy of Farmers Union. I’ve used their Greek style natural yoghurt for as long as I can remember. So it was a no brainer when they asked if I’d create a recipe for them!!
I made this last night and it was an A+. I changed it a bit. I cooked it in the marinade and added green beans. I removed both from the marinade and served it with homemade tzatziki. It was delicious.
Apologies to you Nagi. No time in my home tonight to marinade beyond 1 My bad
Still amazing outcome for a lovely chicken dinner with potatoes and salad when the planned chicken for a roast had not thawed adequately Tomorrow night
Highly recommend meal
I let the chicken thighs marinate overnight. Tasty and easy recipe. Next time I would let the chicken sit for about 1/2 hour before baking it. It took over an hour to get to 165 degrees, which is the done temperature. Also, it never browned on top (but I didn’t have olive oil spray).
If you cook this with breasts as described in the notes, please note you need to halve the chicken breast lengthways!!! 3 minutes on each side leaves you with raw chicken in the centre 😱 (Nagi it might be worth adding this to the note?)
The flavour is freaking amazing but after trying it using breasts (which are incredibly succulent) I’m going to try it with thighs & drumsticks next time. I think the fat is going to give it an extra kick which will take it over the edge
Delicious! Perfectly balanced flavours and so easy! This will be a firm regular in our house.
We also had the Tzatziki to serve which was delicious as well.
Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Made this tonight – it was delicious! Super easy. I let the chicken marinade overnight. Also made a Greek salad. Definitely, will make again.
Absolutely delicious. Had with green salad and the Greek lemon potatoes which were also to die for. Another great recipe!
This recipe was really easy to put together. The chicken was tender and had delicious lemon flavor. We cooked the drumsticks on the BBQ. Served with Greek salad, spanikopita, and rice. This recipe is a keeper.
Incredibly tasty and tender.
Thanks Nagi!
Hi. I’m cooking this for dinner this evening and serving it with your Greek lemon potatoes can you recommend a green side dish to go with it please ? Thank you Nagi.
Made this recipe and it was so delicious, I cooked a double batch, which disappeared
quickly
Hey Nagi,
I would really love to make this chicken recipe with your Greek Lemon Roasted Potatoes on the side. Can I cook them together in the oven?
Yeah I’d also love to do that! My gran used to make chicken and potatoes in one roasting pan but I’ve never quite figured it out. Please put us out of our misery Nagi!!! 🍗 🥔 👩🍳
What a sensational and tasty simple recipe. I butterflied and Marinated a whole chicken for which I then baked for just over an hour or so. Moist tender and soooo full of flavour, definitely on the list of favourites
What a lovely and inspiring blog Nagi! I’m wondering if you think I could use this marinade for chicken kebabs? I’m hoping to cut up boneless/skinless chicken breasts into 1 1/4″ chunks and then marinade for several hours before skewering them and BBQ’ing. Curious if you think that would work ok?
Are you sure about marinating chicken in lemon juice for up to 12 hours? I never marinate chicken in citrus over 4 hours to avoid the acids breaking down the meat.
Hi Kerry, as the mlemon juice is mixed with there ingredients here it’s perfectly fine. It tenderises and flavours the meat. N x
Would this freeze well to be cooked at a later date? I have a food saver and was hoping I could make the marinaded chicken without cooking it.
Hi Susan, yes you can marinade and freeze the chicken and then thaw to cook. N x
Hi Nagi! Love yours and your Mom’s recipes:)
Can I substitute Greek yogurt with regular yogurt?
Natural or greek yogurt is fine here – just nothing flavoured 🙂 N x
can I cook the same way on a bbq grill outside?
Yes definitely Pamela! N x
This recipe turned out great actually, the yoghurt marinade and oregano made a really succulent chicken. Also putting it on the wire tray over the pan helped remove a lot of the fat. I wonder if I can use this technique on a drumstick recipes to get the skin crispy?
This was so flavorful! I made chicken thighs and followed the instructions to cook on the stove. It turned out great and so easy!