The Hirshon Greek Salad

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Greek Salad Image Used Under Creative Commons License From Wikipedia

Greek salad is perhaps one of the most beloved salads to be found – and what’s not to like? Lettuce, tomato, cucumber, olives and feta cheese find a beautiful harmony in a lemon-scented dressing perhaps tied together with the saltiness of anchovy fillets.

Truly, a more bountiful bowl of greenery has rarely graced a table!

As noted on eftours.com:

In Greece, we call it ‘Horiatiki’, which means village or peasant salad – basically a combination of tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, green peppers, olives and feta cheese, dressed in olive oil and sprinkled with oregano.

Please also note that an authentic Greek salad does not include lettuce. It is quite common for Greeks to eat seasonally. It is primarily a summer dish, and since lettuce only grows in Greece during the winter months a traditional ‘Horiatiki’ salad does not include lettuce.

From its Greek name we assume that it was a rural dish. It is true that the salad’s essential ingredients were often what a farmer would take to the field for his mid-morning snack, only he would keep the ingredients uncut and wrapped in a cloth with a piece of bread.

When the time came, he would bite straight into his chunk of feta, his tomato and even (quite heroically) his onion!

The recipe’s exact origin is debatable, but one thing we can be sure of is that the Greek Salad is not part of the country’s long established traditional cuisine.

We know this because, incredibly, the tomato did not become popular in Greece until the end of the 19th, beginning of the 20th century. This is hard to believe, considering how fast it’s made itself a home here in Greece.

My American version of the Greek original includes capers, oregano, sweet and hot chopped peppadew peppers (found at many supermarket deli counters) as well as a spicy kick in the ass from some hot chili oil, because TFD digs the spicy.

Follow my recipe and you too will storm the gates of the culinary Mount Olympus to challenge the very Gods themselves, Citizens! 🙂

Battle on – The Generalissimo