What's for lunch? This recipe for Greek chicken gyros will brighten your working day

Go Greek with this flavour-packed gyros for a taste of brighter days

A chicken gyros is just the pick-me-up for this time of year.

It can be difficult working in an office during the week between Christmas and new year, so I like to ensure I am eating something that reminds me of brighter days. With that in mind, my chicken gyros is the perfect make-ahead lunch, packed with super-flavoured chicken, crunchy salad, and garlicky tzatziki.

It reminds me of the summers I spent in my early 20s working in the Greek islands, when a gyros wrapped in freshly made pitta bread was the main meal of the day, eaten while on the move back from the beach to get ready for work.

The chicken can be cooked and stored in the fridge for up to three days; the marinade will stop it from drying out. If you can’t find tzatziki in the supermarket, it’s really easy to make yourself. Grate a cucumber onto a clean tea towel and squeeze out all the juice. Stir the cucumber into a pot of full-fat Greek yoghurt with a crushed garlic clove a good squeeze of lime and a pinch of salt. If you have it, you can add some chopped mint too.

Greek Chicken Gyros with Tzatziki

recipe by:Ciara McDonnell

A quick and satisfying treat with a garlicky overtone!

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 4 hours 0 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 4 hours 20 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Greek

Ingredients

• 500g chicken thigh fillets, bone out

• For the marinade:

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 3 tbsp full-fat Greek yoghurt

• 1 heaped tbsp dried oregano

• 1 tsp dried mint

• zest of 1 lemon

• Juice of one lemon

• Salt and pepper

• To serve:

• Pitta bread

• Chopped tomatoes, cucumber, olives and onion

• Tzatziki

Method

1. Mix together the ingredients for the marinade and stir in the chicken. Marinate in the fridge for at least four hours or overnight.

2. When ready to cook, heat olive oil in a pan and when shimmering with heat, cook the chicken for 4 minutes on each side, until charred and crusty and cooked through and tender inside.

3. Cool and store in an air-tight container for up to three days. Throw out any leftover marinade.

4. To serve, toast some pitta, heat the chicken either in the microwave or on a hot pan and stuff in the pitta with salad vegetables and a generous drizzle of tzatziki.

Shelf life 

Smoothie bowl from A&P Smoothies at Cork's Black Market.

If you have indulged over the Christmas period and are seeking foodie deliverance then head to Cork’s Black Market. A&P Smoothie Bar is run by Alex Bruce and Paul Twohig of SOMA coffee fame.

Their menu is full of all the goodness you need to get you through the holiday season.

Their smoothie bowls are stuffed with fresh fruit, granola, and lots of yummy extras and smoothies are supercharged with fruit, yoghurt and protein. Delicious.