Lemon Chicken Gyros with Sautéed Peppers & Mushrooms
I’m in the mood for Lemon Chicken Gyros with Sautéed Peppers & Mushrooms! Ok, I know, not real gyros, but my healthier version gyros. And the star of the show? Grilled lemon! This is my new addiction: roasting, grilling or pan frying lemon until charred and caramelised and then squeezing out the juices. So so good!
Who said chicken breasts always cook dry?! Using this method the chicken always come out juicy. The trick is to leave the breasts whole and then let rest in aluminium foil after cooking.
Juicy, citrusy, and packed with flavour. The chicken and lemon are pan-fried together until golden and slightly charred—the lemon caramelising in the pan, this stuff is gold. Once the chicken is cooked through the charred lemon is squeezed over it, infusing every bite with that incredible tangy sauce. Then, everything gets wrapped in foil to rest, letting the flavours meld even further.
For the filling, sautéed peppers and mushrooms add sweetness and depth, served with steamed white rice (or tucked into soft flatbreads) alongside the juicy, lemon-kissed chicken. A good spoonful of garlicky yogurt or tzatziki, some crisp lettuce, maybe a sprinkle of feta for that salty hit—because why not?
It’s fresh, filling, and honestly, one of those meals that feels a little indulgent but is actually pretty wholesome. Perfect for a quick weeknight dinner or a casual weekend feast.
Lemon Chicken Gyros with Sautéed Peppers & Mushrooms: easy, zesty, and absolutely worth making again (and again).
In the recipe below you can find how I made the sautéed peppers, but this is also a great version if you have the time. It’s a recipe inspired by Test Kitchen.
Lemon Chicken Gyros with Sautéed Peppers & Mushrooms
(3 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
Loading...Ingredients
- Chicken
- 4 chicken thighs (boneless & skinless) - about 200g pp
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground koriander
- 1 tsp ground kurkuma
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp paprika
- Good pinch salt & ground black pepper
- Juice of 1 lemon (keep the squeezed out lemon!)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Vegetables
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 250 g mushrooms (I used chestnut) - halved
- 1 red pepper, sliced into strips
- 1 onion, sliced into strips
- 1 medium tomato, cubed
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground koriander
- Good pinch salt & ground black pepper
- 2-3 tbsp water
- Yoghurt dip
- 1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced
- 1 small garlic clove, grated
- 1 cup full fat yoghurt
- Pepper & Salt
- **To serve
- Steamed rice, flatbreads or toasted shoarma buns
- Fresh koriander
- Chili flakes
Instructions
The prep
Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and massage well into the chicken (used gloves if you have them otherwise your hands will go yellow, otherwise just mix well with a spoon). Cover and let marinade in the fridge for at least 30 minutes (max 24 hours)
Quarter the squeezed out lemon and set aside.
Make the yoghurt dip by mixing together all the ingredients. Set aside in the fridge until ready to use.
The vegetables
Heat a heavy based skillet and add 2 tbsp olive oil. When hot add the onions and let char slightly on 1 side before stirring to cook the other side, ± 3 minutes total. Add the mushrooms and peppers and again, let char slightly on 1 side before moving around and cooking on the other side, ± 4 minutes. Once flipped it's ok to stir it all around around now and then, but not too often. You want to get nicely charred edges without it burning.
Deglaze the pan with the chopped tomato and add the spices, pepper and salt. Stir well, add a few drops of water to loosen it up a bit if needed.
Transfer to a plate and set aside, you'll reheat it all later on.
The chicken
To the same pan (still hot) add the chicken thighs and lemon quarters and let sear on 1 side before flipping it over, ± 5 minutes. Don't move it around in between so it gets nicely charred.
Flip over and repeat on the other side, both with the chicken and the lemon. Let sear ± 5 minutes on the other side until just cooked through (internal temperature should be around 72°C with a meat thermometer).
Use a pair of tongs and squeeze out the lemon quarters to deglaze the pan.
Transfer the chicken and lemon to a plate lined with aluminium foil and seal it shut. Let rest for 10 minutes.
Finish the dish
Add the vegetables back to the pan to slowly reheat.
Once the chicken has rested, open the aluminium foil, keep all resting juices, this is liquid gold!
Shred the chicken thighs with 2 forks into strips, add to a bowl and pour over the resting juices.
Serve with the sautéed vegetables and yoghurt dip sprinkled with fresh koriander and chili flakes.
