A ton of flavor without the effort! These chicken pitas are perfect for warm weather as they’re refreshing and light as well as quick and easy to make.
This is a great recipe to use when hosting as all you need to do is cook the chicken and leave the toppings on the table for everyone to create their own pita. Also works wonders for family dinner with picky eaters. Let everyone build their own pita.
★ Why You'll Love this Recipe ★
The chicken is flavorful with an herby garlic-lemon seasoning that gives it a bright and refreshing flavor. Paired with summertime vegetables like fresh tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, and crunchy red onion, it’s an easy recipe to enjoy outside.
This recipe uses bottled Greek dressing and store-bought Greek season to save loads of time without skimping on flavor.
This recipe is:
Easy to make: All you need to do is season and sauté the chicken and do a bit of prep work on the vegetables for this recipe to come together.
Versatile: Enjoy the Greek chicken pitas as written or add your own tasty spin on them with something like tzatziki sauce thrown in.
Flavorful: The lemon and oregano seasoning is the perfect way to brighten up your day and the chicken is delicious the next day on something like a salad too.
★ Ingredients You'll Need ★
Here's everything you need with an option to make your own chicken seasoning, or use the shortcut — store bought Greek garlic-lemon seasoning.
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts: Though chicken thighs can work here as well, the breasts give a thicker, tastier bite. Be sure to use a tenderizer before seasoning for more tender bites and to ensure chicken cooks evenly.
- Seasonings: You’ll need oregano, garlic powder, and salt from the spice cupboard if you want to make you own Greek seasoning. You'll also need lemon.
- Lemon zest: Fresh lemon zest add a brightness of flavor and tenderizes the chicken.
- Seasoning Shortcut: Grab this Greek lemon-garlic seasoning to get all of this flavor in one package.
- Pitas: Make sure to grab pitas that open. Warming them up can be a tasty comfort. Optional but just pop them in the microwave for a few seconds or add them to your hot skillet after cooking the chicken for 1 minute, flipping half way.
- Alternative to pitas: You can use pita wraps if you prefer a more taco-like experience.
- Oil: Used to sauté the chicken, so any oil will work.
- Vegetables: Cucumbers, tomatoes, and red onion should be diced small so that you enjoy the taste of them in every bite.
- Feta cheese: Make sure to drain the feta cheese well as you don’t want the water to get onto the pita.
- Olives: Kalamata or black olives add a deliciously savory taste to the pitas. Don't skip these!
★ How to Make this Recipe ★
Here's a look at how to cook the chicken and assemble the pitas:
- Season chicken.
- Cook chicken in oil then cover and let rest.
- Chop veggies.
- Slice into bite-sized pieces.
- Assemble pitas with vegetables, feta, olives, and chicken.
- Optional: Spread hummus on insides of pita pockets.
- Drizzle with Greek dressing and/or tzatziki sauce.
- Serve!
★ Tips & FAQS ★
Variations
If you want to switch up the Greek chicken pitas, below are some tasty ideas.
Protein: Change up the chicken for something like crispy tofu, cooked falafel, or pork tenderloin. You can easily use leftover steak bites here.
Sauce: Adding on a drizzle of tzatziki sauce or more lemon juice can really pop the flavor of your pita.
Seasonings: You can easily add in more seasonings or some new ones like a Greek seasoning.
When do I know the chicken is fully cooked?
Invest in a meat thermometer. You want to cook the chicken until it reaches a temperature of 165ºF. Then, let it sit for 2-5 minutes so that the flavor infuses before slicing it into pieces.
What do I do with leftover chicken?
You can easily use the leftover chicken in a pita again for lunch the next day. Or use the chicken on top of a salad or even mix it into pasta. It adds a refreshing flavor to anything it pairs with.
Storing Leftovers
Store in an airtight container disassembled in the refrigerator for up to five days. You can reheat the chicken in a baking dish in the oven at 350 for 10 minutes. Then reassemble the pita pocket.
Freeze leftover chicken in an airtight freezer ziplock bag for up to two months. Thaw in the refrigerator a day before then follow the reheating instructions above.
Add Hummus
If you're a hummus-lover, then you can spread a layer of hummus on the insides of your pita pockets as a condiment of sorts. This adds flavor and moisture. Feel free to use any flavor hummus that sounds good to you!
If you have time to kill and want to make your own hummus. Guess what? It's actually pretty easy. Check out my homemade hummus recipe.
★ Tips & FAQS ★
Get more delicious lunch ideas!
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Greek Chicken Pita Pockets
Equipment
Ingredients
Seasoned Chicken
- 4 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
- 1 tablespoon Greek lemon-garlic seasoning
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Pitas
- 4 pita pockets
- ½ cup English cucumber sliced and quartered
- 2 cup roma tomatoes diced
- ½ cup red onion thinly sliced
- ½ cup feta cheese crumbles
- ¼ cup kalamata or black olives
- ¼ cup Greek dressing more or less to taste
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Instructions
- Season chicken. Pound chicken to an even thickness with a meat tenderizer then season both sides of the chicken breast with Greek seasoning blend.
- Cook chicken and prep veggies. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Once hot, add chicken and cook about 7-8 minutes each side or until internal temp reaches 165ºF. Transfer chicken to a cutting board and cover with foil. Let rest for 3-5 minutes then slice. While chicken is cooking, slice and prep veggies.
- Assemble pitas. Slice pita pockets in half and pry open to make a pocket. Fill pita pocket with chicken slices, cucumber, tomato, red onion, feta cheese and kalamata or black olives. Enjoy!
Notes
- Drizzle with lemon or Greek vinaigrette or tzatziki sauce if preferred.
- Hummus can be spread onto the inside of the pitas before stuffing if desired.
- I use store-bought to save time but you can make your own seasoning using this blend: 1 tablespoon oregano, 1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest, ½ teaspoon garlic powder and ½ teaspoon salt.
- Save time and start with rotisserie chicken meat. The lemon seasoned chicken works great with this recipe!
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