If you come to Greece and ordered a Greek salad, the waiter might have confused: in their homeland is known throughout the world is called the meal modest village salad or horyatiki. However, with any name Greek salad is simple and delicious dish and very helpful. What is it good for?

Features dishes

Greek salad - a dish simple folk. Nothing superfluous, only the conventional products, which are abundant there any Greek home: fresh vegetables, olives, feta cheese and, of course, the famous olive oil. Because vegetables are usually used tomatoes, cucumber and shallots. Olives take black, fleshy. From spices are added to the traditional Mediterranean cuisine black pepper, basil and oregano. Generally, a Greek salad - a classic Mediterranean cuisine, that includes products that are so fond of in the region.

Cucumber salad is always clean. Traditionally, the Greek salad vegetables cut into large chunks, not worrying too much about the careful cutting. Often the salad did not even stir before serving - all consumers are doing it yourself. But this rule is not always observed in restaurants is usually vegetables cut into small pieces. Firstly, because there is much more convenient salad, and secondly, it is obtained in most cases it was delicious tastes of various intertwined together. This is especially important if you are using are not real Greek fragrant tomatoes and pale tomatoes from the nearest supermarket, have neither taste nor smell. If it is necessary to prepare authentic, it would have to abandon a neat cut.

The exact recipe of Greek salad does not exist, as there is no exact recipes and other popular dishes. Many cooks are guided by the appearance of the dish: it must look attractive, red (tomatoes), green (cucumber) and white (feta) on the plate should be roughly equal, and purple onions and black olives are designed to harmoniously complement the composition.

The secrets of taste

In many chefs salad recipe makes a difference. For example, shallots often replaced the usual onions (preferably still sweet salad varieties). Often added sweet pepper, cut into large chunks. In many countries, and is considered an essential ingredient lettuce, salad at home that is usually neglected. Finally, the list of ingredients is expanded to endlessly adding salad the garlic, the zucchini, eggplant then, the cabbage, then carrots, beets even. Of course, you can experiment all you want, yet a true original recipe for Greek salad is simple and does not require additions and decorations.

To get a tasty Greek salad, use only high-quality ingredients. Salad "cotton" greenhouse tomatoes can not have a bright flavor. Therefore, you should take the only real ground tomatoes, absorbed the energy of the sun, fresh green cucumbers, sweet onions. Correct dish will give a real taste of Greek feta cheese made from sheep's or goat's milk. In an extreme case, it can be replaced by a soft feta cheese, but cheese is not tight fit, but fit and "cheese products" with the addition of palm oil.

Olive oil also should use the best quality: first cold pressed, it is desirable - of Greek origin. Greenish golden viscous oil with a strong flavor will give the dish a necessary national flavor. Oil with nothing mixed just generously added to the vegetables. The authorship of the complex variety of dressings for the Greek salad does not belong to the Greek chefs and home cooks who are trying to give the dish a new sound. However, many believe that a small amount of natural grape vinegar or lemon juice decorated with a salad.

Pickle salad is not recommended: vegetables immediately give juice, and the dish will lose "trademark" look. Moreover, feta cheese itself has a rather salty taste, so there is a risk to overdo food. Typically, salt cellars put on the table to each of the consumers could spice up a salad to taste. But herbs added to the salad bowl. Oregano should only use a dry, basil and fresh can be. Pepper is desirable to grind just before refueling.

Food for Health

It's no news that in the human diet should contain as many fruits and vegetables. It is no coincidence residents of the regions where traditionally eat a lot of vegetables, live a long time and hardly suffer from cardiovascular disease. Greek salad - a very typical dish for the Mediterranean countries. Due to the high content of vegetables it is characterized by low-calorie, and feta cheese gives the dish satiety. In addition, thanks to Fet, onions and herbs salad a very pleasant, original, spicy taste. A beautiful raznotsvete on a plate improves the appetite and mood.

Obviously, consisting of salad ingredients useful not be harmful. However, ordering in a restaurant Greek salad should pay attention to how closely relate to cook classic recipe. Unfortunately, many restaurateurs in the pursuit of original flavors can distort the composition of food beyond recognition. For example, instead of olive oil mayonnaise some use - of course, this dish becomes much less useful for health and shape, and the Greek word can not.

Since the exact proportions of ingredients for a Greek salad there, talking about his caloric value is quite difficult. The average calorie salad this can vary from 150 to 250 kcal per 100 grams. If you do not abuse the oil and olives, but a salad can be attributed to the low-calorie. If you put a little more olive oil Olive oil: useful properties   and olives, the calorie increase, but the increase due to good fats.

Maria Bykov

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