Cooking Vegetables Greek Style

[axariotisxy]

I have noticed in Greek restaurants that the vegetables I am served are always soft. I like them this way, they are way easier to digest than the half-raw vegetables served in typical restaurant situations.

They are not only soft, but the perfect amount of softness - they aren't falling apart and still taste great. So, I tried to cook my vegetables a little longer at home and it was a disaster. They got too soft and everything fell apart. Any tips?

 

[Luana]

Thank you! Seems the "popular" advice of last decade or so is to steam or cook vegetables and have them remain somewhat crispy, which goes against how we had our vegetables served to us as children. I don't recall any Greek child refusing to eat vegetables. Seemed like we all liked them.

What vegetables have you tried, and how did you cook them and how long did you cook them? Steamed, roasted in oven? I've made big pans of vegetables in the oven, drizzled with olive oil and all cooked until tender. Some vegetables lend themselves to this method better than others. Typically, I would roast a potato or two, a large onion, eggplant, tomatoes, zucchini and/or yellow summer squash. Zucchini usually cooks fairly quickly, so I'd add it towards the end, needs 40-60 minutes at most. I'd also check pan and move vegetables around a bit ever 30-45 minutes, this also gives you a good idea of just how "done" they are.

Here's a site that has a recipe you might want to take a look at.

Don't give up. And good luck!