Saganaki-Greek Fried Cheese

Saganaki is a delicious traditional Greek fried cheese meze. A golden crust reveals warm melted cheese. Our saganaki is paired with an optional spicy red pepper tomato chutney for an irresistible treat.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Greek

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 4

Servings

Calories 439kcal

Author by Jenny Skrapaliori Graves

Equipment

frying pan

Ingredients

½ lb kefalotyri cheese or pecorino romano cut in ⅓ inch thick pieces
½ cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup olive oil or a neutral vegetable oil
lemon wedges for serving

Instructions

Fill a shallow bowl that fits the cheese slices with water. Put about half a cup of flour in a similar bowl.
Dip each piece of cheese into the bowl of water, then shake off the excess.
Next, dip the cheese into the flour, coat all sides, and then shake off the excess.
Place a frying pan over medium to high heat. Add the olive oil.
When the olive oil is hot but not boiling, fry the cheese evenly on all sides until it turns golden for about 1 minute per side.
Serve the fried cheese with lemon wedges to go around the table.
If you like, add a bowl with our tomato pepper chutney (recipe in notes) or your favorite chutney or jam.

Notes

Tomato Pepper Chutney recipe

You need:

1¼ cups white wine vinegar
1¼ cups brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
2 bell peppers diced. Can be red, orange, or yellow.
1½ cups tomatoes diced
2 habanero peppers seeded and diced fine (removing seeds reduces heat)
1 sweet onion medium size, peeled and diced
2 teaspoons fresh ginger minced
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon ground cloves
2 teaspoons rum optional

Dice the tomatoes, bell peppers, and sweet onion.
Place the diced bell peppers, tomatoes, habanero peppers, and onion in a large pot. Add the minced ginger, cumin, ground cloves, stir gently to combine.
Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. After it has come to a boil, put the lid on but keep it ajar with a few inches of opening for the steam to escape. Allow it to boil quite rapidly for about 30 minutes. Don't stir.
After 30 minutes, add the molasses and rum, and stir to combine. Let chutney boil uncovered for 5 to 15 minutes, or as long as the liquid has reduced to the desired level. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

A big thanks to averiecooks.com for the excellent inspiration for the chutney.

The nutritional analysis is only an estimate based on available ingredients and the recipe’s preparation.

Nutrition