Fried Smoked Cheese from Epirus Recipe (Saganaki Metsovone)

Saganaki, cheese fried in a hot pan until the outside crisps and the inside turns soft, is made across Greece with whatever firm cheese is on hand, but the version built specifically on Metsovone, the smoked cheese from the mountain town of Metsovo in Epirus, has a genuinely distinctive character that a plainer kefalotyri or graviera does not.

The smoking gives Metsovone real depth before it ever meets the pan, and frying concentrates that smokiness further, along with the cheese's natural saltiness, into something considerably more complex than a standard saganaki.

The technique is identical to any other saganaki: a hot pan, a light flour dusting, a quick fry, and a squeeze of lemon right at the end, but the choice of cheese here is genuinely what elevates it into its own specific, regional dish.

Key preparation steps

Cut Metsovone into thick slices.
Dust lightly in flour.
Fry hard and fast until deeply golden on both sides.
Finish with lemon and serve immediately.

About Metsovone

Metsovone is a semi-hard cow's milk cheese, traditionally smoked, from Metsovo, a mountain town in Epirus with a strong dairy tradition of its own. It has a firm enough texture to hold its shape when fried, similar to kefalotyri, but carries a genuine smoky depth that a plainer hard cheese does not.

Frying

Cut the cheese into thick slices, around one and a half centimetres, and dust lightly in flour, shaking off any excess. Fry in a hot, dry pan or with a very small amount of oil, for one to two minutes per side, until deeply golden and slightly molten inside, watching closely since the flour coating can burn quickly at the heat this dish wants.

Finishing and serving

A generous squeeze of lemon right at the table, sometimes flambeed briefly with a splash of brandy in the more theatrical taverna style, is the classic finish. Serve immediately with bread, since saganaki firms up again within minutes of leaving the pan.

What matters in this dish

Watch the heat closely

The flour coating can burn quickly at the temperature this dish needs. Keep an eye on it rather than walking away.

Use Metsovone specifically for the real version

A plainer kefalotyri gives good, standard saganaki, but the smoked character of Metsovone is what makes this dish its own thing.

Serve immediately

Saganaki firms back up within minutes of coming out of the pan and is at its best hot and molten.

Questions people ask about Saganaki Metsovone

What makes saganaki Metsovone different from regular saganaki?

The cheese itself, Metsovone, a smoked cow's milk cheese from Metsovo in Epirus, which gives the finished dish a genuinely smoky depth that a plainer hard cheese like kefalotyri does not have.

Where can you buy Metsovone?

Greek delicatessens and well-stocked cheese counters sometimes carry it, since it is a genuine regional Epirus product with its own recognisable character.

Can you flambe saganaki?

Yes, a splash of brandy added to the hot pan and briefly ignited is a common, more theatrical taverna presentation, though it is entirely optional and the dish is just as good without it.

Fried Smoked Cheese from Epirus (Saganaki Metsovone)