The golden green treasure!

Since ancient times olive oil has been used not only for cooking, but also for therapeutic, cosmetic and lighting purposes. Today it is scientifically recognised as the base of the Mediterranean Diet for its nutritional, biological and therapeutic benefits. The Lesvian olive oil because of its high quality, its unique colour, taste and smell is a EU and PGI labelled product (European Union, Product with Protected Geographical Indication).

In Lesvos, ordinary people, who have inherited them from their ancestors, own the olive groves. They feel very protective towards them as an inseparable part of their existence and their inheritance. Every year between October and sometimes April, you can see Lesvians of all ages in the groves, doing what has to be done – picking olives, not an easy job but nevertheless something that must be done. For some people it’s their income-producing job, for others it’s a debt to the ancestors that must be paid. The immediate reward is the pressing of the olives to this rich, pungent, golden green juice of life that makes the island what it is.

The eleven million olive trees (more olive trees than people living in Lesvos) are cultivated by traditional and modern scientific methods. They produce 15.000 tons of olive oil annually. Some of it is kept for personal consumption. Most households will store enough for two years consumption, since it’s a known fact that the good years alternate with bad years. The rest is sold in bulk through the Co-operatives to the International Market at very low prices (set by the E.U.) in comparison to what the consumer pays at a European supermarket. Sadly only 2% of the yearly produce is ever bottled or caned, something, which if done more extensively could increase the financial benefit to the producer.

It’s always worth buying olive oil to take away with you at the end of your holiday. If you don’t want to buy from the supermarket, speak to the owner of your accommodation, they will be glad to help.

Served on a plate on their own or with wedges of fresh lemon or tender spring onions or red juicy tomatoes and hot crusty bread, are pure ambrosia fit for a King…

Ouzo is the faithful friend to the joy and sorrow of the Lesvian throughout his life. The hand that lifts the glass, the clear or white colour (if you water it) of ouzo, it’s anise smell, the rich characteristic flavour and the clinking of the glasses in the customary greeting of "Gia Mas", pleasure all five senses.

The seeds of the anise plant, grown in the fields of Lesvos (especially Lisvori), the special herbs of the secret recipe and of course the pure alcohol blend together to produce this drink fit for the Gods.

The distilleries at Plomari, Mytilene, Molyvos and Agia Paraskevi, (some of them internationally famous) make sure that there is a constant supply to the local and international market.

You can buy these cheeses from any supermarket on the island, but also from the local specialist dairy shops you can find in many of the towns: Polychnitos, Agiasos, Mandamados, Agia Paraskevi, Eressos, Xidera etc

In the same shops you can buy the rich, sweet, live culture yoghurt, sold in tubs of 250 – 350 grms. They have "sell by" labels on them. The further away the date on the tub from the date of purchase, the sweeter the taste of the yoghurt will be.

Sardines: Caught along the shores of Lesvos, in the Aegean Sea, but the most special ones are caught in the Gulf of Kalloni, are smaller in size, they are called papalina and are more expensive too. They can be eaten grilled with a dressing of olive oil and fresh lemon juice or fried. But when just salted for a day, peeled off and eaten raw they are the best delicacy meze for ouzo, and they have been called the Greek sushi.

Barbuni (& koutsomoura). Small and medium size red fish (similar to red mullet). The first variety is more expensive that the second. Size also affects the price. The best are fished in the Gulf of Gera.

Small tuna: Suitable for grilling, frying and salting.

Goppes: Medium and large size grey fish suitable for grilling and frying.

Tsipoures: First class (= more expensive) grey flattish fish suitable for grilling

Chiones: First class (= more expensive) grey flattish fish suitable for grilling

Galeos: Eel type of fish, suitable for frying in slices, eaten with skordalia (garlic flavour bread or potato dip)

There are many other types of fish, too numerous to mention but nevertheless a very important component of the daily diet of the island, readily available in most of the tavernas. They can be bought of course fresh, from fishmongers and fish tracks that drive around and sell their catch.

Salting and preserving (in brine or oil) fish, for immediate or longer term consumption is by no means something exclusively done in Lesvos. The famous American Italian Chef Antonio Carlouccio in his TV cookery programmes has shown this to be a Mediterranean culinary tradition.

In Lesvos the fish most commonly salted fish are sardines, kolios, gavros, anchovies, mackerels, tuna and lakerda. The whole process is done by hand in a special way, handed down from generation to generation, using just locally produced salt.

These delectable products are eaten in small quantities as side dishes to cooked pulses and herb salads. They also make excellent meze for ouzo. Tavernas usually include two or three different kinds of salted fish (depending on the season) in their menus, in the appetisers section. They can also be bought in cans or loose at most supermarkets and specialist shops to take away.

However for day salted sardines, the best option is to make your own. Just buy half a kilo sardines from the fishmonger or fish track and depending on your appetite, salt half of them (the other half you could grill for lunch) in a small container by laying them next to each other head to tail and covering them liberally with semi-coarse salt (preferably). If not available, ordinary salt will do. Depending on your container you may have a second or third layer. Cover the container and keep in the fridge overnight. The next day when ready to eat, peel the skin off, starting at the back and serve with a wedge of lemon if desired.

In any case salt as many as you intend to eat the next day. Don’t leave salted sardines in the fridge to eat the following days. They will not taste the same, as they would have stayed in salt longer. If you want to salt more than you can eat the next day and still have the best result, divide the sardines in batches, salt the same way on sheets of foil, parcel them up and keep them in the freezer. Bring each parcel out of the freezer the day before you intend to eat them. Thus after they defrost you will have as good a result. If anything they will peel off easier and cleaner.

Shellfish is still plentiful in the island, although there are strict rules to prevent over fishing and extinction, which makes them a seasonal product. You can find:

They are usually more expensive than fish, but still cheaper in comparison to what you would pay in European restaurants.

Places where you can find good quality shellfish at Tavernas are:

While travelling across the island of Lesvos you can’t fail to notice, the white beehives perched on the hillsides or roadsides usually by the dark green expanse of the pine forests. This means that there is plenty of pine-scented honey produced locally. You can usually buy it at village stalls or at the specialist dairy shops you can find in towns, clearly highlighting the heavenly combination of yoghurt and honey.

There are many Women’s Co-operatives (Sineterismos Ginekon) on the island. The most well known ones are the ones located at Mesotopos, Petra, Stipsi, Agia Paraskevi, Agiasos, Asomatos and Polychnitos . They work very hard for the survival of the local recipes of sweets, jams, cakes and traditional dishes and to better the lot of the local women. They do an excellent job by using only local natural products and they are worth supporting.

Most of the Co-operatives apart from their production premises have shops at their localities to exhibit and sell their products. So when you are next in any of the above towns ask for the location of the Shops. They are well worth supporting.

The Greek cuisine is relying very much on the use of fresh herbs for seasoning the traditional dishes and for infusing them for many soothing and therapeutic drinks. Most of them are being gathered from the hilltops and mountainsides where they grow wild and freely in the clean air, under the sun.

These are: oregano, thyme, mint, sage, chamomile, linden etc. and many other mountain teas known by their local names like Tou Aglia to chortari, a mountain tea that grows freely on the slopes of Olympos. The hands of the Creator have generously blessed the Aeolian land!

You will be able to buy them in large bundles or in bags very cheaply from the roadsides in many villages and towns. When you visit Agiasos on your leisurely ascend through the narrow roads from the bus station to the Church of the Madonna, you will be amazed at what Nature has to offer and spoiled for choice through the efforts of the villagers that have been doing the gathering, as their ancestors have been doing before them.