Greek Cooking Term

Anginares: artichokes. Jerusalem or root artichokes

are not known in the Greek kitchen; this term refers
to the small globe variety.
Arni: lamb, the favorite Greek meat and highlight
of feasts.
Avgolemono: egg-lemon sauce prepared by adding
fresh lemon juice to whisked eggs. This frothing
tangy sauce may then be used to flavor any white
stock (made from either fish, veal, or chicken) by
carefully adding a little hot stock to the egg-lemon
mixture, then returning all to the hot but boiling
stock. Or the egg-lemon mixture may be used for
fish, vegetables, or casseroles.
Baklava: famed Mediterranean pastry whose origin
may be debatable but whose crispy sweetness is not.
Made from many layers of butter-brushed, nut and
sugar-sprinkled layers of phyllo pastry, gently cut in
diamonds and secured with whole cloves.
Immediately after baking, a spiced hot syrup is
poured over. The crisp diamond wedges are served
together with the oozing syrup, the only
accompaniment an icy glass of water or a demitasse
of coffee. Who needs more?
Barbouni: red mullet, a favorite fish usually served
grilled or fried. The cheeks and liver are considered
special delicacies.
Bechamel Sauce: by this name, the sauces 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. These are filled with savory mixtures
such as bechamel sauce and cheese or rice with
seasonings.
Domates: tomatoes.
Fakki: meatless brown lentil soup, a standby for
fast days and a staple soup when meat is scarce.
Fasolada: a meatless bean soup.
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 goats or sheeps milk,
usually stored in a salt brine.
Galactoboureko: Phyllo pastry with a rich custard
filling.
Halvas: the homemade version is a simple egg and
semolina cake over which is poured a sizzle of hot
syrup. The commercial version is a firm paste of
pureed nuts and seeds, predominantly almond and
sesame, and may be colored and/or flavored with
chocolate or pistachio.
Horta: general name given to assorted cultivated
and wild greens enjoyed by simply boiling,
draining, and serving at room temperature with
olive oil and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
Imam Bayaldi: slowly baked eggplants stuffed
with tomatoes and sliced onions and flavored with
garlic. Literally the caliph fainted. So named
because the dish was exquisitely delicious, and the
priest was said to have fainted here the stories
differ either when he tasted it or when he was
denied a taste.

Kafes: coffee. Turkish coffee introduced into

Greece and brewed in a long-handled pot called a
briki. In Greece it is called Greek coffee, but it is
still made in thirty-three variations, as is the
Turkish.

Lathorigano - cooking with olive oil and oregano.

This term can be added to a meal for more emphasis
on the style of cooking, as olive oil and oregano are
used abundantly in Greek cooking. Latho - oil,
rigano - oregano.

Kalamarakia: baby squid.

Lemonato - the method of cooking predominantly

with lemons. When a meal uses lemons as the main
flavouring such as roast chicken or lamb, which
would use lemon rind and juice. Lemoni - lemon.

Kataifia: very fine shreds of a wheat flour pastry

rolled up with chopped nuts and served with a spicy
sweet syrup.

Latholemono: oil and lemon sauce.

Kefalotiri and Kasseri: names of two Greek
cheeses that are aged and hard and suited to grating.
Very similar to the Italian Romano or Parmesan.
Kefthedes or Keftethes: tiny meatballs prepared
with finely minced meat (any kind) blended with
bread crumbs and eggs then seasoned with garlic,
mint, oregano, and salt and pepper. The mixture is
formed into tiny balls and fried in oil till brown.
Usually a part of appetizers.
Kokkinisto - means reddened - method of cooking
meat, together with plenty of tomatoes, which are
simmered for a length of time to create a red sauce.
The meat is cooked in this sauce, which turns it a
reddish colour, which refers to the name and makes
this dish easily recognised. Kokkino - red.
Krasato - method of adding wine during cooking to
create a sauce and to add flavour to the meal. Krasi
- wine
Kolokythia: called baby marrows in England,
courgettes in France, and zucchini in Italy. Greeks
enjoy the flowers freshly picked, stuffed, and fried.
Kouloura: one of many Greek breads. This one is
made from white wheat flour and baked in a ring
shape, light and crusty.
Kourabiedes: rich buttery shortbread-type of
cookie baked in round halls then liberally sprinkled
with rosewater or orange flower water and dusted
with icing sugar. Piled in a mound, these are a
Christmas specialty.

Lathoxitho: a vinaigrette sauce of oil, lemon juice,

or wine vinegar plus seasonings.
Marinato - marinating the meat or fish prior to
cooking.
Mastica: the powdered resin from a small
evergreen grown mostly on the Greek isle of Chios.
Used for flavoring yeast dough. There is also a
liqueur by the same name.
Mayeritsa: the eagerly anticipated soup of lamb
entrails finished with avgolemono sauce and
enjoyed after the midnight services of Easter
Sunday.
Melitzanosalata: a popular Mediterranean
appetizer of pureed eggplant seasoned liberally with
onion and vinegar and garnished with black olives
and tomato wedges.
Melomakarona or Finikia: traditional Christmas
cookies similar to Kourabiedes but flattened and
finished with a drenching of honey syrup and a
dusting of nuts.
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.
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.
Plaki - means flat or spread out, method of cooking
fish in a sauce with garlic, parsley and tomatoes in a
pan.
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.
Psaria: fish.
Psito - the method of roasting meat, chicken or fish
in the oven. This term is added to lamb, chicken etc
to refer to the baking style.

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.
Stefado: a method of cooking used for any meats or
game. Literally a stew. Cut-up pieces of meats are
marinated overnight in a bowl with cut-up
vegetables and seasonings, white wine, vinegar and
oil. The next day the pieces of meat are browned
then simmered slowly with the strained marinade.
Most traditional accompaniment is onions. The dish
is eaten with bread and wine.
Tahini: smooth puree of sesame seeds.
Tarama: fish roe, usually referring to carp roe.

Saganaki or Tiraki: any firm cheese cut in squares,

dusted with flour, and quickly fried in hot oil and
served as an appetizer.
Salata: salad.

Taramosalata: smooth creamy dip made of roe,

white bread or potato, garlic, oil, and lemon juice.
Tyropita: layered phyllo pastry (or otherwise
shaped), filled with cheese.

Saltsa: sauce.
Spetsiotico - The method of baking fish with garlic,
parsley and sometimes wine, topped with bread
crumbs. This recipe originated on the island of
Spetses.

Tzatziki: a tangy dip of plain yogurt, minced

cucumber, and garlic, salt and pepper.
Vasilopita: made especially for Saint Basils Day,
this sweet yeast bread is perfumed with grated
orange rind, cinnamon and mastica.
Yaourti: plain natural yogurt

Yuvetsi or Yiouvetsi is the method of cooking meat

or seafood, with kritharaki (orzo, risoni) and
tomatoes in the oven in a "Yuvetsi" (clay or
earthenware pot).
Yachni - the method of stewing food with potatoes,
tomatoes and onions.

Yemista - meat, fish or vegetables stuffed prior to

cooking. Stuffed peppers and tomatoes as well
as stuffed squid stuffed squid are the most popular
recipes using this method.