Recipes from Crete

Want to sample traditional Cretan cuisine in Crete? We have provided a selection of fantastic recipes for you to try during your stay!

• Traditional Greek Salad or Country Salad

  Ingredients

  1 tomato

  1 cucumber

  1 slice fetacheese

  ½ onion

  Black olives

  2-3 tbs olive oil

  Salt

  Preparation

  Wash the vegetables well and cut them into small pieces. Mix on a plate and add the feta, olives and oil. Season with salt and the salad is ready. A little oregano can also be scattered over the feta, for a stronger flavour.

• Dakos – Cretan Koukouvagia

  The delicious Cretan version of bruschetta, Dakos is a traditional meze also eaten as a light meal

  Ingredients

  3 barley rusks

  6 tablespoons EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

  2 large, ripe tomatoes, peeled and grated

  1 cup fèta cheese or mizìthra cheese, grated

  Salt to taste

  Preparation

  Dip the rusks half-roll slices in water to soak a little and let them stand to drain.

  Next, sprinkle them with olive oil and wait, until the oil seeps into the rusk. Salt as much as you wish, according to the saltiness of the feta cheese.

  Top with the grated tomato and add the grated feta or mizithra cheese. Serve immediately.

• Tzatziki

  Ingredients

  1/2 kilo strained yoghurt

  1 or 2 tablespoons EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

  2-3 tablespoons vinegar

  2 large cucumbers

  4-5 cloves of garlic

  Salt

  A little pepper

  A little purslane and a little dill (optional)

  Preparation

  Wash the cucumbers and grate them. Then, squeeze out the excess water. Peel the garlic cloves and finely chop them. Combine all the ingredients and, finally, if you wish, add the finely chopped purslane and the dill.

• Courgette Croquettes (kolokythokeftedes)

  These delicious little croquettes are very popular at the better Taverna’s in Crete and all over Greece.

  Ingredients

  5 courgettes

  2 flowery potatoes

  1 onion

  mint and or basil leaves

  salt and pepper

  5 egg yolks

  bread crumbs 

  100 g of grated parmesan or other hard sheep’s milk cheese

  Preparation

  Finely grate the courgettes and add the salt. After about 10 minutes squeeze out the excess water with a kitchen towel. Boil the potatoes and mash.

  Grate the onion, finely chop the herbs and mix together with the egg yolks, mashed potatoe and the cheese.

  With your hands make little palm sized patties and roll the mix in the bread crumbs.

  Shallow fry in vegetable oil until golden brown and crisp.

  Season with salt and pepper as required. Serve with a wedge of lemon.

• Chicken with Oregano

  Ingredients

  1 chicken

  1 cup olive oil

  Olive oil for frying

  1 onion

  1 wine glass lemon juice

  1 tablespoon oregano

  Salt

  Preparation

  Chop the chicken in medium-sized pieces and plunge it into water containing a handful of salt. Let it soak for 4 hours, take it out and remove the skin. Fry the chicken in olive oil until brown. Then place it in a pot with the olive oil, the quartered onion, lemon juice, oregano, some salt and cover it with water. Boil the chicken, until only the olive oil remains in the pot.

• Cumin and Garlic Meatballs in Tomato and Wine Sauce

  These cumin-flavoured meatballs may be casseroled or oven-baked with potatoes – here is the oven version.

  Ingedients

  500g minced meat (lamb or beef)

  130g bread, soaked in white wine

  2 cloves of garlic, grated or crushed

  1 heaped tsp of ground cumin

  1 small onion, grated

  half tsp salt

  freshly ground black pepper

  1 medium egg

  2 dessert spoons of olive oil

  Preparation

  Squeeze the bread dry, place in a bowl with the meat and the other ingredients and mix everything together well with your hands. Leave the mixture for at least half an hour in the fridge then firmly press the mixture into balls or torpedo shapes. Place in a shallow oven dish and add equal amounts of parboiled potatoes, cut into similar sizes.

  To make the sauce wizz a 1 tsp of cumin seeds, half tsp salt, the garlic, onion, a glass of white wine, the olive oil and a 400g tin of tomatoes, in a liquidiser. Check seasoning, add a wine glass of water, wizz again and then pour over the meatballs and potatoes. Cook at Gas Mark 6, 180C for about an hour, checking after 30 minutes or so.

  Serve with shredded white cabbage, carrot salad and lots of fresh bread.

  (This recipe is inspired by ‘Soutsoukakia’ in Elizabeth Craddick’s Cretan Village Cooking).

• Lamb and Spinach in Egg and Lemon Sauce

  Serves 4 – 6

  Ingredients

  1 Kilo Lamb (on the bone)

  3 Spring onions, roughly chopped

  1-2 tbsp. Olive Oil

  900 gm Fresh Spinach

  2 tbsp. Fresh Chopped Dill

  1 Egg

  Salt to taste

  Juice of a Lemon

  Preparation

  Heat the oil in a heavy-based saucepan and add the lamb and spring onions. Brown for 5 minutes over a medium heat, turning frequently. Add enough cold water to just about cover the meat.Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and simmer covered for 40 minutes.

  Meanwhile wash the spinach and roughly chop together with the dill. Add to the lamb with salt and black pepper to taste. Push the spinach down firmly on top of the meat, cover the saucepan and leave to simmer again for 15 minutes. Mix the spinach thoroughly into the meat, turn up the heat and bubble for 5-10 minutes to cook the spinach and reduce the sauce.

  Beat up the egg with the lemon juice in a small bowl. Turn off the heat and leave the lamb to stand uncovered for 10 minutes. Using a soup ladle, add one ladle of lamb sauce to the lemon mix. Beat in with a fork. Repeat a second and third time. Then, if you can get help at this point, all the better. Hold the saucepan with both hands and tip the sauce to one side of the pan. Ask a friend to quickly add the lemon mix straight onto the sauce then rotate the sauce quickly round and round by moving the saucepan in a circular motion. This prevents curdling, and ensures the lemon reaches every part of the pan.

  Reheat almost to boiling, then serve with fresh bread and salad.

• Lamb shanks with onion

  serves 4 (half the quantities for 2)

  Ingredients

  4 Lamb shanks (with as much fat removed as possible)

  Olive oil

  1kg onions

  4 cloves of garlic

  60ml white wine vinegar

  250ml white wine

  Oregano

  Salt and pepper to taste

  Preparation

  Preheat the oven to 150c/300f/gas mark 2.

  Heat enough olive oil in a casserole to brown the shanks as best you can given their awkward shape.

  Remove the shanks and set aside. Peel and thinly slice the onions and garlic. Place the onions and garlic in the casserole with the lamb on top, add the vinegar and wine and a big pinch of dried oregano.

  Put the lid on the casserole and place in the oven for three hours. Remove the lid for the last 30 minutes or so to brown the meat, the onions will have reduced to a delicious sweet golden mush.

  Serve, carefully as the meat will fall off the bone, with beans or peas and crusty bread. Wonderful!

• Moussaka

  (serves 4-6)

  This dinner- party favourite of past years is generally Greek rather than particularly Cretan

  Ingredients

  500 gm minced lamb (or Beef)

  Can of tomatoes

  1 finely chopped onion

  Finely chopped garlic (to taste)

  1 kilo aubergines

  500gm potatoes

  75 gm butter

  Milk 500ml

  Plain flour 75gm

  Grated cheese

  1 egg

  A large glass of white wine

  Olive oil

  Small stick of cinnamon

  3 cloves

  Large pinch of oregano

  Preparation

  Cook the potatoes, drain, cool, slice and set aside.

  Slice and salt the aubergines. After 15 minutes wash and drain the aubergines and gently fry in olive oil – set aside.

  Gently fry the onions and garlic in more oil until soft, remove from the pan and set aside. Increase the heat and brown the meat (minced lamb may produce a lot of fat which can be skimmed or drained).

  When the meat is browned, reduce heat, return the onion and garlic to the pan, and add the wine cinnamon, cloves and oregano. After a couple of minutes add the tomatoes and seasoning. Simmer for 30 minutes.

  A bachamel sauce is made by gently heating flour in butter, when the flour and butter have become a paste the milk is gently added. When this has been done add 50 gm of grated cheese (Edam is ideal if you have nothing from Greece) and the yolk of the egg.

  The four parts of the Mousakka now come together. Oil a suitable oven dish and layer potatoes, aubergine, meat aubergines, potatoes and finally fold the sauce over the top.

  Grate more cheese over the top and bake in the oven for 45 minutes (150C).

  Serve with salad and crusty bread.