Harixo Taverna – Greek Aegean Recipes Without Vegetable Oil

Lamb Souvlaki with Tzatziki

⏱ 45 min + marinade🍽 4 servings🔥 Easy

Smoky lamb skewers marinated in olive oil, lemon, and oregano — served with cool garlic-and-cucumber yogurt.

Ingredients

800 g lamb shoulder, cut into 3 cm cubes
100 ml extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 2 lemons
4 cloves garlic, grated
2 tbsp dried oregano
Sea salt and black pepper
500 g Greek yogurt
½ cucumber, grated and squeezed dry
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp olive oil
Fresh dill, chopped
4 warm pita breads

Instructions

Whisk olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper; toss with lamb. Marinate 4 hours minimum.
Mix yogurt, cucumber, garlic, olive oil, and dill for tzatziki; chill.
Thread lamb onto soaked skewers, pressing pieces close.
Grill over high heat 3–4 minutes per side, four turns, until charred and just pink inside.
Rest skewers 5 minutes loosely tented in foil.
Serve in warm pita with tzatziki, sliced tomatoes, and red onion.

Whole Grilled Lavraki

⏱ 30 min🍽 2 servings🔥 Easy

Mediterranean sea bream grilled over coals with lemon, olive oil, and oregano — the cleanest taste of the Aegean.

Ingredients

2 whole sea bream (about 500 g each), scaled and gutted
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 lemons, sliced
4 sprigs fresh oregano
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
Coarse sea salt
Cracked black pepper
Lemon wedges to serve

Instructions

Pat the fish very dry inside and out; score the thickest part 3 times on each side.
Rub olive oil all over and season generously with salt and pepper.
Stuff the cavities with lemon slices, oregano, thyme, and bay leaves.
Grill over hot coals 7 minutes per side until the skin crisps and chars.
Drizzle with olive oil and a squeeze of lemon during the final minute.
Lift carefully to a platter and serve with extra lemon and a green salad.

Briam

⏱ 1 hr 30 min🍽 6 servings🔥 Easy

Greek roasted summer vegetables baked low and slow in olive oil and tomato until silky and golden at the edges.

Ingredients

3 large potatoes, sliced thin
2 zucchini, sliced
1 large eggplant, sliced
2 red bell peppers, cut into strips
2 large onions, sliced
4 ripe tomatoes, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
120 ml extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp tomato paste
Handful fresh parsley, chopped
2 tsp dried oregano
Sea salt and pepper

Instructions

Heat the oven to 190°C (375°F).
Layer all vegetables in a large roasting dish, distributing evenly.
Whisk olive oil, tomato paste, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper with 200 ml hot water.
Pour the dressing over and toss gently to coat every piece.
Bake covered with foil 50 minutes; uncover and bake 25 minutes more until edges caramelize.
Scatter parsley over the top and serve warm or at room temperature with feta and bread.

Avgolemono

⏱ 45 min🍽 6 servings🔥 Easy

Greece's silky lemon-egg-rice soup, finished off the heat so the eggs stay velvety and bright.

Ingredients

1.5 kg whole chicken
2 carrots, halved
2 stalks celery, halved
1 onion, halved
2 bay leaves
½ cup short-grain rice
3 large eggs
Juice of 2 large lemons
Sea salt and white pepper
2 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Instructions

Simmer chicken with carrots, celery, onion, bay leaves and water to cover for 1 hour. Strain stock and shred meat.
Bring 8 cups of stock to a boil; add rice and cook 15 minutes until tender. Reduce to a simmer.
Whisk eggs in a bowl, then slowly whisk in lemon juice.
Temper by ladling 2 cups of hot stock slowly into the egg mixture, whisking constantly.
Pour the tempered eggs back into the pot off the heat; stir well — never boil after adding eggs.
Stir in shredded chicken and dill, season, and finish each bowl with a drop of olive oil.

Spanakopita

⏱ 1 hr 30 min🍽 8 servings🔥 Medium

Crisp phyllo pie layered with butter and packed with spinach, herbs, and tangy feta — the most beloved village pie in Greece.

Ingredients

1 kg fresh spinach, stems removed
1 bunch dill, chopped
1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 bunch spring onions, sliced
350 g good feta, crumbled
3 eggs, beaten
Black pepper
450 g phyllo pastry, thawed
250 g unsalted butter, melted
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Instructions

Wilt spinach in batches; cool, then squeeze very dry and chop.
Mix spinach, herbs, spring onions, feta, eggs, pepper, and olive oil.
Brush a 30×40 cm pan with butter. Layer half the phyllo sheets, brushing butter between each.
Spread the filling evenly; top with remaining phyllo sheets, again buttering each layer.
Score the top into squares and brush generously with butter.
Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 50 minutes until golden and crisp. Rest 15 minutes before cutting.

Galaktoboureko

⏱ 1 hr 30 min🍽 12 servings🔥 Medium

Velvety semolina custard baked between buttery layers of phyllo and soaked in a fragrant lemon syrup.

Ingredients

1 liter whole milk
150 g fine semolina
180 g caster sugar
4 eggs
60 g unsalted butter
2 tsp vanilla extract
Zest of 1 lemon
400 g phyllo pastry
200 g unsalted butter, melted
For syrup: 300 g sugar, 250 ml water, peel of 1 lemon, 1 cinnamon stick

Instructions

Bring milk and sugar to a simmer. Whisk in semolina and cook 5 minutes until thick. Cool slightly.
Beat eggs with vanilla and lemon zest; whisk into the warm custard with 60 g butter. Cool to lukewarm.
Butter a 23×33 cm pan. Layer 8 phyllo sheets, buttering each, letting them overhang.
Pour custard in evenly; fold overhanging phyllo over the top. Layer 8 more buttered sheets above.
Score the top into diamonds. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 50 minutes until deeply golden.
Simmer all syrup ingredients 6 minutes; pour cool syrup over the hot pastry. Rest 4 hours before serving.

Aegean Island Cooking Without Vegetable Oil

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Greek Aegean Recipes

Lamb Souvlaki with Tzatziki

Ingredients

Instructions

Whole Grilled Lavraki

Ingredients

Instructions

Briam

Ingredients

Instructions

Avgolemono

Ingredients

Instructions

Spanakopita

Ingredients

Instructions

Galaktoboureko

Ingredients

Instructions

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