Dave’s Greek Dinner

The entire family loves this dinner – kids included. I always play traditional Greek music while preparing the souvlaki serving ingredients, making the salad, and cooking the souvlaki. I have fun with it! And I usually start early on the wine. The whole house smells of good food, the kitchen is abuzz with activity, and the sounds make you want to dance – which is a-okay to do.

Tzatziki

• Prep time: 10 minutes
• Total time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 cups full-fat plain Greek yogurt
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 1 English cucumber, grated (about 1 cup)
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill (1/3 tablespoon dried dill)
• 1–2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (start with 1 tablespoon and add to taste)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper

Instructions:

1. Stir all ingredients together.
2. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
3. Refrigerate overnight.

Notes:

• I start the entire process by making the Tzatziki the night before.
• I use an English cucumber so I don’t have to worry about removing seeds.
• I squeeze the excess juice out of shredded cucumber before adding it to the dip.
• I let the Tzatziki sit in the fridge overnight before serving. This way the garlic cools down a bit and the flavors have time to blend.
• I decorate the Tzatziki before serving with a bit of garlic oil, black pepper, and a dill sprig.

Chicken Souvlaki

• Prep time: 12 minutes
• Cook time: 8 minutes
• Total time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1.5 pounds uncooked boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper
• juice of 1 large fresh lemon

Ingredients for Serving:

• pita bread
• fresh baby arugula (or chopped Romaine)
• thinly-sliced red onions
• sliced cherry tomatoes
• crumbled feta cheese
• chopped fresh parsley
• Tzatziki sauce

Instructions:

1. Combine chicken pieces, garlic, olive oil, oregano, salt, black pepper and lemon juice in a large ziplock bag or mixing bowl, and toss until the chicken is evenly coated.
2. Seal/cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes, or up to 1 day.
3. Remove chicken from bag/bowl, and discard the leftover marinade.
4. Thread chicken onto skewers.
5. Preheat broiler, and place the rack about 5-6 inches from the top of the oven.
6. Place skewers on a large baking sheet, and broil for 6-8 minutes, turning once, until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink inside.
7. Transfer skewers to a separate plate, and set aside.

Notes:

• I also prep and marinate the chicken the night before. I make the marinade, cube the chicken, mix it all together in a gallon freezer bag, and place it lying flat in the fridge. Whenever I open the fridge I flip the bag over. I let the chicken marinade until time to cook.
• The day of the dinner I prepare all the serving ingredients for the souvlaki.
• Finally, I skewer the marinated chicken and start broiling.
• While the chicken is broiling I make the Greek salad.
• To assemble the chicken souvlaki pitas, lay a piece of pita bread out on a flat surface, and top it with a few pieces of chicken and your desired toppings and tzatziki sauce. We usually cut the pita bread in half and just stuff it with our toppings.

Authentic Greek Salad

• Prep time: 10 minutes
• Total time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 4 medium-sized tomatoes, cut into wedges
• 1 English cucumber (or two small Persian cucumbers), sliced into half moons
• 1 large green bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
• 1 small red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 cup kalamata olives
• 3–4 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano, plus extra for serving
• 5 ounces feta cheese, thickly-sliced if possible

Instructions:

1. Combine tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, red onion and olives in large mixing bowl.
2. Drizzle evenly with olive oil and red wine vinegar, sprinkle with the oregano.
3. Toss briefly.
4. Top with feta cheese.
5. Finish salad by drizzling a little extra olive oil and adding another pinch of oregano on top.

Wine

I like, and like to support, Oliver Winery. I usually buy one of their wines to go with dinner. Lemon Moscato, Moscato, Camelot Mead, or Soft White. I avoid dry wines but that is just my personal taste. The Lemon Moscato was a recent discovery. I tried it for the first time during our last dinner. It was excellent and is my new first choice. The lemon taste was slight and it really brought out the Greek flavors. I usually let Ashley open and pour the wine.