Greek Feta Salad Recipes

GREEK SALAD RECIPE

Steps:

• Make the vinaigrette: In a large bowl, combine red wine vinegar, garlic, salt, pepper, sugar, and oregano. Whisking constantly, slowly drizzle the olive oil over the mixture so that it emulsifies. Set aside.
• Slice the onions very thin, and place in a small bowl. Cover with cold water and set aside for 10 minutes or so. This will take some of the bite out of the onion. (If you are a hard core raw onion lover, skip this step!)
• Chop the tomatoes into bite size pieces. Place in a colander over the sink to drain.
• Chop the cucumbers and add to the bowl with the vinaigrette. Add the kalamata olives, fresh mint, and fresh dill.
• Pat the onions dry with a paper towel and add to the bowl. Add the tomatoes. Toss it all together gently.
• Top with crumbled or chopped feta (next time I'm chopping a block into chunks!) Add as much as you like. Taste it to see if it needs more salt, pepper, or oregano. Toss gently and serve immediately.

GREEK FETA SALAD

Steps:

• On a serving platter, layer tomatoes and onion. Top with feta cheese and olives. In a small bowl, whisk the oil, vinegar and oregano; drizzle over salad. Serve with a slotted spoon.

GREEK PASTA SALAD

Steps:

• Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, stir in the penne, and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through, but is still firm to the bite, about 11 minutes. Rinse with cold water and drain well in a colander set in the sink.
• Whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Set aside. Combine pasta, tomatoes, onion, green and red peppers, cucumber, olives, and feta cheese in a large bowl. Pour vinaigrette over the pasta and mix together. Cover and chill for 3 hours before serving.

FRIED FETA GREEK SALAD PITAS

Steps:

• Combine the olives, cucumbers, red pepper and onion in a mixing bowl. Add the lemon juice, olive oil, a big pinch of salt and some black pepper and toss to combine. Allow to marinate in the refrigerator while you make the feta.
• For the feta, prepare a dredging station. In a rimmed dish, add the flour. In a separate rimmed dish, whisk the egg with a splash of water. In a third separate dish, whisk together the breadcrumbs, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few turns of black pepper. Coat each chunk of feta in the flour and tap off the excess. Dunk in the beaten egg and then coat in the breadcrumbs, tapping off the excess.
• Heat a 1/4-inch layer of olive oil in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. (Test to see if it is hot enough by sprinkling a bit of breadcrumb in the oil. If it sizzles right away, it's ready.) Carefully place the breaded feta cubes in the oil and fry in batches for 90 seconds to 2 minutes on the first side, undisturbed. Flip and fry on the other side for another minute or so, or until golden brown. Remove to a cooling rack set over a baking sheet and allow excess oil to drain. Repeat until all pieces are fried.
• To serve, slice open each pita and create a pocket. Schmear a big plop of hummus inside each one, followed by some arugula. Top with a pile of the Greek salad, a few chunks of the warm, fried feta, a dollop of yogurt and a few pieces of mint. Serve with lemon wedges and hot sauce, if desired.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, mix together the water, sugar and yeast just to dissolve. Add the oil and salt and then gradually add the flour. Increase the speed to medium-high and mix for 7 to 10 minutes, adding just enough additional flour so that the dough no longer sticks to the bowl. Do not add too much flour. The dough should be smooth and slightly sticky. Lightly coat a clean large bowl with oil or cooking spray, then place the dough in the bowl and turn it once or twice to coat it in oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise at room temperature for 2 hours, or until it has doubled in size.
• Turn the dough onto a clean work surface and divide it into 8 equal pieces. Mold each piece into a ball by stretching the top and tucking the edges under. Place the balls 1 inch apart on a piece of parchment paper, cover them with plastic wrap and let them rise for 30 minutes.
• Set an oven rack in the middle position. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
• With a rolling pin, roll out the balls of dough into 6-inch circles. Place them on the baking sheets and bake for about 5 minutes, or until they're puffy and just starting to brown.

GREEK FETA AND CUCUMBER SALAD

Steps:

• Slice cucumbers as thinly as you can. A mandolin or vegetable slicer will make quick work of it. Toss together the cucumbers and a large pinch of salt in a mesh strainer set over a bowl. Combine the feta, oregano, garlic and shallots in a separate bowl. Add the lemon juice and zest and whisk in the olive oil. Drain off and discard any water that has released from the cucumbers. Toss together the cucumbers and the dressing. Serve.

KITTENCAL'S GREEK FETA SALAD DRESSING

Steps:

• In a food processor combine the first 10 ingredients; process for about 10 seconds.
• Add in the feta cheese and continue to process until the cheese has combined (this may take about 12-15 seconds).
• Place in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate for 24 hours.
• Shake well before using.

GREEK SALAD W/FETA AND OLIVES

Steps:

• Quarter cucumber lengthwise; cut into 3/4-inch chunks.
• Core, seed and cut green pepper into same-size pieces.
• Place in large bowl (if you are making ahead you can cover and refrigerate for up to 4 hours at this step).
• Core and cut tomato into same-size chunks. Add to bowl along with onion and olives.
• Mix oil, vinegar, oregano, salt and pepper; toss with salad to combine
• Top each serving with cheese.