Cuisine of Northern Greece

Salads for every meal? You’re probably thinking that this is an abstraction and sooner or later it will just be overkill. Well, the Greeks have a completely different opinion on the subject. Want to learn more about the interesting facts of Northern Greek cuisine? This is the perfect article for you!

What is Northern Greece?

To start with a bit of theory. Northern Greece is made up of three regions: Macedonia, Chalkidiki and Thrace. Let’s start by delving into the characteristics of its cuisine.

Olive groves grow in the north of Chalkidiki in the mountains of Meliton and Holomontas. Due to the morphology of the soil, the olives produced here are of exceptional quality and the olive oil extracted from them is of outstanding taste.

We must not forget the traditional cheese made from goat’s milk.

Gourmets of seafood and fish will also find something for themselves there. Especially famous here are the saganaki mussels, which the Greeks delight in served with tomato sauce with paprika or in alcohol, such as wine.

And what about the alcohol itself? They love the popular retsina wine, for which resins are extracted from the forest. Wine honey is also a popular choice for Greeks, and Chalkidiki itself, known as the mother of beekeeping, produces over 30% of Greek honey.

Meal characteristics

Three meals a day are eaten in Greece. The day starts with breakfast, which is continental : a few spoonfuls of yoghurt, toast and something sweet such as honey or marmalade.

Lunch is more filling than breakfast, but less filling than dinner. The evening meal is for the Greeks the most important of all, at which the whole family gathers. It is always accompanied by a glass of Greek wine. The Greeks spend the whole evening at dinner, there is no hurry and there are no rules. They spend the whole evening together and end it singing.

Our suggestions

Are you looking for a simple Greek dish for lunch or dinner? We have a great recipe for moussaka: https://haps.pl/Haps/7,167251,24408962,musaka-pyszna-potrawa-rodem-z-grecji-przepis-z-ktorym-poradza.html and a recipe for souvlaki: https://www.kwestiasmaku.com/przepis/souvlaki-z-kurczaka

Interesting facts

• Meat in Greece is eaten only three times a week, on the other days it is replaced by legumes.

• The most commonly eaten meat is lamb.

• A salad is served with each meal.

• Butter or oil are rarely used; olive oil reigns supreme.

• Tea is rarely drunk in Greece; coffee is loved here.

• Wrapped cabbage rolls in grape leaves are popular here.

• The first cookbook was written in the 4th century BC by a man called Archestratus. It forms the basis of Greek cuisine.

• It is rich in variety and simple at the same time. Fruit and vegetables are the basis!

• A little advice from us. Make sure that the oil you buy is from olives that were first pressed. This is considered to be the best.

Now you know the basics of North Greek cuisine. We encourage you to check out the recipes we have linked. Beware of Greek cuisine, it is possible to fall in love with it without any passion