Greek Food, Cooking and Recipe Community

Best Greek food to serve on Christmas Day?

1 - 4 of 4 Posts
paharo45

paharo45

Active member
I am trying to plan my Christmas Day feast. I want Greek elements, but I also want to keep things on the simpler side, if that's at all possible.

I will have 10-15 people over that day. Here is what I was thinking. Please weigh in - I could use all the help I can get!

- Pork roast - was thinking of doing a pork roast with a Greek sort of spice rub - oregano, garlic, salt, pepper ....
- Lemon potatoes - this goes so well with pork!
- Greek salad - always a classic favorite
- Vegetables - haven't decided yet which vegetable dish to serve
- Chrisopsomo - of course, this is a given
- Melamakarona - also a given

What do you think? I am not opposed to cooking lamb either.
 
A nice salad that pairs well with pork and is more winters is a nice carrot cabbage salad, Laxano karoto, tzatziki pairs wonderfully with pork. A tiropita. You can make the tiropita in advance, freeze it and and bake it from frozen the day of the dinner. And what about a nice baklava to end the meal with your melomakarona!
 
PemiKanavos said:
A nice salad that pairs well with pork and is more winters is a nice carrot cabbage salad, Laxano karoto, tzatziki pairs wonderfully with pork. A tiropita. You can make the tiropita in advance, freeze it and and bake it from frozen the day of the dinner. And what about a nice baklava to end the meal with your melomakarona!
Click to expand...
I love the idea of serving a carrot cabbage salad and tiro pita with the pork! I would think about putting a bit of freshly ground nutmeg (a tiny amount) in the filling for the tiropita.

If you have any, consider making something with apple for dessert - like a milopita. I love apples with pork meals. I would even be tempted to serve apple sauce, even though it isn't necessarily Greek. Or apple spoon sweets!
 
So, I ended up serving pork, cabbage salad, tiropita, lemon potatoes, melamakarona, pasta flora, and Christopsomo. It was perfect!
 
1 - 4 of 4 Posts
You must log in or register to reply here.

JOIN THE DISCUSSION AND READ OTHER GREEK INFO:

Do you make your pastitsio with a thick or thin layer of krema?

I've always preferred my pastitsio with a nice, thick layer of béchamel on top. To me, that's one of the best parts of the dish! I love when the krema is rich, creamy, and thick enough to hold its shape when you cut into the pastitsio.

The problem is that I've been having trouble getting my krema just right. Sometimes it comes out too thin, and other times the texture isn't quite as smooth as I'd like. I've tried adjusting the amount of flour and milk, but I still haven't found the perfect balance.

I'm curious how everyone else makes theirs. Do you prefer a thick layer of béchamel or just enough to cover the pasta? Does your family add eggs or cheese to the mixture?

I'd especially love to hear any tips for making a thick, smooth krema that sets beautifully when baked!

Favorite Greek Cheeses Beyond Feta

Feta gets most of the attention when people talk about Greek cheese, but there are so many other varieties worth trying. I’m curious which Greek cheeses everyone enjoys most beyond feta.

Graviera is one of my favorites because it works so well on a cheese plate, grated over dishes, or just eaten with bread. Kasseri is another one I really like, especially melted. I’ve also been interested in trying more regional cheeses like metsovone, manouri, kefalotyri, and formaela.

Some Greek cheeses seem to be much easier to find outside Greece than others, so I’d also love to know which ones people regularly buy and where they usually find them.

What Greek cheeses do you keep coming back to? Are there certain ones you associate with a particular region, dish, or family tradition? And if someone has mostly eaten feta, which Greek cheese would you recommend they try next?

Do You Make Avgolemono Thick or Brothy?

I usually prefer avgolemono somewhere in the middle. I don’t like it so thick that it feels almost like a cream soup, but I also don’t want it completely thin and brothy. For me, the best version has enough egg and lemon to give the broth some body while still keeping it light.

A lot probably depends on what kind of avgolemono you’re making, too. In chicken soup, I like it a little more brothy because I want the rice or orzo and chicken to still stand out. With something like lahanodolmades, I don’t mind the avgolemono sauce being thicker because it is coating the food rather than serving as the soup itself.

The lemon level matters just as much as the thickness. I like enough lemon to make it bright and noticeable, but not so much that it overwhelms everything else. I think balance is really the key.

Greek cooking without a recipe?

I've been thinking about how much traditional Greek cooking relies on instinct rather than following exact recipes. Some of the Greek dishes I learned to make were taught to me by feel, with someone showing me what to do rather than measuring everything out.

I actually enjoy cooking this way, but I've noticed that it can make certain dishes difficult to recreate consistently! Sometimes everything comes together perfectly, and other times I wonder what I did differently.

I'm curious how others approach this. Did you learn Greek cooking by watching your yiayia, mother, or other relatives? Do you measure ingredients, or do you just know when something looks, smells, or tastes right?

What is the secret to making really good Greek lemon potatoes?

I've been making Greek lemon potatoes for years, and it's one of those dishes I make completely by feel. I don't measure anything, and I never really thought about how I make them because it's all second nature to me.

Recently, I tried teaching someone how to make them. Everything seemed straightforward while we were cooking together, but when they went home and tried making them on their own, all kinds of things went wrong! The potatoes weren't cooking evenly, the texture wasn't quite right, and the lemon flavor didn't come through the way it should.

It made me realize how much I rely on instinct when cooking traditional Greek food. I rarely write down recipes, so explaining every little detail is harder than I expected!

For those who make Greek lemon potatoes regularly, what tips would you give someone who's just learning?
Sign up for a free account and share your thoughts, photos, questions about Greek food, travel and culture!

WorldwideGreeks.com is a free online forum community where people can discuss Greek food, travel, traditions, history and mythology.
Join Worldwide Greeks here!

JOIN COMMUNITY FOR FREE

LOGIN TO YOUR ACCOUNT
Back
Top