Greece A to Z: P
30 entries from the Greece A to Z Travel Dictionary, starting with P. Search or filter them here, or open another letter.
Palace of Aigai
SightThe monumental Macedonian palace at Vergina, built around 340 BC and the biggest building of classical Greece, standing beside the theatre where Philip II was assassinated in 336 BC.
#Panigyri
FestivalA village festival typically held in honour of a local patron saint's feast day, combining religious tradition with music, dancing and communal food; dates change yearly, check listings.
#Paralia
PracticalBeach, or the seafront street running along it, which is why so many coastal towns have a “Paralia” address.
#Parea
PracticalThe group of friends you eat, drink and travel with; food in Greece is usually ordered for the parea to share rather than as separate plates.
#Parga
RegionAn amphitheatre shaped resort town on the Epirus coast beneath a Venetian castle, facing Paxos.
#Paros
RegionA central Cycladic island balancing lively resorts with quieter villages like Lefkes, plus windsurfing beaches at Golden Beach and the marble built Panagia Ekatontapiliani church.
#Parthenon
SightThe 5th century BC temple to Athena atop the Acropolis, the defining monument of classical Greece.
#Patmos
RegionA small, spiritually significant Dodecanese island where Saint John is said to have written the Book of Revelation, home to the fortified Monastery of Saint John.
#Patras
RegionGreece’s third city and the main ferry port for Italy, known for its long carnival season.
#Peloponnese
RegionThe southern mainland peninsula rich in ancient sites, Mycenae, Olympia, Epidaurus, with mountain and coastal scenery.
#Periptero
PracticalThe street kiosk found on corners across Greece, selling water, snacks, tickets and phone credit, often open late.
#Philotimo
PracticalAn almost untranslatable Greek value, roughly honour, dignity and doing right by others.
#Pilio (Pelion)
RegionA green, mountainous peninsula in Thessaly dotted with traditional stone villages perched on forested slopes or along the seashore, popular for walking and cooler summer air.
#Piraeus gates
PracticalPiraeus is not a terminal building but a working harbour several kilometres long, with numbered gates from E1 upward. Crete and the Dodecanese sail from the far gates at one end, the Cyclades and the Saronic islands from gates nearer the metro station. Sailings are moved between gates in July and August, so the gate printed on the ticket and the boards at the port are the ones to follow, and leave time for the walk or the free shuttle bus.
#Plateia
PracticalThe village or town square, the social hub where cafes gather and the evening volta unfolds.
#Politiki salata
FoodA crunchy winter salad of shredded cabbage, carrot and pepper in a sharp vinegar dressing, named for the City, meaning Constantinople.
How to make Politiki salata
- Serves
- 6 as a side
- Time
- Prep 25 min, plus 4 hr chilling
Ingredients
- 600g white cabbage, very finely shredded
- 2 carrots, coarsely grated
- 1 red pepper, cut into thin strips
- 1 green pepper, cut into thin strips
- 3 celery sticks, thinly sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp fine salt for drawing out water
- 120ml red wine vinegar
- 120ml extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt for the dressing
- Freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Put the shredded cabbage in a colander, scatter over the tablespoon of salt and work it in with your hands.
- Leave it to drain for 1 hour. It will give up a surprising amount of water and lose its raw edge.
- Rinse the cabbage well under cold water and squeeze it dry in handfuls.
- Combine the cabbage, carrot, peppers, celery and garlic in a large bowl.
- Whisk the vinegar, olive oil, sugar, the teaspoon of salt and a good grind of pepper until the sugar dissolves.
- Pour the dressing over, toss thoroughly and press the salad down so it sits under the liquid.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, and ideally overnight, turning it once.
- Serve cold. It keeps in a sealed jar in the fridge for up to a week and sharpens as it sits.
Polycentric Museum of Aigai (Vergina)
MuseumThe museum at Vergina, built as an underground shell in the shape of an earth tumulus around the royal tombs of Aigai, the first capital of the Macedonians. The archaeological site of Aigai was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1996.
#Poros
RegionA pine covered Saronic Gulf island close to Athens, separated from the Peloponnese by a narrow strait, with a fragrant lemon grove a short boat ride across the water.
#Portokalopita
FoodOrange cake made from torn filo rather than flour, soaked in syrup while it is still hot.
#Prespa Lakes
NatureTwo high altitude lakes shared by Greece, Albania and North Macedonia, forming a rich wetland habitat for pelicans and other birdlife within a protected national park.
#Proastiakos
PracticalAthens' suburban railway network, connecting the international airport with the city centre and outlying Attica towns, offering a faster alternative to buses on some routes.
#Psara
RegionA small, bare island in the north east Aegean with a heavy role in the 1821 revolution and few visitors.
#Psari sti ladokolla
FoodFish baked sealed inside greaseproof paper with lemon, olive oil and whatever vegetables are to hand, so it steams in its own juices and nothing escapes. A standby in Greek home kitchens, and the gentlest way to cook a delicate fillet without drying it out.
How to make Psari sti ladokolla
- Serves
- 2
- Time
- Prep 15 min, cook 25 min
Ingredients
- 2 white fish fillets, about 180g each, sea bream, sea bass or cod
- 1 small fennel bulb or 1 large carrot, sliced thin
- 8 cherry tomatoes, halved
- 2 spring onions, sliced
- 1 tbsp capers, rinsed
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- Juice of half a lemon, plus 4 thin lemon slices
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 60ml dry white wine
- Salt and black pepper
- 2 sheets of greaseproof paper, about 40cm square
Method
- Heat the oven to 200C, 180C fan.
- Toss the fennel, tomatoes, spring onions and capers with 2 tbsp of the olive oil, salt and pepper.
- Lay out the two sheets of paper and pile half the vegetables into the middle of each.
- Sit a fillet on top of each pile, season, and lay on the lemon slices and the oregano.
- Spoon over the last tbsp of oil, the lemon juice and the wine, splitting it between the two.
- Bring the two long edges of the paper up over the fish, fold them together twice, then fold and twist each end tightly. The parcel has to be properly sealed, because the fish cooks in its own steam.
- Bake on a tray for 20 to 25 minutes. The paper will puff up when it is ready.
- Serve the parcels closed and let everyone open their own at the table, which is the whole point of the dish.
Psari sti schara
FoodWhole fish over charcoal, salted, slashed and dressed with ladolemono, the olive oil and lemon emulsion that goes over almost everything that comes out of the Greek sea. The plainest thing on a seaside taverna menu and the hardest to fake, because a tired fish has nowhere to hide.
How to make Psari sti schara
- Serves
- 2
- Time
- Prep 15 min plus 20 min salting, cook 15 min
Ingredients
- 2 whole sea bream or sea bass, about 400g each, scaled and gutted
- 1 tbsp olive oil for brushing
- 4 tbsp Greek extra virgin olive oil for the ladolemono
- Juice of 1 lemon, about 40ml
- 1 tsp dried Greek oregano
- 1 lemon, cut into thick slices
- A few sprigs of flat leaf parsley
- Coarse sea salt and black pepper
Method
- Rinse the fish and pat it very dry inside and out. Slash each side twice, down to the bone.
- Salt inside and out, then leave uncovered in the fridge for 20 minutes and pat dry again. Dry skin is what stops it sticking, and it is the step most people skip.
- Get the charcoal to a white ash or a ridged pan to properly hot. Brush the bars and the fish with the 1 tbsp of olive oil.
- Lay the fish on and leave it alone for 6 to 7 minutes. Moving it early tears the skin.
- Turn once and give it 5 to 6 minutes more, until the flesh at the backbone has just turned opaque.
- While it cooks, whisk the 4 tbsp of olive oil with the lemon juice and oregano until it thickens and goes pale. That is ladolemono.
- Lift the fish onto a warm plate and spoon the ladolemono over while everything is still hot, so it soaks in rather than sits on top.
- Rest for 2 minutes, season with black pepper, and serve with the lemon slices, the parsley, and horta or fried potatoes.
Pylos
RegionA Messenian harbour town on Navarino Bay, with a Venetian fortress and the Palace of Nestor nearby.
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