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A quick guide to Greek food
Arni:
Lamb. A Greek delicacy!
Avgolemono:
An egg and lemon mixtures used as a sauce or a soup base.
Baklava:
the most famous Greek dessert, made of layers of fila pastry, chopped nuts, and a honey-flavored syrup.
Bourekakia:
fila puffs made with various fillings
Dolmades:
grapevine leaves stuffed with rice or meat
Feta:
the classic white goat cheese of Greece
Fila, filo, or phyllo:
the paper-thin pastry dough essential for appetizers, entrees, and desserts.
Gouvetsi:
the Greek word for casserole, or baked in the oven
Garides:
shrimp
Kafes:
coffee
Kalamaria:
squid
Kalamata:
probably the most famous Greek olive
Kasseri:
creamy farm cheese with a bitey flavor
Kefalotiri:
a hard, salty cheese, good for grating
Kourabiedes:
butter cookies topped with powdered sugar
Mezethes:
small savory appetizers
Moussakas:
browned eggplant slices layered with tomatoes, cheese, onions, and ground meat finished with a bechamel sauce. Typically
Greek, there is a faint taste of cinnamon.
Orzo:
tiny melon seed-shaped pasta
Ouzo:
a colorless alcoholic drink flavored with anise. Unfortunately we don't serve this :)
Pastitsio:
a layered casserole of macaroni and chopped meat topped with a custard sauce
Pilafi:
rice boiled in broth and flavored with onion and spices
Psari:
fish
Retsina:
white or rose wine flavored with pine resin
Rigani:
oregano, an indispensable herb used in countless dishes
Skordalia:
garlic sauce
Souvlakia:
skewered food
Spanakopeta;
spinach fila pastries
Tahini:
crushed sesame seed paste
Taramosalata:
fish roe spread
Tiropita:
fila stuffed with Greek cheese
Tsatziki:
cucumber yogurt dip
Bechamel Sauce: by this name, the sauce's origin is attributed to Louis de Bechamel, of the court of King Louis XIV. However,
it should be noted that this same sauce – a roux of fat and flour whisked with a liquid, usually milk or cream –
was described by Athenaeus in 200 C.E. and widely used in Greek cuisine.
Bourekakia: a Turkish name covering all the tiny appetizer pastries made from Phyllo pastry and filled with many different
savory fillings – vegetable, meat, cheese, etc. In Greece they commonly take their name from the filling, for instance
Kotopitakia, chicken; Tiropitakia, Feta cheese, etc.
Dolmadakia: with akia being the diminutive, and dolma meaning any stuffed food, this term refers to tiny stuffed foods
such as small rolls of cabbage, spinach, or vine leaves or tiny scooped-out vegetables.
Fakki: meatless brown lentil soup, a standby for fast days and a staple soup when meat is scarce.
Fava: a yellow lentil soup served hot and thick and garnished with a little olive oil and lemon juice and a sprinkling
of chopped raw onions.
Feta: most widely known of all Greek cheeses, firm and white and made from goat's or sheep's milk, usually stored in a
salt brine.
Galactoboureko: Phyllo pastry with a rich custard filling.
Meze: a simple term to cover the complex array of delicious small nibbles that may accompany drinks.
Octapothi: octopus. Ancient technique of rubbing the fresh-caught greenish octopus with a rock until it is a pearly gray
color and well tenderized was long ago perfected by Greek fishermen.
Pastizzio: a baked layered casserole of cooked pasta sprinkled with cheese and a layer of seasoned minced meat. The casserole
is finished with cheese and bechamel sauce then cut in squares to serve.
Phyllo or Filo: another food whose origin is difficult to pinpoint but this paper-thin pastry is usually made commercially
of egg, flour, and water. Sold in packages of many sheets, it is the basis of many Greek appetizers (bourekakia), pies (pita),
and sweet nut-rich pastries. The Greek word phyllo means leaf. The thin sheets are brushed with butter or oil then layered,
filled and stacked, flipped into triangles, or rolled and twisted.
Pilaf: cooked rice with melted butter poured over then pressed into a mold. Unmolded, it is then served with any variety
of sauces, seasonings, and garnishes as may occur to the imaginative cook, and named according to the ingredients.
Saganaki or Tiraki: any firm cheese cut in squares, dusted with flour, and quickly fried in hot oil and served as an appetizer.
Skordalia or Skorthalia: a smooth thick sauce made with oil and lemon juice and soft white bread and as much garlic as
desired.
Souvla: the name of the spit used to roast Iamb.
Souvlakia: skewered cubes of lamb with onions, green peppers, and tomato wedges, all marinated then broiled.
Spanakopita: baked in a rectangular pan, this "pie" is matte of buttery layers of phyllo with a center portion
of chopped cooked spinach and Feta mixed with bechamel. The pie is cut into squares to serve, and may be a light main dish
or one of many dishes accompanying a feast.
Spanakorizo: spinach and rice. A favorite Lenten dish of browned onions, tomatoes, and chopped spinach with water and
rice added, then the whole cooked till dry and fluffy.
Tzatziki: a tangy dip of plain yogurt, minced cucumber, and garlic, salt and pepper.
Vasilopita: made especially for Saint Basil's Day, this sweet yeast bread is perfumed with grated orange rind, cinnamon
and mastica.
Yaourti: plain natural yogurt.
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