Greek Food for Vegans

There are plenty of traditional Greek dishes that are vegan. There is also a magic word that every Greek person understands and almost describes a vegan diet, ‘ nistisimo’. A word used by Greek Orthodox Church and decribes the food that people can eat during fasting periods.
Food that labeled as ‘nistisimo’ is vegan with a few exceptions, honey is allowed and also some fishes like squid or cuttlefish. But it will help you to communicate better in a bakery or a tavern, when the person on the service doesn’t understand the word vegan. You can simply ask if the pie or the stuffed tomatoes are ‘nistisimo’! Knowing that magic word, will make your life in Greece easier.
‘ Nistisimo’ a magic word that every Greek person understands and almost describes a vegan diet
Below you will find some recomentations that are based on my personal taste. Because the way a food is made may vary from one place to another, beware for pitfalls. Pies like spanakopita may contain cheese. Also in some taverns in dishes like gigantes, may contain cheese crumbs on top, or make stuffed food using minced meat together with other ingridients. Traditional Greek salad has feta chease. Instead of asking Greek salad without feta and pay more, you can simply order aggourontomata salad ( tomato-cucumber salad), wich is almost the same and cheaper.
In any case make sure that the food you want to order is nistisimo!

Drinks : Mountain tea ( Greek tea ), Greek coffee , freddo espresso ( Greek style cold espresso ), juices from local fruits.

Food for breakfast / snacks: hortopita ( wild greens pie ), eliopsomo ( olive bread ), koulouri ( Greek sesame bagels ), spanakopita ( spinach pie), homemade marmalades from Greek fruits ( apricot, peach, orange, fig, cherry etc. ), fresh Greek fruits ( grapes, melon, peach, plum, kiwi etc.) and juices / salads from those fuits, stafida ( dried grapes), pistachio of Aegina, almonds and other nuts, olive spread, olives.

Salads: Horta salad ( steamed wild greens with fresh lemon juice and olive oil), Greek salad ( without feta cheese ), pantzarosalata ( beet salad ).

Soups: Fasolada ( beans soup ), fakes ( lentils soup ), revithia ( chickpea soup ).

Main dishes: Gigantes ( giant beans ), stuffed tomatoes and peppers, fasolakia ( green string beans ), dolmades ( stuffed grape leaves ), stuffed zucchini blossoms, briami / tourlou ( mixed baked vaggies ), grilled vegies, vegetable stew, stuffed eggplant, spanakorizo ( spinach rice ).
Simply Relax and Enjoy Life in Greece as vegan !
References :
http://thegreekvegan.com/recipes-by-category-2/
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