Greece A to Z: S
29 entries from the Greece A to Z Travel Dictionary, starting with S. Search or filter them here, or open another letter.
Saganaki
FoodCheese fried in a small two handled pan and served with lemon; the same word also covers prawns or mussels cooked in tomato and feta.
#Salamina
RegionThe large island just off Piraeus, site of the 480 BC naval battle and today largely an Athenian suburb by sea.
#Samaria Gorge
NatureA dramatic gorge in western Crete, declared a national park in 1962 to protect the endangered kri kri wild goat, and a celebrated destination for long distance trekking.
#Samos
RegionA lush, mountainous North Aegean island near the Turkish coast, birthplace of Pythagoras and known for its sweet Muscat wine and the ancient tunnel of Eupalinos.
#Samothraki
RegionA mountainous northern Aegean island with waterfalls, rock pools and the Sanctuary of the Great Gods.
#Santorini
RegionThe crescent shaped volcanic island of caldera cliffs, blue domes and world famous sunsets at Oia.
#Sarakiniko Beach
BeachA striking beach on Milos with smooth, white volcanic rock formations carved by wind and sea into a lunar landscape unlike anywhere else in Greece.
#Saronic Gulf
RegionThe water between Attica and the Peloponnese, holding the islands closest to Athens: Aegina, Agistri, Poros, Hydra and Spetses. Aegina is about 40 minutes from Piraeus and Poros under an hour, so any of them works as a day out of the city.
#Savatiano
DrinkThe white grape of Attica, the traditional base of retsina and now bottled unresinated in its own right.
The classic meze plate for retsina, which it is the base of
#SeaJets
PracticalThe largest high speed catamaran fleet in Greece, running most of the Cyclades routes from both Piraeus and Rafina. Fast, and the first to feel it when the meltemi blows.
#Serifos
RegionA rugged, dry Cycladic island with an amphitheatre like chora above the port and the remains of 19th century iron mines.
#Sfakianopita
FoodA thin Cretan pan fried pie of soft cheese, finished with honey.
How to make Sfakianopita
- Serves
- Makes 6
- Time
- Prep 30 min plus 30 min resting, cook 20 min
Ingredients
- 300g plain flour
- 150ml water
- 2 tbsp raki or tsikoudia
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Half a tsp salt
- 400g soft mizithra or well drained ricotta
- Thyme honey, to finish
Method
- Work the flour, water, raki, olive oil and salt into a soft dough and knead for 8 minutes.
- Cover and rest for 30 minutes.
- Divide the dough into 6 and the cheese into 6 balls of roughly the same size.
- Flatten a piece of dough, sit a ball of cheese in the middle and gather the dough up over it, sealing completely and pinching off any excess at the top.
- Turn it seam down, press flat with your palm, then roll very gently into an 18cm disc about 4mm thick. Patch any tear with a scrap of dough.
- Dry fry in a heavy pan with no fat at all, 2 to 3 minutes a side, until blistered and browned in patches.
- Stack them, pour thyme honey over generously and serve hot.
Sifnos
RegionA Cycladic island with a strong pottery and cooking tradition, a chain of whitewashed villages and a well marked network of walking trails.
#Siga siga
Practical'Slowly, slowly', the phrase used across Greece for taking things at an unhurried pace; a fair description of most island timetables.
#Signomi
PhraseExcuse me, or sorry. The word to use for squeezing past people or catching a waiter’s eye.
#Sikinos
RegionA quiet Cycladic island between Ios and Folegandros, terraced with vineyards and very lightly developed.
#Sirtaki
MusicA folk style dance choreographed for the 1964 film "Zorba the Greek", blending the dragging steps of the older syrtos with the slow and fast rhythms of the hasapiko into one of the country's best known dances abroad.
#Skiathos
RegionThe liveliest of the Sporades islands, ringed by pine forest and sandy beaches, with Koukounaries among the most photographed in Greece.
#Skopelos
RegionA pine covered Sporades island of steep coves and a stacked harbour town, widely recognised from the Mamma Mia! films.
#Skordalia
FoodA thick garlic purée thickened with potato or bread, served with fried salt cod or beetroot.
How to make Skordalia
- Serves
- 6
- Time
- Prep 15 min, cook 25 min
Ingredients
- 500g floury potatoes
- 4 to 6 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp coarse salt
- 150ml extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp cold water
- White pepper
Method
- Boil the potatoes whole in their skins until completely tender, 20 to 25 minutes.
- While they cook, pound the garlic with the coarse salt in a mortar to a smooth wet paste. Chopped garlic stays harsh and never disappears into the dip.
- Peel the potatoes while hot and pass them through a ricer. A food processor turns them to glue.
- Beat the garlic paste into the warm potato.
- Add the olive oil in a thin stream, beating constantly, as you would for mayonnaise.
- Loosen with the vinegar and cold water and season with white pepper.
- Serve at room temperature with fried salt cod, beetroot or courgette fritters.
Skyros
RegionThe largest and most remote of the Sporades, with a Byzantine Venetian castle town, distinctive local carpentry and a small native pony breed.
#Souda
PracticalThe port that serves Chania in western Crete, about 7 km east of the town, where the overnight ferries from Piraeus dock. The Venetian harbour in Chania Old Town is a historic harbour used by small boats and is not a ferry port.
#Soutzoukakia
FoodSpiced oval meatballs in tomato sauce, associated with Smyrna and common in northern Greece.
#Souvlaki
FoodSkewered grilled meat with pita and trimmings, Greece's beloved fast food (a bare skewer is a 'kalamaki').
#Spetses
RegionA Saronic island with a shipbuilding history, grand captains’ houses and horse drawn carriages in place of cars in the old town.
#Spetzofai
FoodCountry sausage stewed down with sweet peppers and tomato, a dish associated with Pelion in central Greece and eaten straight from the pan with bread.
How to make Spetzofai
- Serves
- 4
- Time
- Prep 15 min, cook 40 min
Ingredients
- 600g Greek country sausage, loukaniko, cut into thick slices
- 4 long sweet green peppers, seeded and cut into strips
- 2 red peppers, seeded and cut into strips
- 1 onion, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, sliced
- 400g tinned chopped tomatoes
- 2 tbsp tomato puree
- 80ml extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp chilli flakes, or to taste
- 1 tsp sugar
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 100ml water
Method
- Heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a wide heavy pan and brown the sausage slices on both sides. Lift them out and set aside.
- Add the rest of the oil and cook the peppers over a medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until they soften and blister at the edges.
- Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes more, then the garlic for 1 minute.
- Stir in the tomato puree and let it cook out for a minute, then add the chopped tomatoes, water, sugar, oregano and chilli.
- Season, bring to a simmer and cook uncovered for 15 minutes, until the sauce thickens.
- Return the sausage with any juices and simmer for another 10 minutes, so the fat from the sausage runs into the sauce.
- Taste for salt. Sausage varies a lot, so season at the end rather than the start.
- Rest off the heat for 10 minutes and serve warm from the pan with plenty of bread.
Stifado
FoodA slow cooked stew of beef, rabbit or hare with whole small onions, vinegar, bay and cinnamon.
#Symi
RegionA Dodecanese island close to Rhodes with a pastel neoclassical harbour built on sponge diving wealth, and the pilgrimage site of Panormitis Monastery.
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