Famed for its diverse ingredients and captivating history, Greek food includes veggies, fruit, herbs, mushrooms, fish, olives, pasta, and many kinds of meat. The ancient origins of many of the dishes, along with the ease of preparation and bright, Mediterranean flavours have made staple Greek dishes popular worldwide.
You’ll find street vendors offering and serving Greek dishes, all over the world, to speak not of the restaurants! The massive influence of Greek delicacies means that you can take plenty of the dishes to your home as well – be it making the food yourself or simply having it delivered to you. Either way, this list of Greek must-tastes is sure to help you out; we have included some more obscure dishes as well!
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Souvlaki
Souvlaki is meat that is grilled to a delicious crisp on a skewer. It’s tasty, simple and entertaining to eat, and is one of the more well-known dishes that Greece has to offer. The Souvlaki is usually made with pork, but variants exist that use lamb, poultry or even fish.
Papoutsakia
A rather unique but delicious dish – stuffed aubergine! Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and some Asian cuisines seem to like aubergine a lot, and after you see the result of this recipe, we bet you’ll agree. The aubergine is stuffed with herbs, meat and/or veggies depending on the recipe, and covered with a delicious cheese coating. Consider trying this unique and uncommon dish from a devoted local producer!
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Olives
Olives? Aren’t those just an add-on for food? Olive oil is used in recipes in more than just Greek cooking, and olives themselves are often part of a larger dish. Some are surprised to find out how great olives can be on their own, especially fresh! Definitely one of the most underrated, yet overused ingredients, and Greek olives are ones to watch out for.
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Baklava
An Ottoman dessert that has found its way into Greece centuries ago, the Baklava is made from sweet and natural ingredients such as nuts, honey, and is unlike most similar-looking desserts or sweets. Just make sure the ingredients are good quality and dive into this unique traditional treat.
Seafood
Seafood is one of the keystones of Greek cooking. The selection of dishes ranges from steamed salmon to shrimps, to the famous Calamari (squid rings, usually fried but sometimes chargrilled). Most of Greece has easy access to the sea, and it is no surprise that there is an abundance of unique recipes to discover. Luckily, plenty of restaurants will offer you some delicious Greek seafood.
Tourlou
Tourlou is the vegetarian option of this list, but boy are you wrong if you expect it to be worse than the above. The Tourlou is a mix of roasted veggies. It’s special because instead of being quickly cooked, the vegetables are roasted over a very long duration. This results in a far more rich and unique taste. The huge list of ingredients: tomatoes, zucchini, beans, garlic, onions, potatoes, peppers, olives, eggplants… (Tourlou is also less commonly known as Briam).
What do you think? Clearly, Greek food is not just all moussaka and kebabs, that’s for sure.
