The easiest way to prolong a Greek holiday has always been through dinner. A block of feta, a bottle of olive oil, a few tomatoes and suddenly the kitchen is doing a passable impression of somewhere overlooking the Aegean, even if the view outside is considerably greyer.
Britons appear increasingly keen to keep that feeling going. New research from Ocado suggests almost a third of us are eating more Greek food than we used to, while searches on its website for spanakopita have risen by 2,605 per cent and those for diced feta by an extraordinary 2,967 per cent year on year. Greek flatbread searches are up 360 per cent over two years, while Greek seasoning has jumped 1,903 per cent.
Some of the appeal is familiar. Greece remains one of our favourite holiday destinations, and a quarter of people surveyed said travelling there had encouraged them to recreate its food at home. Health is an even bigger draw: half said they wanted to eat more Greek food because of its reputation for vegetables, pulses, fish, good olive oil and other staples of the Mediterranean diet.
“We’re starting to see customers become much more adventurous with Greek food,” says Ocado’s Gia Cazan. “They’re now looking beyond familiar favourites like feta and Greek yoghurt, and are finding new ways to bring other authentic Greek flavours into their everyday meals.”
Fortunately, none of that requires a plane ticket. From lamb slowly roasted with lemon, garlic, olives and rosemary to a feta-strewn dipping oil made for dragging warm flatbread through, these recipes bring some of the flavours of a Greek summer to the table – with a crunchy chicken fattoush alongside for good measure.
Chicken fattoush
open image in galleryFattoush is a Middle-Eastern dish made with crispy chunks of flatbread and chopped vegetables. Here, we’ve used pitta bread, cucumber, tomato and radish, as well as juicy chicken thighs. Sumac is put to great work too – this ground spice, made from berries, has a distinct tart and zesty character that really takes the flavour of this crunchy salad to the next level.
Serves: 4
Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
9 tbsp olive oil
2¾ tsp sumac
1 cucumber
1 romaine lettuce, shredded
1 bunch spring onions, finely sliced
1 small bunch parsley, leaves chopped
2 pitta breads, or more, if you’re hungy
500g chicken thighs
6 tomatoes
200g radishes, thinly sliced
1 small bunch fresh mint, leaves chopped
2 lemons, zest and juice
½ tsp of sugar
Method:
1. Put the chicken thighs onto a plate and drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil over with 2 teaspoons of sumac and some seasoning. Massage this all over the chicken.
2. Bring a large non-stick frying pan to a medium heat and cook the chicken for 5 minutes each side.
3. While the chicken cooks, halve the cucumber lengthways, deseed with a spoon and cut into chunks. Then quarter the tomatoes, deseed and cut into strips. Add both to a large bowl.
4. When the chicken is cooked through, remove from the heat and set aside on a clean plate.
5. Add the lettuce, spring onion, radish and herbs to the cucumber and tomato and mix. Next, whisk together the lemon juice and zest, 4 tablespoons of olive oil, ½ teaspoon of sumac and the sugar. Pour this over the salad, tossing well.
6. Toast the pitta until just starting to colour, then tear it up. Fry in a non-stick frying pan with 2 tablespoons of oil for 1-2 minutes, sprinkling over ¼ teaspoon of sumac. When the pitta is nice and golden, remove onto some kitchen paper and season well.
7. Slice the chicken into strips and add to the salad. Finish by scattering the pitta bread pieces over the top before serving.
Greek-style slow-roasted lamb
open image in galleryTake inspiration from Greece with our slow-roasted leg of lamb recipe.
Serves: 4
Prep time: 20 minutes | Cook time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Ingredients:
2kg leg of lamb
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp sea salt flakes
4 garlic, 3 heads plus 2 garlic cloves
375ml chicken stock
125ml dry white wine
12 new potatoes, halved
3 lemons, halved
8 vine tomatoes
175g kalamata olives
2 red onions, cut into 6 wedges
5 rosemary sprigs
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4.
2. Place lamb in a large roasting pan, drizzle with oil and sprinkle on salt. Cut slits about 2cm deep over the surface. Mix two crushed garlic cloves and two sprigs of chopped rosemary together. Rub into the slits.
3. Drizzle stock and wine around lamb and cover with foil. Cook for an hour.
4. Take out of oven and spoon juices over lamb. Add onion, potatoes, lemon, garlic and olives, cover with foil and roast for another hour. Remove foil, add tomatoes and roast for a further 30 mins or until lamb is golden and tender. Remove from oven. Cover with foil and set aside for 15 minutes to rest.
5. Slice the lamb and arrange on plates with the vegetables from the pan and drizzle with the pan jucies. Serve immediately.
Greek salad dipping oil
open image in galleryBright and beautifully vibrant, this super low-effort dip takes just minutes to make and is the perfect addition to your summer parties. Grating and finely chopping all the ingredients then mixing with grassy Greek olive oil makes sure every scoop is packed with that holiday flavour.
Serves: 6
Time: 10 minutes
Ingredients:
8 tbsp Greek olive oil
2 medium tomatoes, grated
4 tbsp feta, crumbled
6 kalamata olives, finely chopped
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp red wine vinegar or juice from pickled red onion pot
2 flatbread, for dipping
Method:
1. Drizzle the oil over the base of a serving dish then add the tomatoes, feta, olive, oregano, pickle juice (or vinegar) then mix well.
2. Season then taste to see if it needs more of any of the above ingredients.
3. Serve with toasted flatbreads for dipping.
For more recipes and inspiration, visit www.ocado.com/recipes