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Kalliopi's KitchenGreek food recipes

Pantry Staples

Olive Oil

Ελαιόλαδο · Elaiolado

Greek extra virgin olive oil being poured
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Greece consumes more olive oil per person than almost any other country on earth, and the reason shows up clearly in the ladera family of dishes, vegetables cooked slowly in a genuinely substantial quantity of oil until the oil itself thickens and becomes part of the sauce rather than simply the medium the vegetables are fried in. That distinction, oil as sauce rather than oil as cooking fat, is the single idea that explains why Greek vegetable cooking uses so much more of it than most people expect.

Crete in particular is often treated as the origin point of the Mediterranean diet as a concept, since the original research that defined the pattern of eating studied what Cretans actually ate in the 1960s, a diet built substantially around exactly this kind of oil-forward vegetable cookery, wild greens, and pulses.

Extra virgin olive oil, cold-pressed without heat or chemical processing, is the standard choice for both cooking and finishing in Greek kitchens, used generously rather than sparingly, drizzled raw over a finished dip or salad as often as it is used to cook with.

Recipes with olive oil

213 recipes on the site use it. Here are 36 of them.

A tray of Greek moussaka with a browned bechamel top, one square lifted outMoussakaMousakas ΜουσακάςMain Courses · 1h 55m · serves 8A bowl of thick white tzatziki with olive oil pooled on top and a sprig of dillTzatzikiTzatziki ΤζατζίκιDips and Sauces · 15m · serves 6A Greek village salad with tomato wedges, cucumber, red onion and a whole slab of feta topped with oreganoGreek SaladHoriatiki salata Χωριάτικη σαλάταSalads · 12m · serves 4A tray of spanakopita cut into squares showing green spinach filling under crisp golden phylloSpanakopitaSpanakopita ΣπανακόπιταBreads and Pies · 1h 30m · serves 8Charred pork souvlaki skewers on a wooden board with lemon wedges and oreganoPork SouvlakiSouvlaki ΣουβλάκιMain Courses · 32m · serves 4A slice of pastitsio showing distinct layers of pasta, meat sauce and golden bechamelPastitsioPastitsio ΠαστίτσιοMain Courses · 1h 40m · serves 8A dish of baked giant beans in a rich orange tomato sauce with parsley and olive oilBaked Giant Beans in TomatoGigantes plaki Γίγαντες πλακίMain Courses · 2h 5m · serves 6A bowl of rough-textured aubergine dip with olive oil, parsley and a scattering of walnutsSmoky Aubergine DipMelitzanosalata ΜελιτζανοσαλάταDips and Sauces · 45m · serves 6Lemon PotatoesPatates lemonates Πατάτες λεμονάτεςSide Dishes · 1h 35m · serves 6A plate of dark boiled greens dressed with olive oil and lemon wedgesHortaHorta vrasta Χόρτα βραστάSide Dishes · 35m · serves 4A bowl of golden loukoumades glossy with honey, dusted with cinnamon and chopped walnutsLoukoumadesLoukoumades ΛουκουμάδεςDesserts · 45m · serves 6A barley rusk topped with grated tomato, crumbled white cheese, olives and oreganoCretan DakosDakos ΝτάκοςSalads · 12m · serves 4Thin strips of crisped pork gyros piled in a warm pita with tomato, onion and tzatzikiPork GyrosGyros ΓύροςMain Courses · 2h · serves 6A tray of baked stuffed tomatoes and peppers with browned tops and potato wedges between themGemistaGemista ΓεμιστάMain Courses · 2h 10m · serves 6A plate of golden brown Greek meatballs with lemon wedges and fresh mintKeftedesKeftedes ΚεφτέδεςMeze and Appetisers · 45m · serves 6A bowl of thick Greek white bean soup with carrot and celery, olive oil pooled on the surfaceFasoladaFasolada ΦασολάδαSoups · 1h 45m · serves 6A slice of golden fried Greek cheese in a small pan with a lemon wedgeSaganakiSaganaki ΣαγανάκιMeze and Appetisers · 15m · serves 4Oval honey-soaked Greek Christmas cookies topped with chopped walnutsMelomakaronaMelomakarona ΜελομακάροναDesserts · 1h 5m · serves 30A tray of collapsed roasted Greek vegetables, browned at the edges and glossy with olive oilBriamBriam ΜπριάμMain Courses · 2h · serves 6Thin slices of veal in a pale garlic and parsley sauce with rice alongsideVeal in Garlic and Vinegar SauceSofrito ΣοφρίτοMain Courses · 1h 35m · serves 4A bowl of smooth yellow split pea puree topped with raw red onion, capers and olive oilYellow Split Pea PureeFava Santorinis Φάβα ΣαντορίνηςDips and Sauces · 1h · serves 6A square of Greek cheese pie with crisp layered phyllo and a pale creamy fillingTiropitaTiropita ΤυρόπιταBreads and Pies · 1h 15m · serves 8Slow-cooked Greek lamb kleftiko falling off the bone with potatoes and lemonKleftikoKleftiko ΚλέφτικοMain Courses · 4h 25m · serves 6Charred grilled octopus tentacles dressed with olive oil, vinegar and oreganoGrilled OctopusHtapodi sta karvouna Χταπόδι στα κάρβουναMeze and Appetisers · 1h 30m · serves 4Prawns baked in tomato sauce with melting feta and parsley in a small panPrawns with Feta and TomatoGarides saganaki Γαρίδες σαγανάκιMain Courses · 37m · serves 4Greek scrambled eggs with tomato and crumbled feta in a pan with breadScrambled Eggs with Tomato and FetaStrapatsada ΣτραπατσάδαBreakfast Recipes · 23m · serves 3Golden grilled halloumi slices with lemon wedges and dried mintGrilled HalloumiHalloumi ΧαλλούμιMeze and Appetisers · 11m · serves 4Rolled stuffed vine leaves arranged in a dish with lemon wedges and olive oilDolmadesDolmades ΝτολμάδεςMeze and Appetisers · 1h 50m · serves 8A pot of Greek beef stifado with whole small onions in a dark cinnamon-spiced sauceStifadoStifado ΣτιφάδοMain Courses · 3h · serves 6A bowl of thick Greek lentil soup with olive oil and a small jug of vinegarLentil Soup with VinegarFakes ΦακέςSoups · 1h 7m · serves 6Crisp Rhodian chickpea fritters piled on paper with lemon wedgesRhodes Chickpea and Tomato FrittersPitaroudia ΠιταρούδιαMeze and Appetisers · 45m · serves 6Pork and Celery in Egg-Lemon SauceHirino me selino Χοιρινό με σέλινοMain Courses · 2h 5m · serves 6Cypriot koupepia stuffed vine leaves arranged on a plate with lemonCypriot Stuffed Vine Leaves with MeatKoupepia ΚουπέπιαMain Courses · 1h 50m · serves 6Cypriot afelia pork in a dark red wine and coriander seed sauceCypriot Pork in Red Wine and CorianderAfelia ΑφέλιαMain Courses · 1h 30m · serves 4Cypriot black-eyed bean and chard salad dressed with olive oil and lemonCypriot Black-Eyed Bean Salad with ChardLouvi ΛούβιSide Dishes · 55m · serves 4Cypriot Clay-Pot Lamb and RiceTavas ΤαβάςMain Courses · 2h 55m · serves 6

More pantry staples

HoneyWalnutsAlmondsBrandyCapersOlivesOuzoPetimeziRose WaterSaltSesame SeedsSugarTsipouroVinegarWine