What is Greek Cuisine?

This week's Cuisine Decoder is Greek! If someone were to ask you what you know about Greece, would your answer include breaking plates and yelling, "OPA"? While that is a fun part of the culture, there is so much more to consider- particularly the food and the people! Whether you realize it or not, the fresh, light Mediterranean ingredients in Greek dishes have become a favorite across the globe – and have even served as the basis of the famous Mediterranean Diet. While many restaurants in America will blend Italian and Greek dishes, and offer varieties of both, Greek cuisine does have very distinctive flavors and ingredients. But a huge factor if you have the opportunity to go to Greece is the actual ingredients. They are different, there's not a better way to say it. When you bite into a vegetable in the islands of Greece it hits different, like way different.

My wife, Danielle and I have traveled to the Greek Island Karpathos twice and plan to return for years to come. The food and culture is truly a gem. Can't say enough good things about it. Oddly enough we spent some time in Athens as you'll see below after a week in Karpathos on our first trip. We won't be repeating that. We just don't typically love large cities, we feel like been in one and you've been in most. Where you really get to see, feel, smell and taste a culture is in the country, the islands and the most distant places that aren't just a Tourist Trap. Never visit Pisa Italy, I'll save that story for another day, just trust me, don't.

The oldest ancient Greek village we've ever been to, one of the oldest, Olympos on the island of Karpathos and tried hand made pasta that was made from flour that was ground from a windmill at the top of a mountain overlooking the Aegean Sea. That was called Milos Taverna Bolognese was the preferred dish of the day.

On another day back on the mainland near Athens we had traveled to the Temple of Poseidon and on the way back, we stopped at a small cafe called Marida Seafood and ordered the catch of the day. It was a fresh fish that was grilled whole served with some simple spices, it was delicious and frankly expensive! We were surprised to find that Market Price on that fish was more expensive than we expected. You never know when traveling whether you're getting terrace pricing. I learned about that in Italy, if you ask to sit outside, they give you a different menu along with a different price than they'd give locals. Sometimes being the least tourist like possible can pay dividends.

Another spot we loved was Poseidon Blue Restaurant, we had amazing fresh salads there, tacos and appetizers that were just bursting with flavor. Can't say enough good things, we may stay there during our next visit just so we can eat there more often. Yes, it was that good.

Have you ever eaten olives, had a slice of pita bread, come to enjoy feta cheese topping your salad, or cooked with olive oil? If so, you have experienced four staples in Greek cuisine. In addition to the olives and cheese, other staples of Greek cooking include yogurt, fresh vegetables and herbs, wine, fish, and varieties of meat such as lamb, poultry, rabbit, and pork. These ingredients combine to skillfully create some of the most popular dishes in Greek Cuisine:

Greek Salad: A salad that can be found on a variety of menus, it typically consists of tomatoes, feta cheese, olives, onion and ham. It is often topped with oregano and is accompanied by olive oil.

Gyros: A popular food found at fairs and festivals (and our own food truck rallies with Rolling Gourmet and The Famous Greek), is meat roasted and sliced from a turning spit and is wrapped in pita bread along with garnishes such as tomato and onions, and certain sauces.

Moussaka: Moussaka is a heartier casserole dish, and is the quid essential meat and potatoes dish. It is made of typically fried potatoes and spiced minced meat. There are other versions that include vegetables such as eggplant.

Souvlaki: The name literally means "skewer." Souvlaki can include any kind of grilled meat that is served on skewer. This can range from lamb, chicken, pork, fish, or shrimp. As it is being grilled, the meat is typically marinated in oil, salt, pepper, oregano, and lemon- ensuring the flavoring of the meat is robust.

While Greek cuisine has a tradition that dates back to ancient times, it has found its place in American dining- and many diners may not have even realized it. Next time you are visiting a Tampa Bay Food Trucks event, or even visiting a brick and mortar restaurant, be sure to take a look at the menu and see if you can spot Greek influences. If you didn't know Tarpon Springs has quite a Greek population. In addition many residents of Karpathos live right here in Central Florida. For whatever reason, Greeks from Karpathos own a lot of breakfast restaurants in Winter Haven, Bartow and a lot of other locations.