"Pastitsado" from Corfu

During my many years of "wandering" round Western Greece, I picked up many local recipes which became our favourite Sunday meals.

One of the most appreciated is "Pastitsado", from the island of Corfu. It usually refers to a chicken stew (usually poor old roosters) - "kokoros pastitsado"- served over very large macaroni or penne pasta. However it is also made with veal or beef which do not have to be from the expensive cuts.

There are many recipes in books or on the internet, yet nothing compares to the original flavour at a local house or a taverna. The difference lies on the one hand in the use of local products and on the other hand in the correct balance of herbs and spices. Cloves, allspices and rosemary along with red wine and a bit of vinegar, add to the final distinctive taste.

Today I cooked beef pastitsado but with white rice instead of pasta. It was equally tasty though lighter for our digestive system!

What you need:

- 1 kilo beef meat, in small chunks (If you use a country chicken, have it cut in portions)
- 1/2 cup of olive oil
- 1 full tbsp of butter
- 2 large onions finely chopped
- 2-3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 4 medium size ripe tomatoes chopped (or 400 grms tomato juice)
- salt, pepper (optionally 1 small chili pepper)
- 4 whole cloves, 5 whole allspices, a pinch of fresh rosemary leaves
- 1 tbsp wine vinegar (plain or balsamic)

Heat the olive oil and the butter in a deep casserole. Add the chunks of meat and stir-fry for a few minutes. Add the onions, the garlic, salt, pepper and the spices. Fry for a few minutes, pour in the wine and let it evaporate. Finally add the tomatoes and the vinegar, put on the lid and let it simmer for about one hour and a half. Boil some rice or pasta and serve with some grated cheese on the top.

Bon apetit - ΚΑΛΗ ΟΡΕΞΗ!

Avgolemono - Egg-Lemon sauce

This is a traditional greek sauce, very characteristic of winter recipes. It is usually added in the pot in recipes such as chicken soup but sometimes it is poured over the served food, such as in dolmades.
Basically you whisk the eggs with some salt and lemon juice and then you add some broth from the soup. Easy, isn't it? Then why do the greek cookers bear the same respect to this sauce as to mayonnaise?
Because as everything concerning raw eggs, it needs total devotion to the procedure and the temperature of the ingredients, or else... goodbye avgolemono, hello scrumbled eggs!
Rule of thumb, the raw ingredients must be at room temperature.

You'll need 2 large eggs or 3 small ones, the juice of one big lemon and a pinch of salt.

Now, the procedure.

While your food is near the end of cooking, start preparing the egg-lemon mixture.

Separate the egg whites and put them in a large bowl. Add a pinch of salt and using a whisk, beat them until nice and frothy.

Add one after the other the egg yolks and the lemon juice in a steady stream while continuing to whisk.
You will notice that the mixture thickens and becomes shiny.


Supposing that your food has finished cooking by now, so turn off the heat. Ladle carefully (it's boiling hot) about 1-2 cups of broth into a jug or large measuring cup. Slowly add the hot broth to the egg-lemon mixture  while continuing to whisk. This will temper the eggs and prevent them from curdling once they are added to the hot pot.
If you are using avgolemono as a condiment, your sauce is ready at this stage. Otherwise, stir the egg-lemon mixture into the pot and heat over very low heat for approximately 5- 10 minutes until heated through. Be careful not to boil it again once the eggs have been added.

Some people who like their soups or sauces quite thick, prefer to add 2 tbs of corn starch into the pot before they add the sauce. But with practice comes perfection, so if you make a good avgolemono then you won't need the corn starch.

Have a nice cooking day!

Recipes with avgolemono:
- Chicken soup
- Lamb with letuce (fricasse)
- Pork stew with leeks and celery
- Yiouvarlakia (Soup with meatballs)
- Dolmades (Stuffed grape leaves with rice or mince)
- Stuffed Courgettes
- Lahanodolmathes (Stuffed cabbage leaves)
- Mayiritsa (Traditional Greek Easter soup)
- Spanakoryzo (Spinach Risotto)