Marinated in lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and oregano, these delicious crispy Greek Souvlaki Chicken Wings are grilled until gently charred, while they still stay juicy and tender. Don’t skip the re-sauce and the final step for extra crispy and flavorful wings. We serve ours with a homemade tzatziki sauce on the side, which makes the perfect cooling, dipping sauce. This recipe includes instructions for a gas grill, a Traeger Wood-Fired Grill or the oven.
We made these delicious Greek Souvlaki Chicken Wings on our new Traeger Wood-Fired Grill, which has absolutely changed our grilling game and most especially it’s taken our already amazing wing game to another level. With real smoke coming from wood pellets and no fear of flare ups, it’s been incredible for grilling. In many ways for the purpose of this recipe, it’s just the same concept as Mark’s patented in-direct grilling method that he developed for our gas grill which we have shared here before, however the Traeger brings a delicious wood fired flavor we have never gotten with the gas grill. Mark’s method for indirect heat makes for THE BEST and most crispy chicken wings you will ever make on the grill. EVER! Either way, on a Traeger or not, give these chicken wings some time, it’s all about the low and slow and then give them that last round of heat, with the “re-sauce” – you will fall in love with the crisp factor. The instructions below are for a gas grill and for my Traeger Nation folks, below that you will find the instructions for your Traeger.
I do have to give credit where credit is due. The idea for these Chicken Souvlaki Chicken Wings originally came from my dad. He dropped this brilliance on us when he and my mom came to California for a visit last fall, from NY. Me, my dad and hubby came together as the perfect wing dream team and made these together one night for dinner and it was incredible. Mark brought his perfect method of chicken wing grilling and they turned out amazing, I generally just bossed everyone around and made suggestions on the finishing sauce and garnish style them, haha. We have experimented and played with the recipe a bit and it was when Mark dropped some crumbled sheep’s milk feta in the finishing sauce move, before the wings got one final go on the grill and that was it! It was the perfect way to finish these delicious crispy wings.
Ya’ll know chicken souvlaki is a family favorite over here. This is the food I grew up on. My dad always kept it classic, just grilling up the chicken, serving it in pita pockets or over huge Greek salads, but it has morphed into so many different recipes around here. We have the classic chicken souvlaki, served up lettuce wrapped instead of in pitas and my tasty Sheet Pan Chicken Souvlaki with Veggies that has also quickly become a favorite – I love the simplicity of that dish.
These wings would be delicious served up with this tasty Greek Potato Salad, a big Greek Green Salad with my dad’s epic homemade Greek Dressing and of course you have to serve up this homemade tzatziki sauce. Of course some Stuffed Grape Leaves would be an amazing starter while your wings are grilling. And if I may suggest dessert, Paleo Baklava Shortbread Cookie Bars should be mandatory. For more delicious Greek recipes, check out the full archives here.
Grilled Greek Souvlaki Chicken Wings {Paleo, Keto, Whole30}
Ingredients
- 3-5 lbs organic chicken wings, cut into two pieces - drumstick and wing*
Marinade:
- ½ cup lemon juice
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- extra virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper
Finishing Sauce:
- ⅓ cup lemon juice
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- black pepper, to taste
- crumbled sheep's milk feta cheese, optional
For Serving:
- lemon zest
- lemon wedges
- feta cheese crumbles
- fresh oregano or dill
- black olives
- tzatziki sauce
Instructions
- Add the chicken wings to a shallow baking dish. Add the lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper and give it all a stir and finish with the olive oil. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
- When ready to grill, remove the chicken wings from the fridge and using tongs remove the wings from the marinade and place on a baking sheet to take out to the grill.
- Preheat your grill to hot. All the burners. Close the cover to allow to heat up.
- Turn off center two burners (or 1, depending on grill). Leave outside burners set to hot. Place wings on the hot grill over center burners (that should be off) and/or on top shelf rack. Note the wings on the top rack will cook faster. Close the grill.
- At no time should the wings ever be over direct heat/flame. We are indirect cooking them.
- Check the wings at 15 minutes, just to be sure there are no wings too close to the direct flame, you can move around as needed if some get more heat, but don't flip yet. At this point the wings should still look somewhat pale, but not raw.
- Check again at 30 minutes. At this point the top of the wings should have a nice, very light brown color. Flip all the wings over, the bottoms should be golden brown. Any wing that you can't pick up (stuck to the grill still) these may need another 5 minutes or so.
- Check the wings at 45 minutes. Just to be sure nothing is getting too much heat. Swap any around as needed, if some are getting too much.
- At 1 hour, have both a small and a medium sized bowl ready. Prepare the finishing sauce by adding all of the ingredients except the feta cheese, in a small mixing bowl. Whisk until well combined. Remove the wings in groups of 4-8. Place into the medium bowl and pour in some of the finishing sauce (don't drown the wings). Crumble in a tablespoon or two of feta cheese. Shake the wings really well to coat.
- Place the coated wings on the top rack. If your grill doesn't have a top rack, place back in the center of the grill where the burners are off. Continue with remaining wings and continue adding the sauce until all are sauced and added back to the grill.
- If all the wings are on the top rack turn on all burners to high. (If not, leave off the burners where the wings are) close the cover and in increments of 3-5 minutes, check the wings you are cooking until desired crispness is achieved. Remove from the grill, garnish as you would like and serve.
Notes
Greek Souvlaki Chicken Wings // Traeger Wood Fired Grill Instructions:
Follow the instructions above for marinating the wings and preparing them to be grilled. Ignite your Traeger and set the temperature to 375ºF. Once the grill has preheated, keep it at temp for 15 minutes before putting on the wings. Place the chicken wings right on the grill. Give the wings one hour at 375ºF, flipping the wings halfway through, at 30 minutes. If the wings stick, give the another 5 minutes. They should be golden brown on the bottom. At around 45 minutes, prepare the finishing sauce by adding all of the ingredients except the feta cheese, in a small mixing bowl. Whisk until well combined. Have a medium sized mixing bowl ready. At one hour, if the wings are nice and golden brown and crispy on both sides, increase the Traeger to 450ºF remove the wings in groups of 4-8 at a time. Place into the medium bowl and pour in some of the finishing sauce (don’t drown the wings) and if adding, crumble in a tablespoon or two of the feta cheese, if using. Shake well to coat. Place the wings back on the grill. Continue until all the wings have been coated and returned to the grill. 4-8 wings at a time, adding more sauce and more feta cheese with each batch. Check the wings in increments of 3-5 minutes, and continue cooking until desired crispness is achieved. Remove from the grill as they are ready, garnish as you would like and serve.
Chicken Souvlaki Wings // Oven Instructions
Follow the instructions above for marinating the wings and preparing them to be cooked. Preheat the oven to 375º F. Spread the chicken wings on a large baking sheet and bake in the heated oven for 45-50 minutes. Take the wings out, give them a toss in the finishing sauce but go very light. Put the wings back on the tray. Move the chicken wings to the top rack and broil briefly until the skin turns golden brown and crispy. Remove from heat when ready (internal temperature should register at least 165ºF). Remove from the oven, garnish as you would like and serve.
