The Food Culture of Greece - Essay Example

The food culture of Greece and the Greeks is very much based upon the stereotypical Mediterranean diet, yet in some aspects is also a rather unique source of it. The Greek attitude to food is definitely an intense one, and food is associated with wealth, with celebration, with socialising and with happiness. It is also very prominent; any visitor to a Greek household, no matter what the relationship, will be offered at the very least a γλυκάκι (small sweet, to be explained below) or often a full meal, if the visitor has not popped in unexpectedly. Food is the essence of life for a Greek, and for generations the ritual of cooking the main family meal has been that of the woman of the household. She will begin preparing an elaborate, complicated meal often from the morning, so that it is ready when the man and the children return home from work and school. Breakfast usually consists of a strong Greek coffee (Ελληνικό) and a bread ring (Κουλούρι) and is of no particular importance. The main meal of the day is an important family event; it is where the family members (and often friends) converse around the table and communicate – most socialising is based upon eating and drinking. The main meal is often eaten late afternoon, although this depends on the season (during the summer, it will be earlier) and is traditionally followed by a one to two hour nap, after which the man will often return to work for some hours. This concerns the working hours of Greece in general, although there are exceptions as always, depending again on the season or the type of work as well as whether the family lives in a major city or small village. Of course, this is just a very basic introduction as to what the food culture in Greece consists of, albeit necessary in order to progress into the more specific areas. It is safe to say, however, that the Greek food culture is one engrained through centuries of tradition, which have kept a steadfast hold of families despite our entry into the ‘modern age’. I will now explain the most popular types of foods for the Greeks and the recipes in which they can be found. Generally, the basic ingredients of Greek cuisine are not many, but each is used in a variety of ways to make very different dishes. As has already been stated, the main meal of the day is the most important. It is elaborate and usually consists of a main meat dish, along with other smaller side dishes and often some form of dip. Lamb is very popular in villages and other such rural areas, where the lamb is bought fresh from the local butcher, although it is not uncommon for families to own animals. Chicken is less popular, as it is often imported and thus tends to be expensive. In general, dark meats are more popular in the Greek cuisine, yet rarely fried. Most meat is baked with lemon and olive oil (λεμονάτο) or stewed with a tomato sauce and vegetables (κοκκινιστό). Potatoes either baked or fried can be found with almost any meal – it is the main staple along with freshly baked ‘country’ bread; rice is not hugely popular as a single dish and is often mixed into a recipe. Fish is a very popular meal, and its cheap availability enables Greeks of all classes to eat it at least once a week. It is often bought fresh (rarely will a Greek buy frozen fish, or meat) and simply baked or grilled with lemon and olive oil. Garlic is an extremely important ingredient found in most Greek dishes, and is even made into its own puree mixed only with olive oil (σκορδαλιά). Of course, garlic is also found in the famous dip tzatziki, which consists of cucumber, garlic and yoghurt; this is served with most meals and is very popular. The Greek cuisine is rich in flavour; herbs and garnishes such as parsley and oregano are commonly used, as well as the famous olive oil and lemon – a lot of salt is often added throughout the cooking process. Fresh vegetables are seasonal and wide in variety and often bought from the local market from small farming businesses, thus they contain minimal pesticides and chemicals. Vegetables are cheap and fresh and easy to obtain; thus most dishes contain some form of vegetable, mainly aubergines, courgettes and onions. Many dishes are based solely on vegetables; either baked (βριάμ) or coated in flour and fried (especially aubergines, peppers and courgettes). The famous Greek salad (χωριάτικη) is a necessary accompaniment to almost every Greek table, consisting of tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, green peppers, olives and feta cheese. Many kinds of fresh vegetable are found in rural areas growing wild; in the summer months, χόρτα, a type of ‘greens’ is picked wild and boiled then served with olive oil and lemon. Likewise, fresh fruit is also seasonal and easy to buy from the same local markets. Watermelon is extremely popular during the summer months and is served in chunks after a meal with honeydew melon. Figs are eaten raw fresh from the thousands of trees found all over Greece or made into jam or added to a sweet dessert dish. Most houses of rural villages are likely to have some orange and fig trees in their gardens, thus the fruit eaten is extremely fresh and completely natural. Fruit is mainly used in sweet dishes, which will be addressed below. Bread is an extremely important part of the Greek diet. Yet it is not the packaged square bread found in supermarkets such as those in Britain and America. Although such bread is available in Greece, it is often used only as a ‘toast sandwich’, simply toasted with cheese and ham, and is not popular at all. The most popular bread is found in the family-owned bakeries on every street corner, baked just hours before, with natural ingredients and no, or few additives. It is often eaten dipped in the olive oil of the Greek salad and is served with every meal. Likewise, wine is served with every meal and is either home made from the abundance of grapes or bought from a family business which makes fresh, natural wine. Tsipouro and Ouzo is also a popular drink, made from tree resin, and is served with small plates of mezedes – a mixture of different dishes from each food group. Generally, Greeks will not drink huge quantities of alcohol on a regular basis – it is seen as an accompaniment to food, although does flow rather freely at celebrations. The Greek food culture has begun to be affected by the fast paced life of the working family, particularly in larger cities. It is now not uncommon for both parents of the household to work and this reduces the amount of time spent in the kitchen, and often fast food is a resort during the week. Fast food chains have taken a hold in Greece, although Goody’s, a form of McDonald’s is the most popular and also the healthiest option. It offers proper cooked meals such as spaghetti Bolognese and salads alongside the French fries and burgers. Even though the new generation of Greeks are less traditional in their approach to food consumption, burgers and fries are less popular than souvlaki and other healthier options. Pizza has also failed to take a strong hold as a fast food option, and the Chinese option is reserved only for ‘connoisseurs’. A form of meat kebab (σουβλάκι) is extremely common as a takeaway meal. This consists of lamb or chicken slices cut from a kebab, and wrapped in fried pita bread with tomato, chips and tzatziki. The Greek meal is never hurried – it is not unusual for a company to spend hours at the table, and will often consist of a wide variety of dishes. The whole concept of company (παρέα) is just as important as the food itself; to converse with the table, be it a serious political debate or a light hearted series of jokes is a major part of the Greek meal. The food brings the people of Greece together; it is not seen merely as a necessity to satisfy hunger, and Greek women take much time and pride in their cooking. Even the fast paced working families of suburban cities will make the effort to cook at least on a weekend. The Greek diet is often described as an extremely healthy one, due to the extensive use of olive oil which is rich in monounsaturated fats and thus said to lower ‘bad’ cholesterol levels and the risk of coronary heart disease.1 Olive oil is used pressed straight from the olive, without additives or other preparative procedures – most rural families own land with olive trees and will thus make their own entirely organic olive oil. Olive oil also contains many antioxidants and is thus rather beneficial to the stomach and digestion. The high consumptions of fresh, usually organic, vegetables and fruit is also much more beneficial on the health – most products are farmed with minimal, or no, chemicals whatsoever. From the outset, a diet rich in fruit and vegetables has many health benefits, including lower blood pressure and reduced risk of heart disease. They are packed with nutrients and vitamins, especially if grown naturally. However, Greeks mainly tend to fry their vegetables, which can reduce their antioxidant properties and increase the amount of saturated fat consumed and thus increase cholesterol. Indeed, it should be noted that high cholesterol and blood pressure is one of the main afflictions of middle-aged to older Greeks,2 although the change in the diets of younger children living in larger cities has caused cholesterol rates to increase at a younger age, as a result of processed fast food.3 Similarly, high blood pressure is also caused by the large amount of Greeks who smoke heavily, thus it cannot be said with certainty that Greeks eat an amount of fried food large enough to be the sole cause of high blood pressure and cholesterol. The huge amount of bread consumed by the Greeks is linked to it being the main source of survival during the occupations when food was sparse. They thus see it as a link their heritage, and to their fight for survival and freedom, and this is why it is found at every meal table. Bread, however, is high in calorific content; especially as Greek bread is much denser than other types of bread. Particularly the practice of eating it dipped in olive oil can increase the calories of a meal by a huge amount. Certainly the average Greek is not lacking in body weight; most men and women from the age of 40 are likely to be overweight, while the level of obesity in younger age groups has increased since the eighties. This can be contributed to the fact that families undertake much less physical work, where previously the whole family would be involved in land farming and such physical trades. It seems that as Greece develops as a country, the diet stays the same, so the same consumption of food is having a detrimental effect on the lesser levels of exercise.4 Greeks are not as educated or aware of the nutritional values of foods as other European countries, and so this link is often not made – a Greek person on a diet is a very rare thing, and most Greeks do not worry about their body weight unless it causes health problems. It could definitely be useful to introduce more methods of educating Greeks as to the healthier ways of eating, as well as encouraging them to eat less if they are not as active, as well as educating them on the increase of exercise they undertake. Again, the distinction should be made here between those living in large cities and those who live in rural villages and islands, where physical labour is still very much a part of everyday life. In general, the Greek diet appears to be high in fat – from the olive oil, feta cheese, and the full fat Greek yoghurt consumed on a daily basis. However, there appears to be also a high consumption of vitamins and antioxidants. Considered to one of the most beneficial foods, garlic is consumed in large quantities. Packed with vitamins, it boosts the immune system and the antioxidants help reduce the development of cancer; it also lowers the cholesterol levels considerably, helping to reduce the chance of heart disease. The properties of garlic, along with other such foods consumed by Greeks seems to help offset the other detrimental consumption of other less-healthy foods, to maintain a somewhat healthy balance. It is, however, the Greek’s consumption of sweet foods, and thus sugar, which is considered to be the biggest problem of the Greek diet. Bakeries can be found at almost every street corner, packed with hand-made small tartlets, large cakes, traditional nut-pie (καρυδόπιτα) and other such delights. Sweets play a large role in the Greek diet, as they are the most popular form of gift. A visitor is definitely likely to bring a box of small treats, even if just visiting; a celebrated name day results in the whole office tucking into a box of cakes or sweet pies. Greek sweets are packed with sugar and elaborate recipes based on nuts, cream, honey, chocolate and other such ingredients – it has become quite an art. However, this has caused a dramatic increase in the level of diabetes in recent years; a Greek will consume perhaps 5 to 6 pieces of cake or heavily sugared sweet per week. There is also the popular ‘spoon sweet’ served after almost every meal, which consists of fruits preserved in a form of sugar syrup which is eaten by the spoon, hence the name. This is heavily based on sugar. Of course, eating fresh fruit would be much more beneficial, yet Greeks eat much fruit already, and prefer to cook it into a sweet or jam. The consumption of these sweets is linked to tradition, to celebration and thus it is a mindset problem. Most Greek dishes are intertwined with Greece’s political history, and Greeks are extremely patriotic and consider themselves closely connected with their country’s history. So, to tell a Greek that a certain food is not healthy, or that it could be changed in a certain way to make it more healthy, is to insult his heritage and country. This approach to food makes it difficult for one to change the diet of a Greek in any major way. Perhaps, thus, it would be more beneficial to simply educate him as to the nutritional value of his food. The truth seems to be that, the Greek culture is a fast set one, and the food is very much a part of that culture – indeed Greece is the only European country in which McDonald’s did not take a hold. Even younger eaters will stick to the traditional souvlaki kebab, or eat a cheese or spinach pie from the local bakery. It seems that overall the detrimental properties of the foods eaten are either overweighed or at the very least evened out by the healthy qualities of the Greek diet. This Greek diet, full of fresh fruit and vegetables, rich in olive oil and honey and herbs and naturally grown greens is not unlike a diet which would be called organic in Britain or America. Yet it is not only the food itself – it is the whole concept of food and the idea of socialising around it. The fact that a Greek can sit at the meal table and pick at food for hours means that the stomach is not suddenly laden with food and thus aids proper digestion. Although one thinks of a full table laden with food when one thinks of the Greek diet, it really is about quality and not quantity. In terms of quality, the Greeks have definitely managed to maintain the idea of enjoying the food they eat. Although some areas which need improvement have been stated, it appears that these areas are not as detrimental as those cultures based on fast foods and processed foods. The natural quality of the food the Greek consumes is highly beneficial, although it could be said that a higher awareness as to the nutritional values of what a Greek eats could be more beneficial in general. Bibliography Mayo Clinic. "Olive Oil: Which Type Is Best?" Science Daily 14 August 2007. Kiritsi Freideriki, Tsiou Chrisoula, Gouvelou-Deligianni Georgia, Stamou Ageliki. “An Investigation of Risk Factors for Coronary heart Disease in a Greek Population” Health Science Journal, Volume 2 Issue 1 (2008). Schulpis, Kleopatra and Karikas, George A. “Serum Cholesterol and Triglyceride Distribution in 7767 School-Aged Greek Children Pediatrics” Vol. 101 No. 5 May 1998. Madden, Codelia “Obesity is A Disease” Athens News 2000 http://www.helleniccomserve.com/obesity.html Read More