Greek Style Chicken Wrapped In Phyllo Recipes

GREEK PHYLLO-WRAPPED CHICKEN

Steps:

• In bowl, mash together feta cheese, egg yolks and garlic.
• Mix in onions, parsley, mint and pepper.
• With sharp knife held horizontally and starting at rounded side, cut chicken in half almost but not all the way through; open like a book.
• Spread feta mixture evenly on 1 half of each breast; fold breast over to enclose.
• Place 1 sheet of phyllo on work surface, keeping remainder covered with a damp towel to prevent drying out.
• Brush lightly with some of the butter; top with second sheet and brush lightly with butter.
• Centre 1 breast on phyllo about 2 inches from the short edge; fold long sides over chicken and roll up.
• Repeat with remaining chicken.
• Place in lightly greased baking dish; brush with remaining butter.
• If making ahead, cover and refrigerate for up to 8 hours.
• Bake in 350 degree F oven until crisp and golden, about 45 minutes.
• Serve with lemon wedges.

KOTOPITA: GREEK STYLE CHICKEN IN PHYLLO PIE

Steps:

• ​Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, 200 degrees Celsius.
• ​Wash the chicken with cold water and pat it dry. Make sure to remove anything that may be inside the cavity.
• ​Pour the olive oil over the chicken and season both sides with the herbs and spices.
• Cover the chicken with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes.
• ​Remove the foil and bake uncovered 40 additional minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked.
• Allow to cool completely.
• ​In the meantime make the filling by cooking the garlic cloves with the diced onions and oil in a pan for about 15 minutes or until soft.
• ​Add the diced bell peppers, season with some salt and pepper and cook 5-6 minutes or until they soften and release their juices.
• ​When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat and set the bones aside to make broth another day.
• Shred the meat or chop it. About 4 cups are needed for this recipe.
• ​Add the meat and the sautéed pepper mixture to a large bowl and mix well to combine.
• ​Make the béchamel sauce by combining the olive oil and flour to a saucepan. Cook over medium heat while whisking until it becomes slightly toasted.
• ​Add the milk, salt. pepper, and nutmeg. Whisk well to combine. Take care to not add too much salt. There will be lots of cheese in the filling which is already salty.
• Bring the mixture to a boil and continue whisking until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.
• ​Remove from heat and add about a cup of this mixture to the eggs. Whisk to incorporate and to temper them.
• ​Add the egg mixture to the saucepan and whisk well to combine.
• Pour the béchamel sauce into the mixing bowl with the filling. Add the cheeses and mix well.
• ​Add some fresh thyme and taste to see if any more salt and pepper is needed.
• ​I always add a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes. It's up to you to do the same or to just leave it out.
• Set the filling aside.
• ​Note: Phyllo dough comes in various thicknesses. The thinner the phyllo, the more sheets will be in a pack. The thicker phyllo will have fewer sheets since it is sold by weight. I usually buy the #4 thickness. Any phyllo will do.
• ​Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, 170 degrees Celsius.
• Remove the phyllo from its packaging. Separate it into 2 equal stacks. One will be for the bottom and the other for the top of the pie. I like to use a little more for the bottom and less for the top. It's a matter of personal preference. The pie will still be delicious either way.
• Brush the baking pan with melted butter.
• Take 2-4 sheets of phyllo and place them at the 12:00 position of the pan (as if you were looking at a clock)placing half in the pan and the other half should hang out of the pan.
• ​Drizzle some melted butter on top of the phyllo.
• Take 2-4 more phyllo sheets and place them at the 3:00 position of the baking pan, half in half hanging out.
• ​Drizzle them with some more melted butter.
• ​Take 2-4 more phyllo sheets and place them down in the bottom of the pan. Drizzle with melted butter.
• ​Take 2-4 phyllo sheets and place them at the 9:00 position of the baking pan. Drizzle with butter.
• ​Pour all of the filling onto the pan and cover it with the phyllo that is hanging outside of the pan.
• Drizzle with melted butter.
• ​Keep taking 2-4 stacks of phyllo and place them in the pan, tucking the edges in really well. Drizzle with melted butter until all of the phyllo runs out.
• ​Scour the pie into 12 equal pieces and pour the remaining butter all over the pie. Sprinkle thetop with some sesame seeds.
• ​Bake 45 -60 minutes or until the pie is golden brown on top and the filling is bubbling.
• ​Sometimes, it can take 1 hour and 15 minutes to be ready.
• Allow the pie at least 20-30 minutes to rest at room temperature so that the filling sets and it will be easy to slice and serve.
• Enjoy!

GREEK STYLE CHICKEN WRAPPED IN PHYLLO

Steps:

• Pound chicken breasts between 2 pieces of plastic wrap to 1/4 inch thickness.
• Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat; add chicken; cook until brown on both sides; remove & drain on paper towels then set aside.
• Wipe out skillet, then melt 1/4 cup butter in same skillet over medium heat.
• Add onion; cook and stir until golden; add mushrooms, parsley flakes, dill, garlic and spinach; cook and stir about 2 minutes.
• Stir in flour, mixing well. Gradually stir in vermouth; cook, stirring constantly, until thickened; stir in ricotta, feta, salt and pepper; remove from heat.
• Preheat oven to 350°F
• Brush melted butter on 1 phyllo sheet; sprinkle with bread crumbs; cover with another sheet; brush with butter.
• Place chicken breast in center of phyllo; spoon 1/6 of the spinach/cheese mixture on top.
• Fold phyllo over chicken, turning ends under; repeat for each chicken breast.
• Place in a single layer in well greased baking pan & brush tops with butter. Bake for 45 minutes or until brown.

NEW YEAR'S DAY GREEK FILO CHICKEN PIE (KOTOPITA)

Steps:

• Place the chicken pieces, onions, olive oil and seasoning in a heavy Dutch oven. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for about 40 minutes. (Do not add any water, as the chicken and the onions will release their own liquid and will braise nicely.)
• Remove the chicken, let it cool slightly, and then shred it (or chop it up) into small pieces. Set aside in a bowl. Meanwhile, continue to cook the onions for another 30 minutes. When tender, mash them with a fork and add to the chicken. At this point, taste and adjust the seasoning. Let the mixture cool completely.
• Sprinkle the semolina over the mixture and blend well. Add the parsley, fresh dill, eggs, and cream. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 375 °F.
• Start layering a 15"x10"x2" glass or ceramic pan with filo sheets: First, brush some oil on all sides of the pan, then proceed to line with 10 filo sheets, brushing olive oil on each one of them. Without oiling the 10th filo layer, pour the mixture over the stacked filo and arrange equally in the pan. Top with the remaining sheets, brushing each one of them with olive oil. Fold the overhanging filo, back over the top of the chicken pie. With a sharp knife, carefully mark the top few filo sheets in square shapes, so the filo does not crumble when it is cut through.
• Sprinkle some water over the pie and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until filo is lightly golden. Let it cool for 15 minutes before cutting and serving.

GREEK PHYLLO-WRAPPED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 F.
• In bowl, mash together feta cheese, egg yolks and garlic. Mix in onions, parsley, mint and pepper.
• Cut chicken breast in half almost but not all the way through; open like book. Spread feta mixture evenly on 1 half of each breast; fold breast over to enclose.
• Place 1 sheet of phyllo on work surface, keeping remainder covered with damp towel to prevent drying out. Brush lightly with some of the butter; top with second sheet and brush lightly with butter. Centre 1 breast on phyllo about 2 inches (5 cm) from short edge; fold long sides over chicken and roll up. Repeat with remaining chicken.
• Place in lightly greased baking dish; brush with remaining butter. (Make-ahead: Cover and refrigerate for up to 8 hours.).
• Bake in 350°F (180°C) oven until crisp and golden, about 45 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.

GREEK CHICKEN IN A PHYLLO WRAP WITH TZATZIKI SAUCE

Steps:

• 1. Make the tzatzki sauce enough ahead to allow flavors to marry. Combine the yogurt, cucumbers, garlic. lemon juice, salt, mint and hot sauce. Cover and chill.
• 2. Cut the chicken into 6 strips, the long way.
• 3. Put the chicken in a zip lock bag and add the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and salt and pepper.
• 4. Rotate bag a few times and refrigerate at least 1 hour, longer is better.
• 5. Make a pocket in each piece of chicken by slicing the side and opening up the chicken like a book.
• 6. How much you want to stuff is to your judgement, I put in about a teaspoon each of artichokes, olives and feta.
• 7. Close the chicken up and season with oregano, and salt and pepper.
• 8. Line a cookie sheet with foil (no cleanup) and spray with non stick spray.
• 9. Melt the butter, and open up the Phyllo. Cover the phyllo with plastic wrap and then a damp towel, removing the sheets one by one.
• 10. Brush melted butter on the first sheet, from the middle out to the edges, repeat until you have 6 sheets.
• 11. Cut the sheets crosswise wide enough to cover your filling, maybe about 4 inches.
• 12. Place a piece of chicken on the dough, season with salt, pepper and oregano, wrap it around the chicken, and set on the prepared cookie sheet. Repeat for the rest of the chicken pieces and the phyllo.
• 13. Bake in a preheated 425° for 15 minutes, then turn oven down to 400° if it looks like the dough is cooking too fast.
• 14. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until internal temp is 180° Serve with tzatziki sauce.