The Greek Way Recipes

The Mediterranean Diet done the Greek Way is easy.  Mostly, you'll cook one vegetable dish and call it dinner. I have curated a huge sampling of recipes from my blog--Greek recipes and a few others. They're all meatless, and many are vegan. This is the type of one-pot meal that Greeks enjoy throughout the week and into the weekend.

Yes, vegetables are THE dinner.

A typical day of eating in the Greek Way may be to have only coffee in the morning. Sometimes a small bowl of full-fat yogurt with a fresh fig or just a small amount of honey drizzled over the top. Lunch might be a salad with bread and feta on the side. An afternoon snack might consist of sharing a pear, an apple or a couple of slices of cantaloupe with a friend. Occasionally, the snack may be Greek coffee with a couple of small dipping cookies made for dunking in the coffee. Dinner will consist of spinach cooked with tomatoes, onions, lots of olive oil and rice. A squeeze of lemon juice over each serving, and bread, feta and olives on the side.

On the weekend, if you eat out, there may be marinated fresh anchovies, tzatziki or taramosalata dips, olives, feta, bread--all to share. There will likely be a bowl of boiled seasonal greens or a big salad to share with everyone. There may be a large grilled fish to share and a serving of the best tasting fried potatoes you've never had. You may see a couple of pork chops or sausages grilled over coals. At the end of your evening, the restaurant will treat you to a small dessert or fresh seasonal fruit.

Eating out in Athens with two of my mother's cousins.

If you eat at home on the weekend, you may see a stewed chicken served with pasta or orzo. You might have a large spanakopita and a large bowl of small fried fish, or you may have whole chicken roasted in the oven with potatoes. Yes, there will be bread and olives and feta and a big salad on the table also.

READ THIS BELOW--VERY IMPORTANT!

One of the most challenging things for Westerners to do is to change their mindset about what constitutes a meal. In Greece, it's usually one-pot (or bowl) meals that seem to us in the West like sides. We might wonder, where is the protein and where is the starch.

If you watch closely, you'll see that the vegetables are center stage, typically there's no meat, and the starch comes the way that we serve and use condiments in the West--it's on the side, disguised as bread, along with the olives, pickled vegetables and feta cheese.

DID YOU READ THE LAST TWO PARAGRAPHS?

THE LIST of meatless and vegan recipes:

Greek Imam Bayildi is a stuffed eggplant dish. A traditional Greek recipe with ease of preparation. It was so good, goes the story, that when he ate it, the Imam (holy man) swooned. A vegan dish that feels meaty and satisfying.

I don't know about the Imam, but it looks swoon-worthy to me!

Greek Mung Bean Soup The best authentic Greek soup that you'll never have at a Greek restaurant, but that you can cook at home in no time.

Greek Stewed Green Beans  While we can stew just about any vegetable or combination of vegetables, green beans seem to be the most popular. Mix it up a bit and add halved new potatoes to the pot; maybe even a couple of zucchini chunks.

Sweet Potato Hash. Made with sweet potatoes, onions and red Swiss chard, this recipe isn't Greek, but it should be. This is a show stopper visually with so many vibrant colors. Imagine the nutrition show that they put on in your gut!

Greek Salad & Seared Shrimp. Yes, together, in a bowl. A huge summertime favorite for my Greek family, although this is my invention. At its root, it's Greek.

Asian-Inspired Salmon With Cabbage Noodles. Meatless and Keto and memorably delicious, it's creamy with a tiny kick at the end. This is so pleasing to my palate. 

Greek Stewed Okra. The recipe is similar to the green beans above. You'll find it at the end of this post.

Greek Yachni Shrimp is served over rice or pasta. It's a crowd-pleaser! A favorite with my Greek family and friends.

Zucchini Salad Greek Style. Adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe, it can be stored in the refrigerator for several days and can also be made with peeled and seeded cucumbers.

Greek Fava Dip is surprisingly delicious, and you don't have to top it with meatballs and feta cheese. Keep it vegan and dip vegetables or bread into that creamy and flavor-charged dip.

Greek Halva is a vegan dessert. It's one that I really look forward to. Easy to prepare, requires very few ingredients and it's appropriate for Lent. 

Pickled Shrimp Salad sounds boring. Surprisingly, it's wonderful! While it has no fat and only four tablespoons of vinegar, you will find that the flavors are quite memorable.

Black-Eyed Peas Greek Style. We eat this on the first day of each new year, but it's awesome on any of the other 364 days. The link is to the printable recipe.

Vegan Collards. Again, not Greek, but almost. This is my vegan version. The link takes you directly to the recipe.

Bean and Root Vegetable Stew. This is another vegan recipe that's completely satisfying. No one is missing the meat.

Greek Salad Tomato Toast. In the summer of 2020, I experimented with tomato toast, coming up with several eye- and mouth-pleasing variations. This is one of my favorites.

Greek Psari Plaki Simplified. A traditional recipe that I simplified for busy cooks, it calls for roasting a whole fish with vegetables.

Greek Spanakopita is on my Top Ten List of traditional Greek foods. Never have enough.

Mixed Carrot Bake has to be one of the prettiest to eat. The link will take you directly to the recipe. Another vegan recipe, but no one will miss the meat. At least I won't!

Greek Briam is our version of Ratatouille. Enough said?

Greek Spanakorizo is yet another favorite of mine. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over each serving and drizzle with good olive oil for a medicinal meal that is going to make your mouth very, very happy...assuming that you like spinach.

Greek Stewed Cauliflower. Did I ever tell you that my father, Gregory, invented mashed cauliflower? Read about it in this post.

Honey, Fruit and Yogurt. Sweet tooth tugging at you? If you like Greek yogurt, this is an easy one to satisfy your craving.

Beet & Avocado Salad. Simplicity at its most elegant. So beautiful on the plate!

Lentil Salad. A recipe to make your meat dishes jealous.

GrecoSoCo Chard & Kale Stew. Over mashed potatoes? Killer good. I dreamed of this one the night I first ate it, so I ate it again for lunch the next day!

Greek Lentil Soup. My mother's recipe. Tastes meaty, but is completely vegan. My Dewey and I can pig out on this one!