Cycladia | Specialties

Local Specialties & Recipes | Local Products

Paspala

A delicious dish made with the fat of meat, steaks or pancetta, tomatoes, butter, eggs and herbs. The meat is cooked in the fat or butter (with the steaks the fat is used while with the pancetta only the butter as its meat is by itself very fatty) and as soon as it takes a reddish colour, the tomatoes, some sugar, salt, pepper and thyme are added. A while before the food is ready the eggs are added in the frying pan so that they are cooked altogether. This dish used to be a traditional Sunday or holiday dish.

Pie with tsigara

Tsigara are a traditional meat product of Kea and they consist in pieces of meat with fat (“glina” in Greek). The locals make a fine pie with those tsigara, actually creating dough like for bread, and mixing in it the pieces of meat. The result is a very distinctive loaf of bread with pieces of the fatty meat baked within.

Rice with aubergines

This is in reality a red risotto with aubergines and various aromatic herbs. The aubergines are cut into small pieces and then slightly fried with onions, garlic, olive oil, tomato sauce and parsley. About 20 minutes before the mixture is ready the rice is added along with some water and all boil together. A quite “summery” dish; besides aubergines are among the top ingredients for most Greek summer dishes!

Fish baked in the oven

This dish is made with small fish which are covered with round slices of onion and baked in the oven with olive oil, lemon juice and some rosemary. A quick, nutritious and light meal!

“Dark-skinned” Amigdalota

A special version of the typical amigdalota (sweets made with grated almonds) with dark colour (“dark-skinned” in Greek is “melaxrina”). The preparation is approximately the same only cocoa is added to give its dark colour. The almonds are grated and smashed till they become almost powder. Then the cocoa and some grated rusks are added and blended altogether. The mastic liquor comes next to make the mixture soft and “kneadable”. The mixture is well kneaded till it gets as solid as it needs in order for the small balls to be shaped. They are then dipped in sugar and the dessert is ready!

Loza or Lotza

A typical Cycladic “mezes” made with salted meat. The pieces of meat are added in a pan with thick, sea salt and red wine for almost a day. Then some spices, herbs and lots of pepper are added. The meat is then inserted in an intestine (just like sausages are made) which has been well rinsed with warm, red wine. As soon as it is ready, the edges are sawed and the “sausage” is hanged above a fire of fig and pear tree woods for 2 days. It is then hanged in open air for a week so that it dries up and it is ready for consumption along with some tomatoes, cheese and wine! Loza can be preserved for a year in a chilled environment or in the fridge.

Astakomakaronada

This is one of the most delicious and typical Greek dishes and it is made with pasta, lobster, lots of tomatoes and some tomato sauce and various herbs and aromatics. If you have not tried yet, do so in Kea!

Kokoras Krasatos

Again a typical Greek dish made with rooster boiled and baked in lots of wine and tomato sauce accompanied by pasta that has been partly baked within the sauce from the rooster. So traditional and so delicious!

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