Greek cuisine

Greek cuisine (Greek: ελληνική κουζίνα) is a Mediterranean cuisine,[1] sharing characteristics with the cuisines of Italy, the Balkans, Turkey, and the Levant. Contemporary Greek cookery makes wide use of olive oil, vegetables and herbs, grains and bread, wine, fish, and various meats, including poultry, rabbit and pork. Also important are olives, cheese, eggplant (aubergine), courgette, and yogurt. Greek desserts are characterized by the dominant use of nuts and honey. Some dishes use filo pastry.

Mezés (μεζές) is a collective name for a variety of small dishes, typically served with wines or anise-flavored liqueurs as ouzo or homemade tsipouro. Orektika is the formal name for appetizers and is often used as a reference to eating a first course of a cuisine other than Greek cuisine. Dips are served with bread loaf or pita bread. In some regions, dried bread (paximadhi) is softened in water.

Contents

History

Main articles: Ancient Greek cuisine and Byzantine cuisine

Greek cuisine has a long tradition and its flavours change with the season and its geography.[2] Greek cookery, historically a forerunner of Western cuisine, spread its culinary influence - via ancient Rome - throughout Europe and beyond.[3] It has influences from the different people's cuisine the Greeks have interacted with over the centuries, as evidenced by several types of sweets and cooked foods.

It was Archestratos in 320 B.C. who wrote the first cookbook in history. Greece has a culinary tradition of some 4,000 years.[4] Ancient Greek cuisine was characterized by its frugality and was founded on the "Mediterranean triad": wheat, olive oil, and wine, with meat being rarely eaten and fish being more common.[5] This trend in Greek diet continued in Roman and Ottoman times and changed only fairly recently when technological progress has made meat more available. Wine and olive oil have always been a central part of it and the spread of grapes and olive trees in the Mediterranean and further afield is not uncorrelated with Greek colonization.[6][7]

The Byzantine cuisine was similar to the classical cuisine including however new ingredients that were not available before, like caviar, nutmeg and lemons, with fish continuing to be an integral part of the diet. Culinary advice was influenced by the theory of humors, first put forth by the ancient Greek doctor Claudius Aelius Galenus.[8] Byzantine cuisine benefited from Constantinople’s position as a global hub of the spice trade.[9]

Overview

The most characteristic and ancient element of Greek cuisine is olive oil, which is frequently used in most dishes. It is produced from the olive trees prominent throughout the region, and adds to the distinctive taste of Greek food. The basic grain in Greece is wheat, though barley is also grown. Important vegetables include tomato, aubergine (eggplant), potato, green beans, okra, green peppers, and onions. Honey in Greece is mainly honey from the nectar of fruit trees and citrus trees: lemon, orange, bigarade (bitter orange) trees, thyme honey, and pine honey from conifer trees. Mastic (aromatic, ivory coloured resin) is grown on the Aegean island of Chios.

Greek cuisine uses some flavorings more often than other Mediterranean cuisines do, namely: oregano, mint, garlic, onion, dill and bay laurel leaves. Other common herbs and spices include basil, thyme and fennel seed. Persillade is also used as a garnish on some dishes. Many Greek recipes, especially in the northern parts of the country, use "sweet" spices in combination with meat, for example cinnamon and cloves in stews.

The climate and terrain has tended to favour the breeding of goats and sheep over cattle, and thus beef dishes are uncommon. Fish dishes are common in coastal regions and on the islands. A great variety of cheese types are used in Greek cuisine, including Feta, Kasseri, Kefalotyri, Graviera, Anthotyros, Manouri, Metsovone and Mizithra.

Too much refinement is generally considered to be against the hearty spirit of the Greek cuisine, though recent trends among Greek culinary circles tend to favour a somewhat more refined approach.

Dining out is common in Greece, and has been for quite some time. The Taverna and Estiatorio are widespread, serving traditional Greek home cooking at affordable prices to both locals and tourists. Recently, fast-food has also become more popular in Greece and Europe, with local chains such as Goody's springing up, but the McDonald's have mainly closed down. Although fast food is gaining popularity and many major fast-food chains have opened all over Greece, the Greek people still rely primarily on the rich and extensive repertoire of Greek cuisine. In addition, some traditional Greek foods, especially souvlaki, gyros, pita such as tyropita and spanakopita (respectively, cheese and spinach pie) are often served in fast food style.

Origins

Greece has an ancient culinary tradition dating back several millennia, and over the centuries Greek cuisine has evolved and absorbed numerous influences and influenced many cuisines itself.

Some dishes can be traced back to ancient Greece: lentil soup, fasolada, retsina (white or rosé wine flavored with pine resin) and pasteli (candy bar with sesame seeds baked with honey);[10] some to the Hellenistic and Roman periods: loukaniko (dried pork sausage); and Byzantium: feta cheese, avgotaraho (cured fish roe) and paximadi (traditional hard bread baked from corn, barley and rye). There are also many ancient and Byzantine dishes which are no longer consumed: porridge as the main staple, fish sauce, and salt water mixed into wine.

Many dishes are part of the larger tradition of Ottoman cuisine and their names reveal Arabic, Persian or Turkish roots: moussaka, tzatziki, yuvarlakia, keftethes, boureki, and so on. Many dishes' names probably entered the Greek vocabulary during Ottoman times, or earlier in contact with the Persians and the Arabs. Some dishes may be pre-Ottoman, only taking Turkish names later; Ash and Dalby, for example, speculate that grape-leaf dolmathes were made by the early Byzantine period.[11][12]

Regions

Distinct from the main stream regional cuisines are:

Typical dishes

Greek cuisine is very diverse and although there are many common characteristics amongst the culinary traditions of different regions within the country, there are also many differences, making it difficult to present a full list of representative dishes. For example, the vegetarian dish " Chaniotiko Boureki" (oven baked slices of potatoes with zucchini, myzithra cheese and mint) is a typical dish in western Crete, in the region of Chania. A family in Chania may consume this dish 1-2 times per week in the summer season. However, it is not cooked in any other region of Greece. Many food items are wrapped in Filo pastry, either in bite-size triangles or in large sheets: kotopita (chicken), spanakotyropita (spinach and cheese), chortopita (greens), kreatopita (meat pie, using minced meat), etc.

The list will present some of the most representative Greek dishes that can be found throughout the country and the most famous of the local ones:

Appetizers

Meze (appetizer; plural mezedes) is served in restaurants called mezedopoleía, served to complement drinks, and in similar establishments known as tsipourádika or ouzerí (a type of café that serves drinks such as ouzo or tsipouro). A tavérna (tavern) or estiatório (restaurant) also offers a meze as an orektikó (appetiser). Many restaurants offer their house pikilía (variety) a platter with a smorgasbord of various mezedes that can be served immediately to customers looking for a quick or light meal. Hosts commonly serve mezedes to their guests at informal or impromptu get-togethers as they are easy to prepare on short notice. Krasomezédhes (literally "wine-meze") are mezedes that go well with wine; ouzomezédhes are mezedes that go with ouzo.

Soups

Vegetarian main dishes

Very popular during fasting periods, such as the Great Lent:

Meat and seafood dishes

Quick meals

Meals using easily available (usually seasonal) and inexpensive ingredients, with little preparation involved.

Desserts and sweets

Cheese

There is a wide variety of cheeses made in various regions across Greece. The vast majority of them remain unknown outside the Greek borders due to the lack of knowledge and the highly localized distinctive features. Many artisanal, hand made cheeses, both common varieties and local specialties, are produced by small family farms throughout Greece and offer distinct flavors atypical of the mass produced varieties found commercially in Greece and abroad. A good list of some of the varieties of cheese produced and consumed in Greece can be found here. These are some of the more popular throughout Greece:

Drinks

Alcoholic beverages

Wine
For more details on this topic, see Greek wine.

Greece's viticultural history goes back to prehistoric times,i[›] and wine production was thriving until the 11th century.[16] Viticulture significantly regressed under Ottoman rule, and, although Turkish and Western travellers reported rich vineyards in certain areas (e.g. Macedonia), production did not revive until mid-20th century.[17] After World War II, Greek winemakers imported and cultivated foreign grape varieties, especially French ones, in order to support local production.[18] In 1960s, retsina, a dry white wine with lumps of resin, was probably the most well-known Greek wine abroad. In recent years, local varieties are rediscovered and often blended with foreign ones.[19] In early 1980s, a system of appellations, modelled on the respective French one, was implemented to assure consumers the origins of their wine purchases. Today, there are 28 appellations (Appellations of Origin of Superior Quality and Controlled Appellation of Origin) throughout the country, from Macedonia to Crete.[20]

Beer

Archaeological and archaeochemical finds suggest that the Minoans fermented barley and other substances, and consumed some form of beer.[21] The beer tradition of the Minoans was discontinued by the Mycenaeans; beverages from fermented cereals may have remained only in Crete during their rule.[22] In Archaic and Classical Greece, beer is mentioned as a foreign beverage, while, when Alexander the Great conquered in 332 BC Egypt, a civilization with a long brewing tradition, the Greeks continued to disdain beer seeing it as the drink of their rivals.[23] In Modern Greece, a limited number of brands — owned by breweries from northern Europe in most cases (e.g. Heineken or Amstel) — dominated for many years the local market, while a stringent Bavarian-influenced beer purity law was in force.[24] Gradually, the provisions of this law loosened, and, since the late 1990s, new local brands emerged (in 1997 Mythos made a breakthrough) or re-emerged (e.g. Fix Hellas), reviving competition. In recent years, in parallel with the large breweries, local microbreweries operate throughout Greece.[25]

Other

Other traditional Greek alcoholic beverages include the anise-flavored ouzo, tsipouro (whose Cretan variation is called tsikoudia), and local liquors, such as mastika (not to be confused with the homonymous anise-flavored Bulgarian drink) and tentura, a cinnamon flavored liquor from Patras. Another famous Greek spirit is metaxa, a blend of brandy and Greek wines (savatiano and muscat from Samos or other islands). Local dessert and fortified wines include muscats (with the Muscat of Samos being the most well-known), mavrodafni, produced from a black grape indigenous to the Achaea region in Northern Peloponnese, and Vin Santo of Santorini, a variation of the Italian Vin Santo.[26]

Coffee

The traditional coffeehouses in Greece are called kafenia, and they offer coffee, refreshments, alcoholic beverages and snacks or meze. However, in recent years coffee culture evolves and, especially in the large urban centres, kafenia are gradually repaced by modern "cafeterias". Preferred types of coffee by the consumers are, among others, the Greek coffee (a variation of the Turkish coffee), frappé (a Greek foam-covered iced coffee drink), and the freddo versions of capuccino and espresso, which vary from the Italian original.[27] Iced coffee-based drinks, such as freddoccino or freddito, are also popular, especially during the summer period.

See also

Notes

^ i: Discoveries, such as a wine press at Palekastro in Crete, dated to the Mycenaean period, and references related to wine in Linear B tablets indicate that, at this period, wine was widely produced and consumed both on the Greek mainland and in the islands.[28]

Citations

  1. ^ Spices and Seasonings:A Food Technology Handbook - Donna R. Tainter, Anthony T. Grenis, p. 223
  2. ^ Armstrong, Kate; Hellander, Paul (2006). Lonely Planet Greece. Hawthorn, Vic., Australia: Lonely Planet Publications. p. 76. ISBN 1-74059-750-8. 
  3. ^ Mallos, Tess (1979). Greek Cookbook. Dee Why West, NSW., Australia: Summit Books. p. inside cover. ISBN 0-7271-0287-7. 
  4. ^ http://www.focusmm.com/greece/gr_coumn.htm - Historical reference about Ancient Greek cuisine.
  5. ^ Renfrew, Colin (1972). The Emergence of Civilization; The Cyclades and the Aegean in the Third Millennium B.C.. Taylor & Francis. p. 280. 
  6. ^ Katz, Solomon H.; McGovern, Patrick; Fleming, Stuart James (2000). Origins and Ancient History of Wine (Food and Nutrition in History and Anthropology). New York: Routledge. p. x. ISBN 90-5699-552-9. 
  7. ^ Wilson, Nigel Guy (2006). Encyclopedia of ancient Greece. New York: Routledge. p. 27. ISBN 0-415-97334-1. 
  8. ^ Civitello, Linda (2007). Cuisine and Culture: A History of Food and People. New York: Wiley. p. 67. ISBN 0-471-74172-8. 
  9. ^ Kiple, Kenneth F. (2007). A movable feast: ten millennia of food globalization. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 95. ISBN 0-521-79353-X. 
  10. ^ greekcuisine
  11. ^ Dalby, p.190
  12. ^ John Ash, A Byzantine Journey
  13. ^ Λεξικό της κοινής Νεοελληνικής, 1998
  14. ^ Gigantes/Yiyantes (Greek Giant Baked Beans)
  15. ^ Diples (Thiples) (Honey Rolls) Greek Dessert
  16. ^ Walton & Glover (2011), 124
  17. ^ Kousoulas (2001), 32, who quotes: Lambert-Gocs, Miles (1993). The Greek Wines. Triaina Editions. 
  18. ^ Walton & Glover (2011), 125
  19. ^ Walton & Glover (2011), 125–126
  20. ^ Walton & Glover (2011), 125
    * "Appellation Wined of Greece" (in Greek). Greek Wine Federation. http://greekwinefederation.gr/gr/content/show/&tid=36. Retrieved 25 December 2011. 
  21. ^ Nelson (2005), 13–15
    * Unwin (1996), 77
  22. ^ Nelson (2005), 13–15
  23. ^ Nelson (2005), 13–15
    * Oliver (2012), 437–438
  24. ^ Walton & Glover (2011), 323
  25. ^ Karayanis & Karayanis (2008), 262
    * Walton & Glover (2011), 125–126
  26. ^ Walton & Glover (2011), 126, 402, 472, 493
  27. ^ Halevy (2011), 148–149
  28. ^ Unwin (1996), 77

References

Greek cuisine
Appetizers
Greek salad · Mezes · Bakaliaros · Dakos · Dolmadakia · Fava · Garides Saganaki · Gavros · Kroketes · Horta · Kalamarakia · Kolokythakia · Kolokythopita · Kolokythoanthoi · Melitzanes · Melitzanosalata · Octopus · Patatosalata · Pita · Manitaria · Saganaki · Skordalia · Spanakopita · Taramosalata · Tyropita · Tzatziki
Cheeses
Anthotyros · Feta · Graviera · Kasseri · Kefalotyri · Kefalograviera · Formaela · Myzithra · Manouri · Metsovone · Metsovela · Xynotyro · Xynomizithra · Halloumi
Dishes
Aginares a la Polita · Astakos · Arakas me aginares · Avgolemono · Astakomacaronada · Baked lamb with potatoes · Bamies · Briám · Fakes · Fasolada · Fasolakia · Gemista · Giouvetsi · Gigandes plaki · Gyros · Hilopites · Kotosoupa · Keftedakia · Kokoretsi · Lachanorizo · Loukaniko · Macaronada · Magiritsa · Manestra · Moussaka · Mydia · Paidakia · Pastitsio · Pork with celery · Psarosoupa · Revithia · Soutzoukakia Smyrneika · Souvlaki · Souvla · Spanakorizo · Spetsofai · Stifado · Strapatsada · Xiphias
Desserts
Akanés · Amygdalotá · Bougatsa · Cake · Copenhagen (dessert) · Diples · Finikia · Galaktoboureko · Galatopita · Glika tou koutaliou · Granita · Halvas · Karydopita · Koulourakia · Kourabiedes · Loukoumades · Soutzouki · Loukoumi · Melomakarona · Milopita · Moustalevria · Moustokouloura · Profiterole · Rizogalo · Trigona Panoramatos · Tsoureki · Tulumba  · Vasilopita · Yoghurt with honey and walnuts
Drinks
Sovereign
states
States with limited
recognition
Dependencies
and other territories
Northern Africa
Southern Europe
European regions
Western Asia