Tzatziki And Shopping & Eating At Athens Central Market

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Tzatziki and Shopping And Eating At Athens Central Market

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This cooling yogurt cucumber dip pairs well with almost anything. It is especially good with anything fried - fritters, patties, a bag of chips, pakoras and if you are feeling healthy, perhaps with crudites. I like it as a spread on my fish fingers sandwich. 

For just the recipe, skip the chatter and scroll down.

This Greek dip, Tzatziki, was made with Greek cucumbers bought from the Central Market (Varvakios Agora) in Athens. 

I was in Greece in June and whilst in Athens, I would walk to the Central Market everyday. I love food in all forms. No holiday is complete without a trip to the local markets and supermarkets. I can spend hours looking at food.

I bought an extra luggage just to bring these Greek produce home.
It was money well spent.

The Central Market runs along Athinas Street closer to Omonia subway station. It houses dedicated areas for selling vegetables and fruits, seafood and meat. 

Dotted throughout the peripheral of these three fresh produce areas and fanning out into adjoining side roads are the many shops selling: herbs and spices, desserts, sweets, kitchen sundries, all kinds of nuts and grains, charcuteries, cured fish, olives, cheeses, bakeries, egg vendors... the variety is quite mind boggling.

There was a particularly fascinating herb and spice store located a short distance from the main thoroughfare. In that narrow shop space was a smorgasbod of all the herbs and spices you could possibly want. I even saw a large bag on the floor filled with brown coloured, plastic display sausage links for sale. That was odd.

The shop had easily over 20 varieties of dried fruits for sale, plenty of which I had to ask for help identifying. 

The store helper was generous with dishing out tasting sample. I ended up buying generous bags of dates, very rarely seen golden berries, some beet coloured fruit strips which I now cannot recall what they are, the best dried raspberries, apricots and figs. The raspberries are especially good and I have hidden them in the depths of my refrigerator lest someone in the family discovers them and finishes those sweet and tart tasty nuggets all in one sitting.

I have been wanting to make Kaimaki ice cream. It is a Greek egg-free ice cream with a distinctive stretchy texture. To get this stretchy texture, I must have sahlep, a ground wild orchid root which is very hard to come by (and expensive - it can't be cultivated) if you are not living in the middle east. Even within the market, I had to go in and out of at least 5 spice shops before I found it in this tiny shop.

It was tucked away with the mastic gum and mahlep, spices that are also difficult to obtain if you are not in Greece. 

I exited the shop with 2 large bags of goodies and a smile on my face. My shopping partner for the day wasn't too thrilled though. I did however, make it all good by dropping in at Mokka.

The very best Turkish coffee served with a cube of wobbly Turkish Delight.

It serves very good black coffee, cafe latte and certainly the best Turkish coffee. As you walk out from the meat market, it should be to the left, on Athinas Street. Click on the Mokka link, browse their history and wonder no longer why their coffee is superior. I would frequent it everyday, sometimes twice a day. At times, I would order both a cafe latte and Turkish coffee. I especially miss the Turkish coffee.

Always busy and always good coffee.

There is an excellent place to have lunch within the area. That's if, you can find the eatery. There is no signboard and the eatery doesn't even have a name. Even worse, it is in a basement and you really can't see it from the road level.

Thomas, a driver/tour guide we had engaged to take us to the seaport town of Nafplio had recommended we try the no frills food cooked by an elderly gentleman. The latter has been cooking there longer than anyone can remember.

His eatery is located at one end of the vegetable market in a building that looks close to collapsing. 

In the picture below, the market is to the right. If I recall correctly, this end of the vegetable market is where you would find the dumpster. Doesn't sound like a promising start I know but stay focus and just walk past it. Cross the road and walk confidently down the short flight of stairs.

Thomas said the food tasted as good as home cooked and perhaps even better. So how could I not try?

Walk down the stairs and you will see the
pretty sight of copper coloured wine decanters
albeit rather precariously stacked.  Look a bit further back and lined
up against the back wall will be 8 wine barrels. They are not for
show. They are filled with house wine!  

This place has all of 10 little tables and whatever the friendly, white haired chef decides to cook for the day is what you will have to eat. You walk past the wine barrels and there on the concrete counter (to the left background of the picture above) will be covered aluminium pots of lunch. The counter is tiny but he can fit quite a few pots in that space!

The chef removes the pot lids, you smile and nod if you would like it and he continues to uncover all his pots to show you whatever else he has cooked up. Such an uncomplicated way of ordering. Who needs menus when there is a more effective way of deciding what you would like served to you?

And how was the food? I would eat there everyday if I could! Simple dishes cooked immaculately. The chickpeas were delicate and well flavoured. No overpowering of any one herb or spice. 

I could taste the different flavours of every piece of vegetable in the vegetable stew and each was cooked to the perfect texture. This is quite a feat as this dish is easily overcooked.

The sardines in lemon and garlic was lovely and the chef managed to bury a whole slab of feta in that mountain high plate of salad which was simply dressed with extra virgin olive oil, dried oregano, pepper and salt.

I wished I had tummy space to try all the other dishes he had prepared that day. There must have been at least another 5 dishes. Pity this place is only open for lunch. Perhaps, it is just as well, the way I was eating in Greece, if there was no restraint, I would have returned home the size of a blimp.

This is the third in a series of 10 meze recipes that were inspired by my recent holiday in Greece. Click here, Greek Meze, Another Selection Of Wonderful Little Bites. For your easy reference, scroll down to the end of the post and you will find a table spread of all the 10 meze, the names of the meze and links to recipes that I have already posted.

TZATZIKI AND SHOPPING & EATING AT ATHENS CENTRAL MARKET

Prep:	15 minutes
Cook:	-
Inactive:	5 minutes
Level:	Easy
Makes:	~ 1 and 1/2 cups
Oven Temperature:	-
Can recipe be doubled?	Yes
Make ahead?	Keeps well covered and refrigerated up to 3 days.

Just the ingredients 4oz (113g) cucumber 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 +1/8 teaspoon minced garlic 1/4 + 1/8  teaspoon minced fresh dill 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1/4 cup teaspoon salt 1 and 1/4 cup greek yogurt   Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling

Ingredients

4oz (113g) cucumber

I use cucumbers labelled as 'Japanese or Kyuri Cucumbers'. They are about 1" (2.5 cm) in diameter and about 10" (20.5 cm) in length.  Skins and seeds which are underdeveloped can be eaten. 

If you don't have access to these, you would mostly likely have to peel your cucumbers and if the seeds are large and unpalatable, get rid of the seeds as well. 

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 +1/8 teaspoon minced garlic

1/4 + 1/8  teaspoon minced fresh dill 

Need ideas to use up leftover dill? Scroll down to 'Tips'.

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 cup teaspoon salt

1 and 1/4 cup greek yogurt 

If you cannot get greek yogurt, you would need to strain the yogurt to drain off excess whey. What you would end up with is a thick and creamy 'yogurt cheese'. To find out how to make yogurt cheese, view my post, Labneh, Thick Creamy Yogurt Cheese.

Need ideas to use up leftover yogurt? Scroll down to 'Tips'.

Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling

Method

If the cucumber has thick skin, peel it off and discard. If the cucumber seeds are large, scoop them out and discard.

Grate the cucumber into short strips. I keep mine between 1 - 2 cm long.

Sprinkle the 1/4 teaspoon salt over the cucumber and set aside for 5 minutes.

Squeeze the cucumber to get rid of excess liquid. Be gentle. You don't want to squeeze it bone dry. I usually end up with slightly over 2 Tablespoons of cucumber.

Place in a large bowl, the cucumber, minced garlic, minced dill, ground black pepper and yogurt. Fold in all the ingredients. 

Add salt to taste. You may not have to add all 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Adjust the other seasonings/ingredients: pepper, garlic, dill to suit your taste. 

The tzatziki I had in Greece was always thicker than what is usually served outside of Greece. If you like it thinner, just add cold water or milk. I know of quite a few people outside of Greece who like to add sour cream. Some recipes will ask for either vinegar or lemon which I don't find necessary.

Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil if you like. I like it without.

Tips

What to do with leftover dill?

Use them in my Smoked Salmon With Dill Butter Tea Sandwich. Click on the link and you will find more suggestions to use up the dill.

A literal bed of Smoked Salmon with Dill Butter Sandwiches

What to do with leftover labneh (yogurt cheese)?

You could make these lovely dessert. Just drizzle little bowls of labneh with honey or soft brown sugar or spoon over my simple 30-minute strawberry jam. Terribly easy and so satisfying to eat.

 What to do with leftover yogurt?

If what you have is yogurt (undrained), then make yourself some ice cold yogurt drink in whatever flavour you like!

Help yourself to a yogurt drink. There's Condensed Milk With Vanilla, 
Strawberry, Mango, Apple and Peach.

WHAT'S COMING UP NEXT?                                                 
Since you now have the recipe for Tzatziki, you must have my recipe for these Greek pork kebabs, Souvlaki. They go hand in hand and if you were to make gyros, you must have a recipe for Tzatziki. You cannot have one recipe without the other.

In Greece, pork is the meat of choice for these grilled nuggets. Chicken also works well. Whatever your meat option, this uncomplicated recipe will have your meat tasting lemony, garlicky with a good flavour of dried oregano, black pepper and extra virgin olive oil. There, that's really pretty much the recipe.

My Greek inspired meze!

First row. Left to right: Slow Cooked Octopus In A Sherry Vinegar Garlic Marinade, Moussaka - Baked Casserole Of Eggplants, Tomatoey Meat Topped With A Creamy White Sauce, Santorini Fava A Delicious Yellow Split Peas Dip, Marinated Grilled Peppers With Fig Balsamic Cream

Second row. Left to right: Greek Inspired Harissa-Style Hot Chilli Sauce To Go With Olives, 5 Minutes Grilled Cheese Meze, Santorini Tomatoey Tomato Balls/Fritters

Third row. Left to right: Crispy Whitebait And Sweet Onions Disk, Pork Souvlaki Kebabs Skewers, Tzatziki A Cucumber Yogurt Dip,  Oh So Soft Pita Bread