Name: Slow Cooker Chicken Gyros Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 480 min
Total time: 495 min
Ingredients: 1 ½ pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts; 3 cloves garlic (minced); ⅓ cup fresh lemon juice; 1 onion (diced); ¼ cup water (only for slow cooker prepation); 1 Tablespoon olive oil; 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar; 1 teaspoon oregano; ¼ teaspoon allspice; 1 teaspoon lemon pepper; 1 cup chicken broth (only for Instant Pot preparation); 1 cup cucumber (grated); 16 ounces fat free plain Greek yogurt; 2 cloves garlic (minced); 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar; ½ teaspoon lemon juice; ¼ teaspoon dried dill weed; salt, to taste; 1 cucumber (sliced); 1 cup lettuce (shredded); 2 Roma tomatoes (diced); 6 pita breads

This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.

Time to enjoy one of the meals everyone loves, but always pronounce wrong, our chicken gyros recipe! Gyros are such a flavorful Greek dish that is an easy and healthy meal, not to mention a crowd pleaser. This recipe is even better because it could be made in the slow cooker or Instant Pot. This recipe is so simple and makes a fresh, light dinner everyone will love!

Ingredients including raw chicken breasts, onion, garlic, spices, oil, vinegar, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, and an Instant Pot arranged on a kitchen counter.

A bowl of grated cucumber, a bowl of plain yogurt, minced garlic, vinegar, salt, and dried dill on a white surface.

Recipe Ingredient Notes

To make our chicken gyros, you need the following ingredients:

Chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)
Garlic
Lemon Juice
Onion
Olive oil
Red Wine Vinegar
Oregano
Allspice
Lemon Pepper
Greek yogurt
Cucumber
Dill
Water
Cucumber
Lettuce
Roma Tomatoes
Pita Bread

Equipment Needed

For this recipe, you only need a few simple kitchen tools. We recommend using the following equipment:

A clear glass bowl containing creamy cucumber salad garnished with dried dill, placed on a light-colored surface.

Chopped lettuce, sliced cucumbers, and diced tomatoes arranged on a white cutting board with a green cloth nearby.

How to Make Our Delicious Chicken Gyros Recipe

Slow Cooker Instructions

Spray slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray.
Place chicken breasts inside slow cooker.
Mix remaining ingredients together in a bowl and pour over chicken breasts.
Cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours or LOW 6-8 hours.
Shred chicken and serve with pocketless pita bread, sliced tomatoes, sliced onions, sliced cucumbers, lettuce, and Tzatziki sauce.

Instant Pot Instructions

In a gallon-sized resealable bag, add chicken, garlic, lemon juice, onion, olive oil, red wine vinegar, oregano, allspice, and lemon pepper.
Mix well so that all the chicken is covered in marinade.
Let marinate in fridge for at least 2-3 hours (6-8 is ideal for best flavor).
When chicken is finished marinating, pour 1 cup of chicken broth into the bottom of the Instant Pot.
Dump the entire contents of the bag (chicken and marinade) into the Instant Pot.
Place lid on pot and press MANUAL (or PRESSURE COOK) and set timer for 10 minutes.
Allow 10-15 minutes to come to pressure before it starts the countdown cook timer.
Once it is finished cooking, do a natural release of the pressure for 5-10 minutes and then a quick release of the remaining pressure. Remove the lid.
Shred cooked chicken using 2 forks.

Tzatziki Sauce Instructions

Shred or grate the cucumber and blot with a paper towel to get rid of as much moisture as possible.
Mix together the yogurt, shredded cucumbers, garlic, vinegar and lemon juice. Add dill and salt and pepper to taste.
Keep in the fridge until serving (it’s best if you let the flavors come together for about 30 minutes before serving).
Serve on pita bread topped with cooked chicken, cucumbers, lettuce, tomato, and homemade tzatziki sauce.

Two pita sandwiches filled with sliced cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, shredded chicken, and drizzled with white sauce, displayed alongside bowls of tzatziki, tomatoes, and herbs.

Recipe Notes

Homemade tzatziki is really easy to make, but store bought tzatziki is great as well.
You can also use ranch or cucumber ranch dressing in place of the tzatziki.
Serve this with hummus, pita chips, and fresh vegetables for dipping in the hummus.
If you have never had fresh pita bread you are missing out! Take a look at this recipe from The New York Times for Homemade Pita Bread. While you can use store bought pita bread, once you taste fresh pitas, you probably won’t go back!

Freezer Meal Modification

Place chicken, garlic, lemon juice, onion, olive oil, red wine vinegar, oregano, allspice, and lemon pepper into a gallon-sized freezer bag. Place freezer bag into freezer and it will last up to 90 days.

When ready to use, dump ingredients from bag into Instant Pot and add 1 cup of chicken broth in with the frozen food. Place the lid on top, move the valve to SEALING, and press the MANUAL button. Set timer for 25 minutes. Do a 5 minute NATURAL RELEASE when the timer is done. Follow the rest of the instructions as written.

Flatbread topped with shredded chicken, sliced cucumber, lettuce, tomato, and a drizzle of white sauce, served on a dark plate with garnishes and extra sauce nearby.

Two pita breads filled with sliced cucumber, chopped tomato, shredded chicken, and tzatziki sauce are served on a plate, with extra diced tomatoes and herbs in small bowls nearby.

Enjoy More Delicious Chicken Main Dishes

Chicken is an all-time favorite for weeknight dinners, but so many of us end up making the same few dishes over and over again. Explore our comprehensive collection of chicken recipes.

Join The Discussion

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Questions & Reviews

Erin Keene says:

These look delicious~!
Eric Pepple says:

Love this idea! Thanks for sharing 🙂

Happy Blogging!
Happy Valley Chow
Tess @ Pro-tography 101 says:

Just found your blog-looks great!
My blog has recipes also:
http://www.cakeandvodka.com
(google will go to other blog).
Amanda says:

I love the Greek Festival. I am not Greek but my friend is. Where did you find the pita bread having a hard time finding them.
Six Sisters says:

At our grocery store it is in the bakery over by the fresh deli meat. Hope this helps, every store is a little different. -The Six Sisters
Laura says:

I’m so glad you guys enjoyed these! Love the flavors – and that tzatziki? I could put that stuff on anything!
Lindsey says:

The best pitas are at costco – pack of 12 for under $3 and they are so soft and delicious!
Harrison Glaze says:

delicious! I made it with chicken thighs as i was making it for 12 people, they all took the recipe (and your web address !)
Katie Opsal says:

Can the chicken be frozen?
Six Sisters says:

You can put the frozen chicken in the slow cooker. Check to make sure they are cooked through before shredding. May take a little longer to cook if frozen.
Krista says:

Do you have the nutritional information for this? Or at least, calories per serving 🙂
Aggie says:

Totally adding this to dinner rotation! It looks wonderful!!
Mallory says:

What size slow cooker did you use for this recipe? I just received mine in the mail and it’s 6 quarts.
Emily says:

This is my boyfriends favorite food. Have it cooking right now to surprise him when he gets home. Smells great!!
Em says:

Can these be cokled on top of the stove??
Cyd says:

You could cut up your chicken and cook it on the stove top. Wouldn’t be as moist as cooking it in a slow cooker all day.
Amanda says:

We’re putting this in the crock pot for tonight’s dinner – even my picky 7 yo son is looking forward to trying them. My husband is allergic to cucumbers, however, so we’re going to have to try plain sour cream instead of tzatziki sauce but I’m going to make it for myself another time :). Thanks for the awesome recipe – it’s a nice change from the usual!
Kelli says:

With the Tzatziki if you use Greek yogurt do you need to drain it?
Desiree @ The36thAvenue says:

Yummy! I am pinning 🙂
Shelby says:

FYI- gyro meat is a shaved mixture of lamb and beef. 🙂 So it would be a chicken pita, not a chicken gyro pita unless the gyro meat is in there too. I used to work at a Greek restaurant and didn’t know that before either 🙂
April says:

At our grocery, they’re located by the deli (where they slice meats and cheeses for you.)
Jessica says:

I made these last night for my family and they turned out absolutely amazing!! The chicken had great flavor and the combination of it with the fresh veggies was wonderful 🙂 My 1 year old actually ate the cucumbers!! Will definitely be making this again! Thanks ladies! Your delicious recipes have made it easy to figure out what to make for dinner! I know that no matter what I try it will be amazing!!
LB says:

If you are going to leave an information comment, please make sure you do your homework. Gyro meat can be veal, pork, chicken, lamb, etc.
BeckyP says:

Making these today, serving over a bed of lettuce as a salad since we don’t eat bread. Can not wait!
Michelle @ A Dish of Daily Life says:

We had these tonight and they were awesome!! I added in pickled onions too.
melanie says:

Cook frozen chicken in your slow cooker if you want to breed bacteria. The USDA recommends that you cook fully thawed chicken in the crock pot to avoid poisoning yourself.
Sierra says:

How many servings does this recipe make?
Cyd says:

This recipe makes 4 servings.
Robin says:

I will make this today, using chicken thighs, I’m sure they will be more moist than breast meat, I can’t wait until suppertime! Thanks!
Britney Bouldin says:

Can you mix all ingredients the night before and put in fridge? So you can place in crockpot in the morning just turn on?
Cyd says:

Yes! That would work great! So easy and quick!!
Salty Pepper says:

I noticed this recipe doesn’t call for salt. I appreciate simplicity, but why no salt?
Erin says:

I am totally making these for dinner tonight. I love chicken gyros! 🙂
Ashley says:

I am making this for dinner – looks great! One question, you call for oregano, do you use 1 tsp dried oregano leaves or 1 tsp ground oregano? Thanks!
Cyd says:

We used ground oregano.
Olya says:

I tried this recipe. The flavoring of the chicken isn’t right for gyros. It missed the mark. The tzatziki sauce was good though.
Chantel says:

My husband can’t stop talking about these. He loved them! Definitely a keeper. Great summertime meal.
Heather says:

Thank you for sharing this recipe! The flavor wasn’t bad, but I ran into two issues when preparing this.

First, the amount of liquid you prescribe is not enough to keep the chicken moist in all crockpot sizes. We ended up adding chicken broth to it towards the end.

Secondly, how on earth is 1 lb of chicken breasts enough to feed six people? Surely you jest! One of my adult guests took a peek inside the crockpot and quipped, “Enough for six people? Maybe for six fashion models on calorie restrictive diets!”
Tom's Mom says:

I tried this recipe and I don’t know what I did wrong but it was basically inedible 🙁 I followed the directions to a T. Hoping for better luck with your other crockpot recipes.
Sheila says:

One of our favorites! Delicious.
TKD says:

I have been using frozen chicken in the crockpot for years and have never poisoned myself.
Julie says:

Not inedible, but not flavorful or even very good. All my family tasted was the allspice, which is a very odd flavor in a chicken dish. My husband asked me to put about 4 TBSP of pesto in the leftovers and he pretended it was Italian. I won’t be making this again.
K says:

You can make tazitki without the cucumber. The dill salt & pepper and a dark of lemon or red wine vinegar.
Christina Debiasi says:

If wanted to make this in the instant pot what changes need to be made? Looks so good!!
Momma Cyd says:

Here is a post we did about converting recipes to the Instant Pot. https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/how-to-convert-recipes-into-instant-pot-recipes/
Lindsey says:

If you’re looking for something different than typical slow cooker fare, this is it. It’s very tasty and has become one of my go-to recipes for dinner. I always use chicken thighs because I think they are tastier and juicer. I also double or triple the recipe. I love Greek food and while I wouldn’t call this 100% authentic it is a good approximation.
Jen says:

This is really good. I marinated in in yogurt. ( sounds odd but it works). When finished cooking, I hit sauté the n the instapot and caramelized the chicken and onion. This made it closer to a gyro. You don’t have to do that, I just had the time. Yummy!
Karen McMahan says:

The chicken was so flavorful and I will try it in pasta salad soon!
A Murphy says:

I loved this recipe. Husband said it’s a keeper. Thank you!
Kristi says:

I always use frozen chicken breasts in my crockpot. If I use thawed they always end up overcooked and like jerky and always cool on low. .
Sarah Ludos says:

This was so delicious and will definitely cook it again.
Carla Austin says:

What size crock pot can be used? I don’t have a small crock pot. If large
Crock pot, do I need to add extra liquid.
Bobbi @ Six Sisters says:

We use a 6 quart crock pot to make these. If you’re worried about it being too dry feel free to experiment with adding a little more liquid
Ashley Woolley says:

The recipe was written very confusing. I didn’t print it out or go to the very bottom and the first section of the recipe was different than the one in the very end and very vague.
Bobbi @ Six Sisters says:

I’m sorry the recipe seems vague. In the recipe card the ingredients are split into two sections: the chicken that goes in the crock pot and then the tzatziki sauce.
Sue Stine says:

Could the gyro part be made as a freezer meal (then thaw & cook in slow cooker)?
Melanie McGraw says:

Can this recipe be adapted for the instant pot?
Bobbi @ Six Sisters says:

We have an instant pot version here: https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/instant-pot-chicken-gyros-recipe/