Air Fryer Chicken Souvlaki

Name: Air Fryer Chicken Souvlaki
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 4 serves
Ingredients: 800 g Chicken Thigh Fillets; 3 tbsp Olive Oil; 1 Lemon; 3 Garlic Cloves; 2 tsp Dried Oregano; 1 tsp Sweet Paprika; 1½ tsp Salt; Black Pepper; 1 Lebanese Cucumber; 250 g Greek Yoghurt; 1 Garlic Clove; 1 tbsp Olive Oil; 1 tsp Red Wine Vinegar; 1 tbsp Fresh Dill or Mint; ½ tsp Salt; 3 Ripe Tomatoes; 1 Lebanese Cucumber; ½ Small Red Onion; 100 g Feta; 1 handful Kalamata Olives; 2 tbsp Olive Oil; 1 tbsp Red Wine Vinegar; Dried Oregano and Salt; 4 Pita Breads; 1 Lemon

Squeeze the cucumber hard — watery tzatziki is the only way to get this wrong.

John DrummondWritten 17 October 2026

Short skewers of golden chicken thigh with charred edges on a platter with lemon wedges, beside a bowl of tzatziki, a Greek salad with a slab of feta, and warm pita

Prep30min

Cook15min

All up

45min+ at least 30 minutes

Serves4

LevelEasy

Summer food. Lemon, garlic and oregano chicken thigh on short skewers, cooked in the Ninja Crispi Pro until it has charred edges and is still juicy inside, with thick garlicky tzatziki, a Greek salad and warm pita.

Written for the Crispi Pro 6-in-1 before it has arrived, so the times are a starting point, not yet tested. Check the thickest piece reaches 75°C.

Skewers: short bamboo skewers, about 15 cm, trimmed so they lie flat in the 5.7L glass container. Soak them in water while the chicken marinates so the ends don’t scorch. No skewers? Cook the pieces loose; it is the same dish.

Thigh, not breast: it stays juicy at high heat and forgives an extra minute.

Make ahead: the tzatziki is better made a few hours ahead, and keeps two days in the fridge. The salad is dressed at the last minute.

The method

Five moves.

Marinate the Chicken
Mix the oil, lemon zest and juice, garlic, oregano, paprika, salt and pepper, and toss the chicken through it. Marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 4 hours in the fridge — longer and the lemon turns the outside mealy. Soak the skewers in water at the same time.
Make the Tzatziki
Grate the cucumber, sprinkle it with a pinch of the salt, leave it 5 minutes, then squeeze it hard in your hands or a clean tea towel until it stops dripping. Stir it into the yoghurt with the garlic, oil, vinegar, dill or mint and the rest of the salt. Chill it.
Skewer and Air-Fry
Thread the chicken onto the skewers, four or five pieces each, not packed tight. Lay them on the crisper plate in the 5.7L glass container in a single layer; the Crispi Pro needs no preheat. Air Fry at 200°C for 14–16 minutes, turning halfway, until the edges have charred and the thickest piece reaches 75°C. Cook in two batches if they don’t fit in one layer.
Make the Salad
While the chicken cooks, put the tomato, cucumber and onion in a bowl, dress with the oil, vinegar, oregano and a pinch of salt, and put the feta and olives on top.
Warm the Pita and Serve
Warm the pita in a dry pan for 20–30 seconds a side. Rest the chicken for a couple of minutes, then serve it with the pita, a big spoonful of tzatziki, the salad and lemon wedges to squeeze over.

Next level

Make your own flatbreads

Optional · about 25 min more

Make the flatbreads. Mix 250 g self-raising flour, 250 g Greek yoghurt and a good pinch of salt into a soft dough, knead it for a minute, and rest it covered for 10 minutes. Divide it into four, roll each one about 5 mm thick, and cook them in a hot dry pan for 2 minutes a side until puffed and spotted.

Brush them hot with olive oil mixed with a grated garlic clove and a pinch of salt. Soft, chewy and better than any pita from a packet, for very little work.

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