Instant Pot Chicken Gyros–tender, juicy seasoned chicken and onions piled onto soft pita bread and topped with a creamy cucumber yogurt sauce, tomatoes and lettuce. A perfect meal for any night of the week.
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Instant Pot Chicken Gyros with Homemade Tzatziki Sauce
Hi there! I finished my 31 days of Instant Pot recipes project but I’m not done using the Instant Pot at my house. It’s gained a permanent spot on my countertop. I used it twice today–to make hard boiled eggs for breakfast and then to make these Instant Pot Chicken Gyros for dinner. I’m finding out that I really like the fact that I can make most all my slow cooker dinners in the Instant Pot in minutes. This comes in handy when I forget to get dinner going in the morning in the crockpot. If you haven’t purchased an Instant Pot yet, I really recommend it. If you love your slow cooker I think you’ll really like this electric pressure cooker.
Here is my daughter, Reagan, demonstrating the recipe…
Something that has been really popular lately on my website is Instant Pot Beef Gyros and Slow Cooker Beef Gyros. It’s been the most popular recipe for the past few weeks. I figured that there are many of you out there that would like a recipe for chicken gyros as well. I am so happy with the results of this recipe! All I can say is a big fat YUM! I believe there are 3 reasons that this meal was so tasty:
- I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs. I know there are some of you out there that only buy boneless skinless chicken breasts. For the slow cooker and the Instant Pot the best choice is bone-in chicken or boneless, skinless chicken thighs. There is a bit more fat and collagen which makes the chicken moist and tender. Lately I’m really loving buying my chicken thighs at Costco in the fresh section. They are less than $2.00 a pound and I actually threw mine into my Instant Pot totally frozen in two solid bricks and it still tasted great.
- I use full fat yogurt or 2% yogurt. The tzatziki sauce (cucumber yogurt sauce) was just perfect. I ended up using full-fat Greek yogurt for the tzatziki and I am so happy that I did. It was perfectly creamy and flavorful and I don’t think it would have tasted so great if I had used the non-fat version. Here is how to make Instant Pot Greek Yogurt.
- I used the Papa Pita brand for my pita bread. I can find this brand at most all grocery stores and Costco too. It’s soft and has really good flavor. It’s always a really good price too!
You may be interested in these other recipes…
All my Instant Pot recipes can be found here
How to make perfect pita bread
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What Instant Pot/Slow Cooker Did You Use?
For this Instant Pot Chicken Gyros recipe I used my 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*. I also own the 6 quart Instant Pot IP-LUX60 V3 Programmable Electric Pressure Cooker.* They are both great pressure cookers! The first one I mentioned has a yogurt making function but other than that they are fairly similar. The price difference between the two is about $20.
Instant Pot Chicken Gyros
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes plus 10 minute natural pressure release
- Total Time: 16 minute
- Yield: 8 gyros 1x
Description
Save this recipe for later on Pinterest!
Tender, juicy seasoned chicken and onions piled onto soft pita bread and topped with a creamy cucumber yogurt sauce, tomatoes and lettuce. A perfect meal for any night of the week.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of excess fat (you can use frozen or thawed)
- 1 large onion, thinly sliced
- 9 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1 Tbsp lemon pepper seasoning
- Juice from 1 large lemon
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- Pita bread
- Lettuce for topping
- Tomatoes for topping
- Feta cheese crumbles for topping
For the Tzatziki sauce:
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt (I used full fat yogurt for optimal taste)
- 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced into tiny pieces
- 1 Tbsp dried dill
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
For the chicken:
- Place chicken, onions, garlic, olive oil, oregano, allspice, lemon pepper, lemon juice, red wine vinegar and broth in your Instant Pot.
- Cover and press the manual button. Set the timer for 20 minutes. The Instant Pot will take about 10 minutes to come to pressure if your chicken is thawed and probably twice as long if your chicken is frozen. Once the timer beeps let the pressure release naturally for about 10-15 minutes and then move the valve to venting.
- Remove the lid. The chicken should be really tender and shreddable. Use a slotted spoon to remove the chicken from the pot and place it on a cutting board. Shred the chicken. If serving immediately you can then place chicken on the pita and top with Tzatziki and desired toppings. If serving later, place chicken back into the pot and let it marinate in the juices and keep the pressure cooker on the warm setting. When ready to serve, use a slotted spoon to remove shredded chicken.
For the Tzatziki sauce:
- In a medium bowl, combine yogurt, cucumber, dill, salt and garlic powder. Stir until combined.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve with gyros.
Notes
I used my 6 quart Instant Pot for this recipe.
Click here for the slow cooker version of this recipe.
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Instant Pot
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 pita
- Calories: 553
- Sodium: 544 mg
- Fat: 18.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 4.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 38 g
- Fiber: 2.4 g
- Protein: 55.4 g
- Cholesterol: 151 mg
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What if you have a 8 quart instance pot? Do you cook it the same amount of time?.
yep!
The picture is not what you get when you cook this. It looks more like shredded chicken for tacos. Got that I was disappointed because I love chicken gyros. You should tell people it will not look like the picture you posted. I was not thrilled with recipe it tasted sour. I Had to add a few more condiments And sofrito so it would have more taste that my family would like. But thank you. Will try other stuff you listed I’m sure I’ll find something.
I was wondering if you can use chicken breasts instead of thighs for this recipe. If so, would I need to change the cooking time?
You can do that and I would use the same cooking time!
After an exceptionally hectic day, and not thinking about dinner till 3pm, I found this recipe. I threw it together, and it was fabulous, and helped put a positive spin on our evening. Thank you!!
★★★★★
WOO HOO! I am glad to hear it Amanda!
HI!
I will definitely try this. I was wondering to you have a recipe for the other sauce ,the s weet one, it doesn’t have cucumbers in it?
hmmm, I don’t know that sauce. I’ll have to try it!
I wonder if she is referring to donair sauce?
I have made this recipe 5+ times. I’ve used both thigh and breast, whatever I have on hand at the time. It turns out fantastic every single time! It’s definitely one of my favorite meals I have on rotation. I make these gyros with roasted vegetables (zucchini, bell peppers, mushrooms, onions, potatoes and tomato – cut and drizzled with EVOO and Greek seasoning) serve it all with rice. BEST MEAL EVER! Thanks so much for such a great and EASY go to recipe!
★★★★★
Your roasted veggies sounds so great!
This recipient should have a whole bunch more liquid; it’s only 1/2cup of liquid. I just blew out my instant pot making this; I’m hesitant to blame the recipie, but after the pot blew out, I noticed I’m not supposed to run it with less than 2 cups of liquid. (I’m using an 8qt; so I’m sure it’s a tiny bit less for your six quart, but still more than 1/2 cup.
★
Sorry that you had issues with this recipe. I use 1/2 cup of liquid in my 6 quart when I make chicken because the chicken puts off so much liquid. By chance did you use organic chicken breasts?
This recipe looks delicious. I’m going to try it soon. If I’m not browning ingredients, I like to cook food PIP. Did you know you can fit the 3 qt IP insert into the 6 or 8 qt IP on a trivet? A lot fewer burn messages since I started doing this! LOL This only works with the regular IP inserts, not the ones with handles.
Yes I’ve done the same thing! It works so great!!
There’s 6 of us in my family – including 2 parents, 2 teen boys, 1 picky eater, and 1 all-around happy eater. We ALL love it! Thanks so much!
Wow what a statement! Thanks Emily 😊
Hi Karen I’m new here and I’m so glad I found your channel. You have great info and recipes.
Question on this recipe you don’t put any liquid in the bottom of the pot first? I thought you
always had to have water on the bottom. Like I said I am new to this. Thanks
Hi Irene, there is enough liquid from the vinegar, broth and lemon juice 🙂
This is the fourth recipe of yours that i have made and i am so pleased! The chicken was tender and flavorful and the sauce was amazing! My husband and i really enjoyed this !
Thanks for such great recipes and making it enjoyable to feed my family ❤
★★★★★
You’re welcome! So happy that you guys liked it 🙂
This is so savory good! I’ve made it twice, serving thighs both whole and shreds. A real winner for this family of six! Thank you for making my life as Gramma easier!
★★★★★
You’re so welcome! Keep up the good work Gramma!
How long would you cook in the instant pot for thawed chicken breast?
I’d do 15 minutes
I made this last night. It turned out fabulously! Will be adding this to my go to recipes!
★★★★
Glad you liked it Robert!
Such a refreshing video to share with a young lady cooking great recipes for families in the kitchen. She has poise, speaks clearly and has great pacing for most viewers to grasp what the step by step procedures are for start to finish recipe. Hats off to her for doing a superb job of hitting this family favorite out of the park.
★★★★★
Thanks Debbie, I will tell her!
The whole family of 5 loved it, as usual. This time I marinated the chicken ahead of time using the ingredients in the recipe and I loved the stronger flavor. I accidentally forgot to put the plastic ring in the instant pot. So I just set it for 20 min and came back in 40 min. Well, all the liquid boiled away and it was browned perfectly! I’m going to cook it that way every time, but just be sure to watch it.
★★★★★
Oh how funny. I’m glad it was a good mistake!
Very good! I cut the ingredients in half and used the instant pot mini. We are not big garlic fans so I went light on that and the onion. Also used 1/4 cup water in place of chicken broth (my bad.) to make sure we had enough liquid. Chicken shredded very easily, and it was very good. Next time (and there WILL BE a ‘next time’) I will be sure to follow the recipe more closely. Delicious!
★★★★
So glad you liked it!!
This recipe has been in my rotation ever since I found it over a year ago. My boyfriend and I absolutely love these gyros! So so tasty! I always add red cabbage too because I love the taste. Thanks for the awesome recipe!!
★★★★★
Hi Monica, I love the idea of the red cabbage!
We all loved this recipe! We are a family of 7 so that doesn’t happen often. I used chicken breasts because that is what I had on hand. Two of my picky kids just ate the chicken in a pita. Husband used hummus instead of the tzatki sauce. We will definitely make again!
★★★★★
HUMMUS!!!
Karen – I just realized my rating only had 1 star … please change that to 5 stars. It was too late when I hit enter.
★★★★★
I don’t think I can change it! I will try though.
This is such a great recipe! I’ve made it several times now. Even better for me, I end up with a lot of leftovers which freeze great! I will freeze into 2 serving portions (just 2 of us usually). I usually have leftover pitas in the freezer but if not, I will serve on toasted buns or rolls. I always have the sauce ingredients and veggies on hand. Such a quick and delish meal. Thanks again for another “homerun” recipe!
★
Hi Karen and daughter, I can hardly wait to try this recipe it looks sooooo good. I have to say your daughter is a wonderful fantastic pro in the video!!!! One can tell she is very enthused with her cooking and sharing! She was just excellent and I enjoyed watching and learning from her. She has watched her great Mother very closely over the years and learned from her. I look forward to watching both of you. Thanks for a great recipe video. Lots of hugs to both of you! Claudia
Thanks Claudia! That is so nice.
Delicious!! I added mushrooms (just cause we love mushrooms) and made this into a “bowl” and it was awesome. Thanks so much!
★★★★★
I love mushrooms too! Sounds great 🙂
Do you think that I could put the chicken and ingredients in a bag to use and freeze for a later date?
yes!
Yum!!! I made this dish tonight with some changes because I’m dieting…again. I used chicken breasts and 0% Greek yogurt and left the olive oil out. I added lawrys garlic salt because I used chicken breast to give it more flavor. The pitas I used were Joseph’s. 205 calories per serving according to myfitnesspal. My husband even loved them!
★★★★★
Sounds tasty!
What could I replace the lemon pepper with?
Try this!
For 1 tablespoon lemon pepper: 1/4 tablespoon onions 1 tablespoon black pepper 1/4 tablespoon thyme 1 teaspoon lemon zest Use dried thyme and dried, minced onion. Store in an airtight container.
Not like the Gyros you’d get from a restaurant/curb side seller. Not bad…but not that good.
★★
Made this today and it was delicious. I did use All Purpose Greek Seasoning instead of the seasoning listed in this recipe, and I used Trader Joe’s tzatziki sauce instead of making my own, but it was extremely tasty nonetheless!
★★★★
I watched the video of this recipe yesterday and came back today to say that it was excellent. It made me think, “If a kid can do this, then I’m not intimidated by it.” She’s well-spoken and obviously brilliant. I would subscribe to her channel!
Thanks so much Karen! I will tell her you said so 🙂
Can you use a slow cooker instead? If so what would be the time/temp!? Thanks!
Here is the slow cooker version of the recipe: https://www.allfreeslowcookerrecipes.com/Slow-Cooker-Sandwich-Recipes/Slow-Cooker-Chicken-Gyros-with-Tzatziki-Sauce
Truth be told, I found this recipe bland and not at all like the chicken gyros I would get at my local shop. It’s absolutely essential to finish the chicken in a pan with a bit of oil, otherwise it just tastes stewed.
★★★
I agree, I also found this to be VERY bland
★★
I agree. This recipe is good for a pinch, when you just need to cook chicken to a salad or before it goes bad. I’ll put it on a grill and add some additional seasonings to it before I serve it.
★★★
Does anything change if I use bone in thighs?
Cook for the 20 minutes and you should be fine. I would either brown the skin or remove it first.
What would you need to change if you are using the 8qt?
I would increase the chicken broth to 3/4 cup.
These are amazing! thanks for the recipe. I used part chicken thighs & part breasts -both frozen- as I didn’t have enough of either separately. Definitely the thighs were the best. I appreciate you listing the time to pressure up as well ~ very helpful when planning dinner at a specific time. I have another brand pc & your times were spot on for mine as well.
★★★★★
I love the idea of this recipe. I have a 6 qt duo. I only want to make 1 lb of chicken, would reducing the recipe into thirds still be enough liquid? Also I can’t do any vinegar, can I substitute that with anything? Like lemon juice maybe? Sorry, I know that’s a lot to ask, but my husband is Persian and he would really love these.
★★★★★
I would keep the liquid the same but cut everything else by a third. You can add in extra lemon juice after it has cooked if you think it needs more acidity.
The best part of this recipe is your daughter’s video of how to make it. I love the detailed instructions and her confidence. Thanks,Reagan!
I will tell her you said so. Thanks Cher!
If I cut the recipe in half, do I change the cooking time? Thanks!
no, keep the cooking time the same.
Wondering about the nutrition facts for just the chicken / meaning without the pita. I love this recipe but most often put the chicken over salad greens and use the tzatziki for dressing. So would love to know how to track the calories without the pita. Thanks!
Each pita is 200 calories so just subtract that amount from each serving.
May I know where you got the grater and what brand. Thanks.
I’ve had it for several years but it is a Salad Master brand.
Will it take the same amount of time in the IP if using boneless skinless breasts??
Only cook for 12 minutes!
Do you have to use chicken thighs? Can you use chicken breast?
Yes, just cook for 12 minutes instead.
Can you substitute chicken breasts or will it not taste as good?
It won’t have as much flavor but you can do it. Only 12 minute cooking time.
I made with 2lb frozen chicken tenders and it was delicious! I did not reduce the time, did the 21 minutes and the onions were totally gone, cooked right into the broth and chicken. Next time will try the 12 minutes/10 NPR. HOWEVER, as it was, it was really liked by all. They did add a little salt to it while eating. The T sauce had a lot of flavor which made everything meld well. Thanks 🙂
this was incredibly tasty and super easy to prepare! It’s going on my regular rotation!
★★★★★
We love this too!
Made this tonight, and all 6 people in my family ate it and loved it! That is sometimes hard to do in our house. Don’t skip the tzatziki sauce. It really completes the recipe. We are going to make it again next week!
★★★★★
I’m making this one tomorrow! We LOVE it!
We made the chicken tonight and it was a hit…even with the kids!! Thanks for the delicious recipe! Saved it on a board in Pinterest since this is definitely being added to our list of weekday dinners! 🙂
★★★★★
I love this one too!
How long would I need to cook the chicken if I used frozen chicken thighs? So excited to make this!
same time! it will just take your pot a little bit more time to come to pressure.
Made this in the IP as directed (but bought Cedar’s Tzatziki) and this chicken was AMAZING. I love chicken gyros and was sooo excited to have this come out so good and SO easy to make!
★★★★★
So glad you liked it! And the tzatziki sounds so good 🙂
Hi-
i’m going to wing it (again: i’ve made this b4 and *loved* it, but can’t remember what i did!), but if you did not have lemon pepper seasoning, what would you substitute?
I am not sure! I just looked up how to make your own: For 1 tablespoon lemon pepper: 1/4 tablespoon onions 1 tablespoon black pepper 1/4 tablespoon thyme 1 teaspoon lemon zest Use dried thyme and dried, minced onion. Store in an airtight container.
Hi Karen,
I’m planning on making this in my 6 quart pot for a party this weekend. I have 6 lbs. of the thighs. Is 3 lbs. the max you can do at one time. If so I will need to do 2 batches. How did you reheat it?
Thank you!
I bet you could do all 6 lbs at once. Did you try? How did it work out?
Gosh, i am going crazy about it..i think i should be trying this on the weekend..it looks so superb
Can I make this ahead and reheat it?
I’m sure you could!
How long does the instant pot need to go if using deer meat? Select meat/manual for how long then npr or mpr?
I have never used deer meat myself but after searching around I would do this…Cut the meat up into stew meat bites and cook for 20 minutes and then do a npr. Please let me know how this turns out for you! I’d love to know!
Thanks so much for including the link to my homemade Greek yogurt, Karen! 🙂 And your gyros look positively mouth-watering, I can’t think of anything I’d rather have for dinner tonight!
Kimberly, thanks so much! The yogurt looks amazing and better yet it’s made in the slow cooker 🙂