Tirokafteri

Today I want to tell you about my latest discovery in the Greek food culture: Mezes (Greek: μεζές). It’s a plate with different small dishes on it that is mostly served while having a drink in a bar or as the opener of a multi-course meal. In all Balkan cultures it’s made differently but here in Greece the Mezes contain most likely of pita bread and multiple spreads and dips.

For now, I will present you my favourite of the spreads you make to create a good Mezes. My recipe will show how to do Tirokafteri (Greek: τυροκαυτερή). It’s basically a spicy feta cheese spread and is also know as Kripiti (Greek: χτυπητή). This dish is not just great on Mezes but can be used with barbeque meat, as a vegetable dip or as a party snack too.
One other good thing is that it will take only 10 minutes to prepare Tirokafteri! Let’s take a look at the ingredients. We need:

300g feta cheese
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp red vine vinegar
1 spicy pepper (or more if you like it spicier)

Firstly, we have to take the pepper and remove its stem and seeds. Now you can either roast or fry the pepper a little bit in a pan or directly proceed to the next step and cut the vegetable in small pieces. When this is done, we cut the feta cheese in cubes and put it together with the chopped pepper in a bowl. Mix it with a hand mixer and continuously add the olive oil and the vinegar. Continue until you have one even cream. Now you can put your finished Tirokafteri in the fridge and wait for your guests to arrive!

Kali orexi!