Everyone loves eating a loaded snack; it’s hard to find a soul who doesn’t. Perhaps the most favored loaded snack by most people is bread coupled with other ingredients. There are many different types of bread, but one that’s particularly loved as a snack is Greek bread.
As the name suggests, Greek bread is bread cooked the way Greek people do them. However, beyond its surface lies an intricate and time-honored tradition. Greek bread is made with various ingredients, such as feta, poppy seeds, and sesame seeds. Greek bread can either be sweet, salty, or savory, and it’s often eaten with other dishes.
In this article, we’ll go into detail about Greek bread. Read on below to learn more.
More about Greek Bread
The most popular variant of Greek bread is the pita. Pita, sometimes spelled as Pitta, is an essential part of most Greek dishes. It’s a yeast-leavened flatbread that contains wheat flour, baker’s yeast, salt, and sugar. As for how it’s prepared, it’s done by making dough and letting it rise for about one to two hours, then rolling it out with a pin and baking it. As it gets cooked, the steam from inside causes it to puff up and create a hollow center.
Once it’s done cooking, pita bread is typically cut in half and used to hold food in its pockets as a sandwich. In some cases, pita bread can be cut into wedges and toasted to be eaten like chips with dip.
Pita Bread for Gyro Sandwiches
The pocket that forms in the pita bread is a medium to make gyro sandwiches—pita bread that’s filled with skewered meat and other ingredients such as sliced tomatoes, onions, and tzatziki sauce.
Other Types of Greek Bread
While pita bread may have the center spotlight when it comes to Greek bread, there are also other variations. Some of these include:
Bastounakia
The bastounakia is a thin breadstick that’s topped with salt. Like pita bread, they are also eaten with dips and spreads and are often served as appetizers.
Bobota
Bobota is a Greek bread that’s radically different from pita bread simply because it’s made from cornmeal, water, and honey or orange juice. It was first created out of necessity in ancient Greece because the poor residents couldn’t find ingredients. Bobota is a bread that’s often cut into smaller squares and served with syrup on top.
Horiatiko Psomi
The name of this bread translates to “country bread.” This is a dense bread that’s made with a sourdough starter and more than one type of flour. Like most kinds of Greek bread, it’s also served as an appetizer.
Tyropsomo
Tyropsomo is a special kind of Greek bread simply because feta cheese is added to the dough before it’s baked. As a result, the bread has a richer texture while being amped up by feta cheese.
Mavro Psomi
This bread is more commonly known as black bread, though it isn’t actually black unless food coloring is added. It’s also not wheat bread because it’s made from rye flour or oats.
There is also other Greek bread that is made only for specific holidays. These are:
- Christopsomo – Leavened bread with lemon, almonds, and raisins. This is made only during Christmas.
- Vasilopita – Made for New Year’s, this bread is sweet and has tight crumbs.
- Tsoureki – This bread is made for Easter and is circular in appearance. It’s flavored with the sap of a bush that’s native to Greece.
Conclusion
Greek bread is incredibly versatile because you can eat it any time of the day, and you’ll always be left wanting more. The good thing about Greek bread is that it’s also available in every corner of the world—and you can even make your own—so we should be grateful to Greek people for this food.
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