Collection
25 Greek Comfort Food Recipes
The slow, heavy, wintry end of the repertoire. Baked pasta, stews, and anything with bechamel on top.
The slow, heavy, wintry end of Greek cooking. Baked pasta, stews, roasts, and anything with bechamel on top.
Pastitsio and the Cypriot baked macaroni are the baked pastas, with giouvetsi and baked chicken with orzo beside them. Little shoes are aubergines under bechamel. Kleftiko, roast lamb with lemon and lemon chicken with its potatoes are among the roasts.
Comfort does not have to mean meat. Baked giant beans, briam, the chickpea bake of Sifnos and aubergine stuffed with rice are as filling as anything here.
Every recipe on Kalliopi's Kitchen carries the dish's Greek name and a pronunciation, its region where that is meaningful, ingredient quantities in both metric and imperial, and an honest note on what commonly goes wrong. Nutrition figures are calculated estimates and are labelled as such.
1. Pastitsio
Παστίτσιο · pah-STEE-tsee-oh
The baked pasta Greek families make more often than moussaka, because it costs less, forgives more and nobody at the table refuses it. Two things make it Greek and not Italian: cinnamon in the meat sauce, and a bechamel layer as deep as the pasta underneath it.
Yiayia’s tip: Lay the pasta the same way. If you are using long tubes, lay them all running in one direction. Cutting across the grain afterwards gives clean square portions rather than ragged ones.
Make Pastitsio2. Baked Giant Beans in Tomato
Gigantes plaki · Γίγαντες πλακί · YEE-ghan-des plah-KEE
The beans come mainly from Kastoria and Prespes in northern Greece. They are larger and creamier than a butter bean and drink up sauce without collapsing. This is a ladera dish: the olive oil is the sauce, not a mistake in the recipe. It is vegan as it stands, and on every Greek fasting table.
Yiayia’s tip: Old beans never soften. Dried beans more than a year or so old can refuse to cook properly no matter what you do. If a batch is still hard after an hour of simmering, the beans are the problem, not your method.
Make Baked Giant Beans in Tomato3. Pork Gyros
Gyros · Γύρος · YEE-ros
Nobody has a vertical rotisserie at home and nobody needs one. Marinated pork slices are pressed onto an upright skewer in a tin and roasted as one piece, so the fat runs down and bastes what is below. Then the meat is sliced thin and crisped in a hot pan. Most home versions skip that.
Yiayia’s tip: Freeze briefly before slicing. Forty minutes in the freezer firms the joint enough to slice thin and evenly. Trying to slice soft pork shoulder thinly is genuinely difficult.
Make Pork Gyros4. Briam
Μπριάμ · bree-AHM
It looks like ratatouille and works the opposite way. Ratatouille keeps each vegetable separate. Here courgette, aubergine, pepper, potato and tomato all go in one tray and cook until they stop being separate things, their water and the olive oil turning to sauce. Forty minutes gives roasted vegetables. Ninety gives briam.
Yiayia’s tip: Use a big tray. A deep pile takes far longer and steams rather than browning. A large shallow layer is what you want, even if it means using two tins.
Make Briam5. Kleftiko
Κλέφτικο · KLEF-tee-koh
Kleftis means thief. The klefts were mountain fighters under Ottoman rule who stole a sheep and had to cook it with no smoke to give them away, so it went into a closed pit over embers. A sealed parcel does the pit's job now. Twenty-five minutes of work, then four hours unopened in the oven.
Yiayia’s tip: Two layers, paper inside foil. Foil alone can react with the lemon and leave a metallic edge on the meat. Baking paper next to the food and foil outside it gives you a reliable seal without that risk.
Make Kleftiko6. Cypriot Baked Macaroni
Makaronia tou fournou · Μακαρόνια του φούρνου · mah-kah-ROH-nyah too FOOR-noo
Cyprus's version of pastitsio, and the difference is on top. There is no bechamel. Halloumi is grated into beaten egg and poured over the pasta, where it sets like a savoury custard, salty and springy. The meat sauce underneath has the same cinnamon. With no roux to go wrong, it is the easier dish.
Yiayia’s tip: Grate the halloumi coarsely. A fine grate disappears into the egg. Coarse shreds keep some texture in the finished topping.
Make Cypriot Baked Macaroni7. Lemon Roast Chicken and Potatoes
Kotopoulo lemonato · Κοτόπουλο λεμονάτο · koh-TOH-poo-loh leh-moh-NAH-toh
The tray tied most closely to Sunday lunch in Greece. Chicken joints and potato wedges roast together in lemon, oregano, garlic and olive oil, and the potatoes come out tasting of the chicken as much as of the lemon. Use bone-in pieces with the skin on. After the marinating it mostly looks after itself.
Yiayia’s tip: Give the potatoes a head start. Twenty minutes alone in the oven before the chicken joins them is what lets both finish tender and golden at the same time.
Make Lemon Roast Chicken and Potatoes8. Giouvetsi
Γιουβέτσι · yoo-VEHT-see
Named for its pot, an individual clay dish traditionally used for cooking and serving. Beef braises in a tomato sauce warmed with cinnamon, then orzo, kritharaki in Greek, goes into the same dish and drinks the sauce as it bakes. The sauce should look too loose at that point. The orzo takes a lot.
Yiayia’s tip: Do not rush the beef stage. The braise needs its full two hours to reach the fall-apart tenderness that makes this dish worth the effort. The orzo stage is quick by comparison.
Make Giouvetsi9. Stuffed Aubergine "Little Shoes"
Papoutsakia · Παπουτσάκια · pah-poo-TSAH-kyah
The name means little shoes, after the shape of each filled aubergine half. Much of what goes into moussaka goes in here too, the cinnamon-warmed meat sauce and the bechamel on top, but it is built in individual halves instead of sliced layers. That makes it the simpler and faster of the two.
Yiayia’s tip: Roast the aubergine properly soft. Underdone aubergine is too firm to hollow cleanly and stays tough once baked again.
Make Stuffed Aubergine "Little Shoes"10. Aubergine Baked with Onion and Tomato
Melitzanes imam · Μελιτζάνες ιμάμ · meh-leed-ZAH-nes ee-MAHM
Across the former Ottoman world there is a dish called imam bayildi, and this is the Greek one. Whole aubergines are split, filled with onion, garlic and tomato, and baked long in a great deal of olive oil. The oil ends up as the sauce, and bread is there to mop it.
Yiayia’s tip: Choose smaller aubergines if possible. They cook through more evenly than very large ones and are easier to fill neatly.
Make Aubergine Baked with Onion and Tomato11. Baked Aubergine with Feta and Tomato
Melitzanes me feta · Μελιτζάνες με φέτα · meh-leed-ZAH-nes meh FEH-tah
Less than a moussaka, more than a tray of roasted vegetables, and nowhere near the work of the first. Aubergine slices are layered with a quick tomato sauce and baked under feta until it softens and colours. The feta has to be thick, or the dish is plain. Eat it hot, with bread.
Yiayia’s tip: Roast the aubergine properly first. This concentrates its flavour and removes the raw bitterness that skipping this step would leave in the finished dish.
Make Baked Aubergine with Feta and Tomato12. Vegan Stuffed Aubergine with Rice
Melitzanes gemistes · Μελιτζάνες γεμιστές · meh-leed-ZAH-nes yeh-mee-STES
Gemista usually means tomatoes and peppers stuffed with rice. Aubergine takes the same filling, rice with tomato and herbs and no meat, which makes this Lenten cooking. It is far lighter than papoutsakia, the aubergine boat with meat sauce and bechamel. Next day, at room temperature, it is as good as warm.
Yiayia’s tip: Leave a sturdy shell. Scoop the flesh out generously but not so much that the aubergine cannot hold its shape once stuffed and baked.
Make Vegan Stuffed Aubergine with Rice13. Roast Lamb Leg with Lemon
Arnaki lemonato · Αρνάκι λεμονάτο · ar-NAH-kee leh-moh-NAH-toh
The oven answer to souvla, for Sundays when nobody is lighting charcoal. A whole lamb leg gets lemon, garlic and oregano and a long, covered roast at moderate heat, closer to a braise than a roast. That is why it pulls off the bone instead of slicing chewy. The oven does the middle hours.
Yiayia’s tip: Brown it before the slow roast. A brief sear develops real surface flavour that a purely covered, low roast alone would not achieve.
Make Roast Lamb Leg with Lemon14. Kalymnos Courgette and Herb Frittata
Sfougato Kalymnou · Σφουγγάτο Καλύμνου · sfoo-GAH-toh kah-LEEM-noo
Part omelette, part savoury cake. Grated courgette and potato are bound with plenty of egg and baked or pan-fried. The Kalymnos version leans hard on fresh dill and mint, which are its character and not a garnish. It is eaten hot, and just as often cold the next day, cut into wedges.
Yiayia’s tip: Drain the vegetables properly. Both courgette and potato hold real water content. Skipping this step leaves a mixture that will not set properly.
Make Kalymnos Courgette and Herb Frittata15. Turkey Stuffed with Chestnuts
Galopoula gemisti me kastana · Γαλοπούλα γεμιστή με κάστανα · gah-loh-POO-lah yeh-mee-STEE meh KAH-stah-nah
Turkey came late to the Greek Christmas table, and Greek cooks gave it their own filling: minced meat, rice, chestnuts and pine nuts, cooked with warm spices before it goes anywhere near the bird. There is no bread in it at all. It takes five hours, so plan the day around it.
Yiayia’s tip: Stuff loosely, never tightly. The rice expands considerably as it finishes cooking inside the bird. Packing it tightly risks uneven cooking and a food safety issue.
Make Turkey Stuffed with Chestnuts16. Aubergine-Wrapped Rice Rolls
Dolmades me melitzana · Ντολμάδες με μελιτζάνα · dohl-MAH-thes meh meh-leed-ZAH-nah
Dolmades without the leaf. Strips of grilled aubergine wrap the rice and herbs, and the rolls bake in a light tomato sauce. A vine leaf is neutral, while aubergine is soft, smoky and has body of its own, so this is a vegan main course and not a side. Roll firmly, because the rice swells.
Yiayia’s tip: Slice the aubergine thin and even. This is what lets each strip roll around the filling without cracking or tearing.
Make Aubergine-Wrapped Rice Rolls17. Roast Goat with Lemon
Katsikaki lemonato · Κατσικάκι λεμονάτο · kah-tsee-KAH-kee leh-moh-NAH-toh
Outsiders think of Greek Easter as lamb. In the Cyclades and Crete, where goat has long been as common as sheep, it is on the table as often. The method is that of arnaki lemonato: lemon, garlic, oregano and a long covered roast. Goat tastes a little stronger and more mineral, and can need longer.
Yiayia’s tip: Ask for kid goat specifically. Katsikaki, young goat, is considerably more tender than older goat meat and is the right choice for this dish.
Make Roast Goat with Lemon18. Baked Chicken with Orzo
Kotopoulo giouvetsi · Κοτόπουλο γιουβέτσι · koh-TOH-poo-loh yoo-VEHT-see
Classic giouvetsi is beef, and beef means hours of braising before the orzo goes in. Chicken brings it down to about an hour and a lighter dish, with the same cinnamon in the tomato sauce and the orzo still baked in it. Keep hot water to hand: the orzo dries it out faster than expected.
Yiayia’s tip: Use bone-in chicken thighs. They stay moist and flavourful over the braise, unlike leaner chicken breast, which can dry out.
Make Baked Chicken with Orzo19. Cypriot Clay-Pot Lamb and Rice
Tavas · Ταβάς · tah-VAHS
Named for the pot, not for anything in it. A tavas is the round, wide clay dish Cypriots bake this in: lamb, a great many onions and rice, with cumin and cinnamon. Half stew, half pilaf. Thick unglazed walls give a gentler heat than metal. A heavy cast iron casserole is the next best thing.
Yiayia’s tip: Do not lift the lid. Every check releases heat and steam that a two-and-a-half-hour covered bake depends on. Trust the time and check only near the end.
Make Cypriot Clay-Pot Lamb and Rice20. Sifnos Sunday Chickpea Bake
Revithada · Ρεβιθάδα · reh-vee-THAH-thah
On Sifnos this is Sunday food: the pot is filled on Saturday night and goes into the village's wood-fired oven until after church, twelve hours or more. Chickpeas, one onion, bay leaves, olive oil and water are all that go in. A home oven set very low does the job. Salt only at the end.
Yiayia’s tip: Only dried chickpeas will work. Tinned ones are already cooked and will simply fall apart over this length of bake. Soaking dried chickpeas overnight is not a shortcut you can skip.
Make Sifnos Sunday Chickpea Bake21. Sifnos Lamb Baked in Wine and Dill
Mastelo Sifnou · Μαστέλο Σίφνου · mah-STEH-loh SEEF-noo
Sifnos is known for clay pottery, and mastelo is the name of both the dish and its shallow pot. Lamb or goat bakes slowly with dill and red wine until the wine is a sauce. It is the island's Easter Sunday meal. A heavy lidded casserole will do, with wine only halfway up the meat.
Yiayia’s tip: Use a properly generous amount of dill. This dish is built around it. A small handful will not give the same depth of flavour as a real bunch.
Make Sifnos Lamb Baked in Wine and Dill22. Zakynthos Garlic and Tomato Bread Bake
Skordostoumbi Zakynthou · Σκορδόστουμπι Ζακύνθου · skor-THOH-stoom-bee zah-KEEN-thoo
Zakynthos does not throw old bread away. It tears it up, soaks it in tomato and plenty of garlic, packs it into a dish and bakes it. The point is the contrast: a crisp top over a soft, saturated middle. A light main course, or a side to grilled fish or meat.
Yiayia’s tip: Use genuinely stale bread. Fresh, soft bread turns to complete mush rather than holding any texture. A day or two old, with a firm crumb, is what this dish wants.
Make Zakynthos Garlic and Tomato Bread Bake23. Baked Fish with Vegetables
Psari plaki · Ψάρι πλακί · PSAH-ree plah-KEE
Plaki means anything baked slowly on a bed of vegetables. Here it is a whole fish laid over onion, garlic, tomato and potato, taking up their juices. This is how Greeks cook a whole fish on a Sunday without a grill. Sea bream or sea bass, something firm, is the choice.
Yiayia’s tip: Give the vegetables a head start. Potato and onion need considerably longer to cook through than the fish. Baking them alone first lets everything finish together.
Make Baked Fish with Vegetables24. Kalymnos Baked Lamb and Potatoes
Fournisto Kalymnou · Φουρνιστό Καλύμνου · foor-nee-STOH kah-LEEM-noo
This was not always baked at home. Kalymnos households carried the tray to the bakery oven the village shared and left it for hours, because not every house had one big or hot enough. Lamb or goat, potatoes, lemon, garlic and oregano: a plain dish. It is still the island's Easter centrepiece.
Yiayia’s tip: Marinate the potatoes along with the meat. This means they carry real flavour of their own, rather than depending only on the meat's juices during the long bake.
Make Kalymnos Baked Lamb and Potatoes25. Sifnos Baked Chickpea Pie
Revithopita Sifnou · Ρεβιθόπιτα Σίφνου · reh-vee-THOH-pee-tah SEEF-noo
The word pita promises phyllo, and there is none. On Sifnos this is cooked chickpeas mashed with onion, lemon and olive oil, plus a little flour, then baked slowly into a dense golden slab. It grew out of the same chickpea habit as the island's revithada. Vegan, filling, and arguably better after a day's rest.
Yiayia’s tip: Cook the chickpeas until genuinely very tender. They need to blend or mash down smoothly, well past the firmness you would want for a salad.
Make Sifnos Baked Chickpea Pie
More Greek Comfort Food
10 more, 35 in all.
MoussakaMousakas ΜουσακάςMain Courses · 1h 55m · serves 8
Avgolemono SoupKotosoupa avgolemono Κοτόσουπα αυγολέμονοSoups · 1h 30m · serves 6
GemistaGemista ΓεμιστάMain Courses · 2h 10m · serves 6
FasoladaFasolada ΦασολάδαSoups · 1h 45m · serves 6
Prawns with Feta and TomatoGarides saganaki Γαρίδες σαγανάκιMain Courses · 37m · serves 4
Whole Baked Sea BreamTsipoura psiti Τσιπούρα ψητήMain Courses · 40m · serves 2Browse other collections
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