Chicken Souvlaki

Yes, this does look like a lot of ingredients, and let's be honest, there are, but most of them you probably already have in your kitchen because half of them are herbs, oil, and vinegar. However, this recipe in all actuality is quite simple and boasts lots of flavor without too much effort. I will admit that I don't think it is quite as good as the other souvlaki recipe that we have on our blog, but this one is quicker and easier.

Grilled Vegetables with Mint Sauce

I feel as though this is too easy to really call it a recipe. But it's good and fast and simple and healthy, so why not share it? We had this vegetable dish last night as a light dinner, and anyone in my family who actually ate the vegetables (my sisters still haven't discovered the pleasure that comes from eating red peppers or zuchinni) loved the combination of the masala with the yogurt (on the vegetables and in the sauce). And of course, if you can't lay your hands on a grill, or you're simply too eager to try this to wait for your grill to heat up, you can always broil the veggies.

Grilled Vegetables with Mint Sauce

Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit July 2005

Picture by Kelly

For Mint Sauce:

1 cup plain yogurt

2 teaspoons garam masala (optional)

1/2 chopped fresh mint

salt and pepper to taste

For Vegetables:

2 red bell peppers

3 large zucchini

2 red onions

2 cups mushrooms

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon garam masala

salt and pepper to taste

1. Prepare barbeque (medium high). Soak bamboo skewers in water, about 30 minutes.
2. Cut vegetables into large wedges (except mushrooms- leave them whole). Toss in oil, masala, salt and pepper.
3. Thread vegetables onto skewers and grill unto slightly charred in spots, turning occasionally.
4. Serve with mint yogurt sauce.

Meatballs with Yogurt Sauce

Looking for an alternative to hamburgers this summer? These Middle Eastern meatballs are a surprisingly good, yet unorthodox combination of spices and flavors. Called "kefta," they're traditionally made with lamb. I, however, don't live in a place with a ready supply of ground lamb, so I substitute ground beef. Serve them with this minty yogurt sauce to offset the warm flavors of allspice, cinnamon and pepper.

Meatballs with Yogurt Sauce
Recipe from Gourmet January 2006
Pictures by Kelly

Yogurt Sauce
1 cup plain yogurt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/8 teaspoon salt

1. Stir together yogurt, mint, garlic, and salt in a small bowl and chill.

Meatballs
2 slices firm white sandwich bread, torn into small pieces
1 small onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh parsley leaves
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves
1 lb ground beef or lamb
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted and finely chopped

1. Cover bread with water in a bowl and soak 10 minutes. Squeeze handfuls of bread to remove as much excess water as possible, then transfer to a bowl.
2. Pulse onion and herbs in a food processor until finely chopped, then add to bread along with lamb, salt, spices, and pine nuts. Mix with your hands until well blended. Form meat mixture into 36 balls (1 scant tablespoon each).
3. Broil for 10 minutes or grill on kebabs about 5-6 minutes. Serve with yogurt sauce.

Souvlaki with Yogurt-Garlic Sauce

Greek week continues. These souvlaki are delicious, seriously. The grilled meat and vegetables combined with the yogurt sauce make a perfect pair. In fact, if you have been looking for a good Greek-style yogurt sauce, you needn't look further, because this one is great and is quite simple to make.

This recipe calls for a lot of marinating time, so plan ahead if you can, the longer you can marinate the more flavorful everything will be. To make it a complete dinner, we paired these souvlaki with our Greek Salad recipe and warmed flat breads. It turned out to be a truly wonderful dinner. It was fresh, healthy, and delicious.

Souvlaki with Yogurt-Garlic Sauce
Adapted from The New Greek Cuisine by Jim Botsacos with Judith Choate

Pictures by Caroline
Makes 4-6 servings

1 ½ cups extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon dried Greek oregano (I used regular oregano, and it tasted great)
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
2 pounds very lean boneless lamb from the leg, or filet of beef, cut into 1 ½ inch cubes
3 yellow bell peppers cut into 1 inch squares
36 red pearl onions, peeled and blanched (I couldn’t find pearl onions, so I used red onion instead)
36 cherry tomatoes

Yogurt-Garlic Sauce (below)

1. Combine the olive oil with the garlic, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste in a small mixing bowl. Remove ¼ cup, reserving the remainder. Place the meat in a medium mixing bowl, add ¼ cup marinade, tossing to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. Remove the meat from the refrigerator. Working with one skewer at a time, thread on the meat, onion, and tomatoes in a random order. (Note: I generally soak my wood skewers in water before using, so that they won’t burn on the grill.)
3. Place the filled skewers in a shallow nonreactive pan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Pour on the reserved marinade, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 8 hours. (Note: I didn’t have 8 hours to marinate, only about 1, and they were delicious. Marinate as long as you can; the longer the better.)
4. Heat up your grill. Remove the souvlaki from the refrigerator, carefully remove any excess marinade with your fingers; season with salt and pepper to taste. Place the skewers on the hot grill, turning occasionally for about 8 minutes, or until meat is lightly charred and medium-rare. The time will depend on the desired degree of doneness for the meat.
5. Remove the skewers from the grill. Serve with the Yogurt-Garlic Sauce and warmed flat bread.

Yogurt-Garlic Sauce from The New Greek Cuisine

by Jim Botsacos with Judith Choate
Makes about 1 ¼ cups

½ large hothouse cucumber, peeled
3 garlic cloves, minced
¾ cup Greek yogurt*
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Line a colander with a double layer of cheesecloth. Place the colander over a bowl deep enough to catch the draining liquid without the liquid touching the bottom of the colander.
2. Roughly chop the cucumber and then place it in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Add the garlic and process just until finely chopped. Transfer the mixture to the colander and set aside to drain for about 30 minutes, or until all the juice has drained off.
3. Pull the cheesecloth up and tightly twist the ends together to force out any remaining juices into the bowl. Discard the cheesecloth and cucumber, remove the colander, and reserve the juice in the bowl. (Note: We actually did this backwards; we used the drained cucumber in our sauce, and discarded the juices.)
4. Place the yogurt in a nonreactive mixing bowl. Whisk in the reserved cucumber-garlic juice along with the lemon juice. The sauce should be the consistency of creamy vinaigrette. You may not need all of the juice. When blended, season with salt and pepper.

*You can either buy Greek yogurt, which is creamy, thick, and rich. Or you can make your own alternative, which is what I did, and it worked out really well. Line a colander with a double layer of cheesecloth and place it in a bowl deep enough to catch the draining liquid. Use four cups of conventional, plain yogurt to get 2 cups of drained thick yogurt. Place the conventional yogurt in the prepared colander and let it drain for 12 hours (I did it for about 6 hours and it worked great). Discard the liquid and measure out the desired amount of the thick yogurt.

Tandoori Chicken with Yogurt Sauce

This dish is a nice change from my usual flavors, and it is a great combination of a bit of spice mixed with the sweetness of apples. The yogurt sauce is a beautiful combination of greens and produces a wonderful smell as you grate the apples and chop the cilantro.

Although this recipe doesn't call for it, I think that next time I make this dish, I will add some chicken broth to my rice as it cooks for a bit of additional flavor. Also, I would suggest making extra yogurt sauce, because it is just so good you will want plenty for slathering on your chicken.

Tandoori Chicken with Yogurt Sauce
Recipe from Everyday Foods: Great Food Fast
Pictures by Caroline
Serves 4
Prep Time: 30 minutes (It only took me about 15-20 minutes of prep time)
Total Time: 35 minutes

1 cup plain low-fat yogurt
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground ginger
Coarse salt and fresh ground pepper
4 bone-in, skinless chicken breast halves (10 to 12 ounces each). Note: I used boneless chicken breasts
2 Granny Smith apples
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

1. Preheat the oven to 475°F. In a large bowl, mix together ½ cup of the yogurt, the garlic, turmeric, ginger, 2 teaspoons salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Add the chicken; turn to coat.
2. Transfer the chicken to a rimmed baking sheet. Roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the breast (avoiding the bone) registers 160°F, 25 to 30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, peel the apple; coarsely grate into a medium bowl. Add the cilantro and the remaining ½ cup yogurt; season with salt and pepper. Serve the sauce alongside the chicken, with rice, if desired.

-Caroline