The following highlights some of the popular Traditional Cretan Foods. If you manage to be in an Cretan restaurant or you are visiting Crete, I recommend the following:
1. Cretan Salad
It is nothing more than a mixture of green pepper, tomato, onion, cucumber, black olives and feta cheese, with a dressing that begs to be dipped in bread. Some places add capers or pickled caper leaves. Despite its simplicity, it is never missing from any table (we order it every day as a starter). Each region prepares it in a different way, but all versions are exquisite.
2. Kalitsounia
Kalitsounia are small pastries made mainly with cheese, although they are available in a variety of options, including a sweet one. The savoury version consists of filo pastry and can include different ingredients such as spinach and horta. For the sweet version, rose water, cinnamon and sugar are added to the filling. Popular all year round, they deserve to be tried whenever you get the chance.
3. Paximadi
It is a twice-baked bread, traditionally composed of 90 per cent barley and 10 per cent wheat. In Crete, it is often sun-dried, becoming harder and crispier. It is made with olive oil, similar to a biscote but thicker, more compact and sturdier. They are available in small, medium and large sizes and in different formulas depending on the flour used in their preparation.
4. Dakos
Although you can eat it just about anywhere in Greece, this simple meze should be at the top of your list when you set foot in Crete. Although its name may vary from region to region – some call it koukouvagia – dakos is a light but hearty salad based on barley biscuits or paximadi . These are lightly soaked in water or olive oil to soften them and topped with fresh grated tomato and myzithra , a creamy sheep’s or goat’s cheese. For the finishing touch, virgin olive oil is sprinkled over the dakos, with a pinch of salt, pepper and oregano.
5. Loukoumades
The name of these sweet doughnuts derives from the Arabic or Turkish word ‘lokma’, which means morsel or bite. You can find them in different cuisines, but each has some specific regional recipes. Cypriot loukoumades are medium-sized doughnuts soaked in honey syrup. Loukoumades are very popular at Cypriot festivals and fairs, but according to a pre-Christian tradition, they must be baked before Epiphany. The story goes that evil spirits ‘kallinkantzari’ can be banished all year round only on Epiphany and only with the help of honey-soaked doughnuts.
6. Lamb Stamnankáthi
In Crete, stamnakathi is everywhere. This wild green is the equivalent of spinach and Cretans credit it with their good health. Usually boiled and savoured with a dash of olive oil and lemon, they perfectly complement meat, particularly lamb. The combination appears in many taverns and even in top restaurants.
7. Sarikopitakia
Probably another of Crete’s most iconic foods, sarikopitakia (or sarikopites) are filo roll-shaped pastries filled with sheep’s cheese and fried in olive oil. They are served hot with honey on top and are named after the shape of the headscarf (sariki) worn by local men.
8. Cretan Cheeses
Cheese lovers in Crete will be delighted. In addition to the famous “feta”, a cheese made from sheep’s and goat’s milk that is widely used in Greece, there are other delicious cheeses here. Myzithra, a soft cheese often used instead of feta in the Cretan version of Greek salad, and Graviera, similar to the Swiss “cheese with holes”.
9. Gamopilafo
A combination of gamos, the Greek word for wedding, and pilaf, gamopilafo is a rice dish traditionally eaten at Cretan weddings. Today, however, the dish can be found in many of the island’s tavernas. Somewhat similar to a risotto, the dish is made with rice cooked in a meat broth with a dash of lemon juice and butter. The result is a rich and creamy dish that you’ll easily fall in love with.
10. Fried Snails
This is a dish for adventurous food lovers. In this Cretan dish, the snails (chochlios), often still alive, are first fried with flour and hot olive oil in a frying pan, hence the name boubouristi , which is the popping sound you hear when the snails are fried. The next step is to sprinkle the snails with wine vinegar and rosemary.
If you found this list useful, here are some more Traditional European Foods to try out on my Pinterest channel.