One of the greatest things of living in London is to have the opportunity to get in touch with so many different cultures. Any occasion is good to get to know people from different country, get in touch with their traditions and absorb their uses through stories, music and of course...food!
Today we are flying (virtually) to Greece and I propose a typical lunch with all the secrets of a grandmother, "giagià", who prepares the table for children and grandchildren. Simple and genuine ingredients to cook that represents one of the symbols of the Hellenic culture:
Large portions, tasty food and heady scent... are you ready to create your home made Souvlaky?
First we need to focus on two recipes that are the basis of the final dish that are the Pita (typical Greek bread that is prepared in the houses of the locals with flour and yogurt) and Tzatziky (the fresh cucumber sauce that will give a note of summer to your dish)!
Doses for 4 portions
INGREDIENTS for the pita ( 4 portions)
- 400g Greek yogurt (Total)
- 400g flour
- 4g instant yeast
- salt
- Oregano
INGREDIENTS for the Tzatziky ( 4 portions)
-1 cucumber
- 250g yogurt
-1 clove of garlic
- vinegar
- salt
- parsley
INGREDIENTS for the Souvlaki-meat ( 4 portions)
-2 pork fillets
-vinegar
-salt
-pepper
-onion
-garlic
-oil
-potatoes (french fries 2 portions)
- tomatoes ( 2-3 big vine tomatoes)
- 1 onion ( cutted in strips)
PROCEDURE for the pita
1. Put 300g of plain flour in a bowl, add the yeast, mix it and create a space in the center and place the yogurt on it.
2. Add salt and oregano
3. Mix everything and work the dough until we obtain a homogeneous sphere
4. Leave to rest for few minutes. If you use non-instant yeast, you can cover the container with a damp cloth and leave it to rest for 2-3 hours in a dry place.
5. Pick up the dough, work it and divide it into 4 parts
6. Turn on the hob and heat a pan with a drizzle of oil
7. Roll out each loaf in a circular shape using a pinch of flour so it will not stick to your work surface
8. Place the pita on the hot pan and cook both sides
PROCEDURE for the Tzatziky
1. Wash and dry well the cucumber
2. Grate it and put it in a bowl
3. Chop the garlic finely/ minutely and add it to the cucumber (I only put half a clove of it, to have a result a little bit lighter, but if you are fun of it, the choice of quantity is totally free)
4. Mix all the yogurt and add a pinch of salt and vinegar
5. Chop the parsley and add it to the sauce
6. add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
7. Your tzatziky is ready
PROCEDURE for the Souvlaki
You will need now: Pitas, the Tzatziky, some fresh tomatoes, some onion, fried potatoes (I made them in the oven instead of fried) and some meat of your choice; today I propose the Souvlaki stuffed with pork, but if you want a variation, chicken is highly recommended.
First we will prepare the meat. If you have the possibility, the ideal is to spiced it and leave it to marinate the night before to have more intense and tasty flavors. I had not planned to do Souvlaki today so I have not prepared it before, but the thought of the summer holidays and looking at some photos made me want to fly back to Greece with my heart and stomach therefore I was cooking before even knowing it! Let’s begin.
1. Chop the meat and put it in a bowl, first of all put vinegar and salt. Mix everything thoroughly
2. Now add oil, sliced onion, garlic and pepper. Mix everything.
3. Cover the meat with cling film and leave to marinate for at least 30 minutes
4. During this time you can take care of the preparation of the rest of the ingredients and sides of the souvlaki. For the potatoes, in the original recipe they are fried, but since I always look for a slightly healthier version I preferred to cook them in the oven while keeping the shape of the French fries. Another option could be to take the frozen ones or take them ready with a take away.
5. The next step will be to heat a pan with a drizzle of oil and then add the meat making all sides golden.
The perfume at this point will catapult you with the thought immediately on some Greek island, for sure!
6. When it reaches a golden color your meat will be ready to be the protagonist of your home-made Souvlaki
If we want to stick to the local customs, it will be necessary to take a sheet of aluminum foil as a base and one of parchment paper, lay the pita on top, spread the center with tzatziky, add fresh tomatoes, onion, meat and finally potatoes. Roll everything up and wrap with aluminum foil.
Now you just need to savor it and enjoy your home-made Souvlaky!
Enjoy!
Recipe, Photos and Hard work of Agnese!
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