Greek Recipes

      Lemon flavored casserole stews, or lemonáta (λεμονάτα) as we call them in Greek, are very popular because of the refreshing and slightly sour taste that the lemon juice and peel give to these dishes. Although lemon flavored dishes are cooked all year long, summer is the most popular season for lemonáta. Hot weather calls for light flavors! Poultry and beef are the most popular meat choices for this dish.  Lemonáto can be served with pasta, rice or most preferably with homemade fried potatoes. Lemonáto  1 chicken, cut into 8 serving pieces 100gr olive oil 1medium onion, finely chopped 1 small garlic clove, finely chopped Salt and ground pepper to taste 1litre of hot water or chicken stock Juice and the peel from one lemon In a large skillet over medium heat pour the olive oil and when hot add the chicken, skin side down, and brown quickly for 3 minutes. Turn the chicken over, add onion and the garlic, reduce the heat to medium- low and let the onion so...

There is something so wonderfully cosy and traditional about serving chicken for a Sunday lunch. The idea can sometimes be a bit intimidating, when all you want to do is relax with family and friends. However, there are so many recipes which are seriously easy - and this is one of them. I first learnt to make this dish in the French town of Ceret. At the Saturday morning at the market, I was completely seduced by the huge displays of creamy, white garlic with its soft papery skin. Although the 40 cloves in this dish sounds rather overpowering, the final result is not. The garlic is slowly caramelised in its skin as it cooks and becomes sweet and creamy, with no fiery pungency. As the chicken is pot roasted, the chicken is also wonderful juicy - with none of the worries of dryness, that often come with straight out roasting. The added bonus of the dish is also that it will leave your kitchen smelling amazing! Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic 2 celery stalks, with leaves, chopped 1 carr...

  Every summer housewives all over Greece make homemade fresh pasta. The hot weather helps it to dry naturally and it can then be used all year long for traditional cooking.  The most common type of homemade dry pasta is chylopites , so called because the final product is cut into many tiny flat squares. (The literal meaning is flat pies-layers of dough)  Nowadays dry chylopites can be found in every food store all over Greece so everyone can enjoy them, although it has to be said that homemade ones  always taste much better. Chylopites are used in soups or in savory pie fillings in order to absorb juices, but the most popular dish is chicken stew with tomato and chylopites cooked in the sauce. Traditionally a rooster is the preferred bird, but chicken is fine too.  Serves 4 4 big chicken legs (or a chicken cut in 4 pieces) 1 onion chopped 150gr  olive oil  300gr chopped fresh tomatoes (or canned) 1tsp tomato paste 5-6 cloves and a small cinnamon stick...

      If we didn't like okra (sometimes called lady fingers or gumbo ) for their wonderful taste, we would surely grow them for their big beautiful flowers.      The okra harvesting period is from July to late September, and since they don't bloom all at the same time, you can enjoy their flowers all summer long.      In Greek okra are called bámies , and we use them in many summer dishes. They actually compliment both meat and poultry, but also other vegetables in summer stews. In fact, the most common okra dish is a simple stew with tomatoes, cooked the same way we cook green beans.      Many people don't like okra because they had a bad first experience with their gelatinous sauce, but if you toss them with vinegar and let them stand for an hour in a strainer, you will have a perfect result  no matter how you choose to cook them. For my taste the ideal combination for okra is chicken, a quite popular dish all ove...