Home | Food And Drink

Cypriot Food

By: NIK

Read More About Food and Drink

Often used ingredients are vegetables such as courgettes, greenish peppers, okra plant, green as grass beans, artichokes, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage and grapevine leaves, and pulses such as beans (for fasoulia), broad beans, peas, black-eyed beans, chick-peas and lentils. Pears, apples, grapes, oranges, mandarines, nectarines, mespila, blackberries, cherry, strawberries, figs, watermelon, melon, avocado, citrus, lemon yellow , pistachio, sweet almond, chestnut, walnut, hazelnut are some of the commonest of the fruits and nuts.
Greens or "Khorta", as they are known here, form a BIG part of the Cypriot diet as they are mixed with meat in stews andmany dishes are vegetarian using dried beans and seasonal green vegetables.
Whilst most of the big supermarkets are like big supermarkets the world over with sanitised rows of identically shapedfruit and vegetables, all conforming to a set standard, the friendly local fruit and veg market, or "agora", has crates offresh, differently shaped produce straight out of the fields that morning:
* giant celery
* bunches of rosy radishes
* enormouslettuce and
* sweet bunches of fresh herbs - parsley & coriander are the most common.
We just love the local co-operative farmers produce so much!
So you have to shop several times per week for your fresh veg but the small shops open early and stay open late.
Well you've bought a selection of fruit and veg for next to nothing (unlike big supermarkets the world over, fresh produce does NOT cost a lot here!)
The best-known spices and herbs let in pepper, parsley, roka, celery, thyme, and oregano. Traditionally, artisha (cumin) and kolliandros (coriander) seeds brand up the main cooking aromas of the island universe. Mintage is a very important herb in Cyprus. It grows voraciously, and locals use it for everything, particularly in dishes containing ground meat. For example, the Cypriot version of pastitsio (locally known as macaronia tou fournou) contains very little tomato and generous amounts of mint. The same is true of keftes or keftedes (meat balls, kofte in Turkish culinary art), which are sometimes laced with mint to anticipate a contrast with the meat.
Cypriots grilling over charcoal. They grill halloumi cheeseflower, olives, mushrooms, loukaniko (porc sausages), and of course kebabs. These are souvlaki (shish kebab), sheftalia, or gyros (doner kebab in Turkish cuisine). Kebabs are made up from various cuts of lamb, pork, or occasionally chicken, and very rarely beef. They are typically served stuffed into a pita pocket or wrapped in a thin flatbread, along with a green salad of cabbage, parsley, and raw mild onions, tomatoes and sliced cucumber. Hellenic Cypriot souvlaki is normally made up of porc, whilst the Turkish Cypriots use lamb in their shish kebabs. similarity in appearance, the flavour is quite unlike, exactly as the Turkish Cypriots sometimes use a spicy marinade. Gyros is grilled meat slices instead of chunks, and the taste sensation is reinforced by the salad or dressings added.
Pourgouri (bulgur, cracked wheat berry) is the traditional carbohydrate other than bread. It is steamed with tomato and onion; a few strands of vermicelli pasta are often added to supply a texture contrast. additionally with pourgouri, natural yoghurt is a staple. Wheat and yoghurt come together in the traditional peasants' breakfast of trahanas, a primitive form of pasta, in which the cracked wheat berry is steamed, mixed with sour milk, dried, and stored. Small amounts reheated in water or broth provide a very nourishing and tasty meal, especially with added cubes of well-aged halloumi. Pourgouri is also used to make koupes where the pourgouri is combined with flour and wate to form a dough, which is settled into a cigar shape. A hole is made through the cigar and a variety of minced meat, onions, parsly and cinammon is jammed. After waterproofing the meat mixture inside the cigar they are deep-fried ahead serving with lemon yellow juice.
Chilled local beery is a desired drink. The local breweries of KEO and Carlsberg command the lion's share of the marketplace. The Turkish trade name Efes is the bigggest Beer brand in North Cyprus. winery has a long tradition on the island, evidence of which goes back for millennia. Commandaria is a eminent dessert vino, which enjoys the differentiation of being the oldest wine in uninterrupted yield.
SIMPLICITY is basically the key to all great Cyprus food, the best of which will cost only a few pounds and be washed down with a glass of local wine (okay, so not all of it is very good unless you know what to order - see our secret Cyprus wine guide for more details).
Finally you can relax with a Cypriot coffee, which is almost always on the house and be astonished that you have spent 3-4 hours over your meal.
Cypriot coffee can be a bit of an acquired taste which is why you will be asked if you really mean Cypriot coffee rather than a "Nes"(cafe).
* Tip no 1: Order a "Metrio" for slightly sweet coffee, "Glyko" if you like a lot of sugar or a "Sketto" if you like your coffee "neat".
* Tip no 2: Don't drink ALL the coffee -the bottom is filled with a thick sludge which will taste very bitter! If you forget, grab the glass of water that always accompanies your coffee and drink it quickly!
Argaka
If you have visited Cyprus and not experienced the wonders of real Cyprus food, then you have probably been trapped in the main tourist resorts where the "fast" food there bears no resemblance to the real thing.
By the way, we do get chips in our little corner of Cyprus but this type of Cyprus food is known locally as Argaka potatoes (where the best spuds are grown - see the picture!)
Development and elements of more commercial tourism are starting to encroach on even our lovely little corner of the island, but we still have acres of vegetable fields and swathes of orange groves. Come and see our special, unspoilt, western corner of the island and sample the REAL Cyprus food there before it loses its current rustic charm.
Republic of Cyprus besides has a culture of brandy yield with Cypriote brandy having been produced by various Limassol-based distilleries since 1871. Cypriot brandy is usually drunk with meze dishes and forms the base for the distinctive Brandy Sour cocktail, highly-developed on the island in the late-1930s.
Zivania, a grape distillate like to raki or grappa, is some other pop spirit.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Check out my website for a full recipe guide of cyprus food www.niksebooks.com

Please Rate this Article

 

Not yet Rated

Click the XML Icon Above to Receive Food and Drink Articles Via RSS!
Additional Articles From - Home | Food And Drink
Sign Up for a free account.
Our other websites
All about SEO
Beauty Tips Forum
Submit Articles
Member Login
Link Us
Submission Guidelines
Ezine Notifications
Article RSS Feeds
Sitemap
New Stuff
About Us
Developer
Good shopping portal
Link to Us
Contact Us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service

counter easy hit

Powered by Article Dashboard