Chicken Souvlaki with Tzaziki Sauce

I can't quite remember if I have posted this recipe before, but even if I have, it's worth mentioning again. It's called Chicken Souvlaki with Tzaziki Sauce. It has very strong flavors, which I like A LOT. I actually do it a bit differently than how the recipe states, so I will give you the recipe as is, then tell you how I 'make it my own'.

Souvlaki:
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh or 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cut into (1/2-inch-thick) slices
Cooking spray

Tzatziki Sauce:
1/2 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded, and shredded
1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt (greek yogurt if possible)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 garlic clove, minced

Preparation

To prepare souvlaki, combine the first 5 ingredients in a zip-top plastic bag; seal and shake to combine. Add chicken to bag; seal and shake to coat. Marinate chicken in refrigerator for 30 minutes, turning once.

Remove chicken from bag; discard marinade. Thread the chicken and zucchini, alternately onto each of 4 (8-inch) skewers.

Heat a grill pan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add skewers; cook 8 minutes or until chicken is done, turning once.

To prepare tzatziki sauce, combine cucumber, yogurt, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1 garlic clove, stirring well. Serve the tzatziki sauce with souvlaki.

Yield

2 servings (serving size: 2 skewers and about 1/4 cup tzatziki sauce)

Nutritional Information

CALORIES 219(19% from fat); FAT 4.7g (sat 1.3g,mono 2.3g,poly 0.6g); PROTEIN 30.9g; CHOLESTEROL 69mg; CALCIUM 161mg; SODIUM 705mg; FIBER 2.4g; IRON 1.4mg; CARBOHYDRATE 12.3g

My changes:
I marinate the chicken as stated, without the zucchini. Let it sit for a few hours to overnight (most times I don't wait overnight because I don't like to think that far ahead) and fry it in a frying pan until the chicken is done. If you fry it like I do, add some cooking spray to the bottom of a pan and just add the chicken, NOT THE MARINADE. The marinade it too delicate and WILL burn. Discard the marinade unless you are making a second round of the chicken the next day.

I eat the chicken as is. In fact, I eat it both hot and cold. Hot when I am eating it with a pita, and cold for the left overs. It is really good cold - in fact, I eat the chicken as finger food when I am hungry in between meals. Lots of lean protein and flavor.

I serve the chicken in a pita with some tzaziki sauce and cut up fresh tomatoes and/or cucumbers. I also make a side dish of fresh cut tomatoes and cucumbers in tzaziki sauce.

Speaking of the Tzaziki Sauce - my modifications are: Not so much garlic. I use just a tiny bit of raw garlic because the whole clove is WAY to overpowering. I use yogurt, some sour cream, previously stated tiny amount of raw garlic, garlic powder, dill - fresh or dried, cucumber that is peeled, seeded and grated with a cheese grater, lemon and of course salt. I don't have the exact quantities since I mix and taste as I go, but if you are going to modify the recipe, start with the basic recipe and modify from there. A tend to add almost equal parts of sour cream and yogurt (but the sour cream isn't necessary - my husband happens to LOVE sour cream). Once I get the grated cucumber in there, I add and taste until I like it.

Let me know if you have any questions! :) Happy Cooking!!!