Chicken kebabs baked in Yogurt Sauce

Chicken kebabs baked in Yogurt Sauce is a dish inspired by the Greek dish Keftedes Me Yiourti aka Meatballs baked in Yogurt Sauce.  I found the recipe in Diane Kochilas's cookbook  The Glorious Foods of Greece. In the original recipe  ground veal is used and I guess that makes everything different. The first time I tried the recipe using chicken in place of veal and the end product was not as delicious as I had expected it to be. so over my subsequent trials I tweaked the recipe here and there

until Mr MN and I were wowed by the present version.

I must mention here that I cut the ground chicken into square pieces rather than shaping them into discs or balls like conventional kebabs. That is just because it was the easier and a less messy thing to do. if you like, you can sweat a little more and shape the chicken mixture the way you like before baking them. But my guess is that the shape will not alter the taste. So why waste your time and energy ;-)

for the chicken kebabs

• 4 pieces of chicken tenders
• 1 medium sized onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, grated
• 1/2 cup parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 1/2 teaspoon Dhana jeera powder
• 2 tablespoon light mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• salt and pepper to taste

for the yogurt sauce

• 3/4 cup yogurt
• 3/4 cup light mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoon grainy mustard sauce
• 1 egg
• salt, pepper and sugar to taste
• 1-2 teaspoons dried chives

for garnish

• 2 green chilies, slit across (optional)

what i did

• I soaked the chicken pieces in water  for about 1 hour, then ground it in the blender.
• next, adding the rest of the ingredients for the chicken tiles to the ground chicken, i kneaded the mixture till it was well combined. then covering the mixture i kept it in the refrigerator for 3 hours.
• when i was ready to cook, i preheated the oven to 375 degree F, put a sheet of parchment paper on a Swiss roll tin, spread the chicken mixture on the prepared tray, then transferred the tray into the preheated oven and baked the chicken for 30 minutes.
• at the end of 30 minutes, i took out the tray, cut the chicken mixture into 1 -1 1/2 inch tiles, turned each of the tiles and put the tray back in the oven to baked for another 15 minutes.
• in the mean time i added the ingredients of the sauce in a bowl and whipped it lightly till the ingredients were well combined. then poured the sauce into a 8x8 inch baking pan.
• once the chicken tiles were baked, i brought the tray out from the oven, then using a spatula i carefully scooped  out the chicken tiles from the tray and lightly pressed them into the yogurt sauce taking care so that the sauce does not get over-packed with the tiles. . (about 1/3 of the tiles did not fit into the sauce. i simply freezed them for another day.) 
• then i slit 2 green chilies, put in on top of the sauce and  baked the chicken tiles in the sauce for 20 minutes at 375 degree F, then increasing the heat to 425 degrees F, i baked it for another 10 minutes till the sauce was set and slightly browned near the edges.  

and that was it.... i then served it with spicy brown rice pilaf and we enjoyed our dinner very much. 

you can also enjoy the chicken tiles by themselves. just brown the baked pieces on a heated pan  before serving. that is how i served it to my 18 month old son.

Bon Appetit ! 

update : the second click was using a film camera. and as you can tell Mr MN is still in the process of learning the skills required for Food Photography using it. i however like the dreamy effect that lingers in that shot and feel that in spite of the drawbacks the second one looks prettier than the first. don't you agree ?

sharing this with the following weekly events..  Clever Chicks Blog Hop #33 @

Monday Food:  Marvelous Mondays @ This Gal Cooks, Manic Monday @ Serendipity and Spice
Tuesday Food:  Tempt my Tummy @Blessed with Grace, Totally Tasty Tuesday @ Mandy's Recipe Box, Tasteful Tuesday Party @ Nap Time Creations,  Show Me What You Got @ Our Delightful Home,  Hand Made Tuesday @ Ladybug Blessings, Share it Link Party @ Winthrop Chronicles, Hearth and Soul Blog Hop, Slightly Indulgent Tuesday 

Wednesday Food : Wow Me Wednesday, What's Cooking Wednesday @ Confessions of Overworked Mom, Cast Party Wednesday @ Lady Behind the Curtain ,  Wednesday Whatsit @White Lights on , Show and Share @ Semi Homemade Mom, Wonderful Food Wednesdays at @ Home Take 2, Seasonal Celebration @ Natural Mother's Network, Whole Foods Wednesday #98

Thursday Food:Link it Up Thursday @ Seven Alive, Creative Thursday @ Michelle's Tasty Creations, Fantastic Thursday @ Three Little Chiefs, Thriving on Thursdays @ Domesblissity, Freedom Friday @ My Turn, Full Plate Thursday @ Miz Helen's Country Cottage
Friday Food: Foodie Friday @ Home Maid Simple, Friday Favorite (DYI too) @ Simple Sweet Home, Foodie Friday @ Not Your Ordinary Recipes,  Foodie Friday @ Rattlebridge Farm , Weekend Wonders @ The Thriftiness Miss, Friday Food Frenzy @ Mostly Food and Crafts , Weekend Potluck @ Sunflower Supper Club,  The Weekend re-Treat @The Best Blog  Recipes, Fresh Bites Friday @ Real Food, Wellness Weekend, Weekend Kitchen Link Party

and here are some products from amazon that i thought you might like... 
a pretty rose blossom bowl, the Greek cookbook that inspired this dish, a yogurt maker and a yogurt cheese maker...