Far from other islands and somewhat isolated in the South Aegean between Rhodes and Crete, Karpathos is a unique island with a distinctive culture.
How can one not relish good, authentic food on an island where, almost everywhere you sit, you’re served delicious leavened bread that’s baked in a wood-fired oven? Culinary tradition is very important in Karpathos, and across the island, they serve well-prepared and carefully made food. This is evident in the dishes served on the island’s tables, as the majority of them pay homage to an age-old cuisine.
There is a well-developed agriculture in mountainous, rocky Karpathos, with many families still making cheese and butter from their own animals. The flagship dairy product of Karpathos is “sitaka”, a creamy-textured cheese made from sheep or goat’s milk that can be either tangy or sweet, depending on the processing it undergoes. Other popular cheeses from Karpathos include “manoli”, a very soft cheese, and “armyrotiri”, an extremely salty and hard cheese that is often grated over pasta. “Dryla”, a goat’s milk yogurt, is also popular on the island.
Fishing is also a significant industry on the island, with plenty of fish and seafood available, including “argaï”, a type of squid resembling a cuttlefish. “Skaros” fish is highly prized on the island and is cooked either grilled or in a hearty soup, while “menoules” are a popular pastry. Another characteristic dish is an omelette with wild greens such as “tsimeta,” artichokes, and spinach, as well as various types of pies like “gra” and “kopelies” (types of vegetable pies) and onion pies.
Bread and baked goods play a central role in the island’s gastronomy and are made in various flavourings, such as large loaves with cumin and nutmeg and topped with black sesame seeds (bread offered in the church), |”Christopsomo” (Christ bread) in the shape of a cross, flavoured with spices such as cinnamon, mastic, and cloves and sprinkled with sesame seeds, or the Easter “pouli” or Christokouloura, which are thin salty “bagels” in the shape of an “8” with a red egg at one end.
They also make a variety of crispy breads such as onion “koulouria” (rings) with plenty of onion and spices, thin koulouria sprinkled with black sesame seeds, “psilokouloura”, which are large round breads with twelve stripes of dough on the inside arranged to form a basket, and paximadokouloura flavoured with mastic, cumin and white sesame seeds. Many of these breads and pastries are sold in the island’s bakeries.
In Karpathos, olive cultivation covers the largest percentage of the island’s cultivated land. The main variety of olives grown on the island is the Koroneiki, but smaller varieties are also cultivated for table use, and the honey produced on the island is of high quality.
Popular Dishes
Among the traditional foods of Karpathos, handmade pasta is very popular, often cooked, drizzled with burnt butter and served with caramelized onions (“tsikomeno” onion) or “sitaka” cheese. “Pseftomakarouna” (‘fake pasta’), small bites of boiled bread dough softened to perfection and also served with caramelized onions, is another option. Other traditional dishes include “vyzanti“, lamb or goat stuffed with herbs and rice, slow-baked in a covered clay pot, “anterizia”, intestines stuffed with rice, minced meat, and spices, “ofto” (stuffed goat baked in a wood-fired oven with rice, liver, and herbs) served with the “dryla” goat’s milk yogurt. “Hondros” (boiled wheat with meat and tomato is served at weddings and at the island’s festivals. Overall, the traditional cooking of Karpathos is hearty and high in flavour and showcases the island’s fresh, local ingredients.
Desserts
Most desserts are fried, like “moschopougkia” which are half-moon-shaped pastries filled with nuts and dusted with powdered sugar. “Xylikopites” are thin strips of dough that are opened with a wooden stick and served with honey, while “takakia” are small pieces of dough that are fried and then soaked in syrup. The sweet Christmas pie is called “zimpilia” and is filled with ground raisins, while the Easter sweet is the “tourta,” a pre-fermented dough cake filled with soft sweet cheese and flavoured with anise.
Wine
The very unique “Adam’s wine,” as locals call it, is a sweet, red wine made from sun-dried grapes. Karpathos’ most popular wine is a semi-sweet red variety that is primarily produced in the highlands of Karpathos, Othos, and Volada. Various lesser-known grape varieties, including the Cycladic “gaidouria” and several white grape varieties are cultivated on the island, like “stroggylathiro”, “karato”, “kolokithato”, “kotiko”, and “syriggi”. Whether you prefer red or white wine, Karpathos offers a rare wine tasting experience.
The main varieties that are cultivated are mainly “fokiano” and “athiri,” but also “thrapsathiri” from Crete and “gaidouria” from the Cyclades. Although a certified winery exists, the winemaking and bottling are generally done amateurishly using archaic practices: The grapes are first sun-dried, then half of the must is boiled for further concentration, and next, the mixture of unfermented and boiled must is placed in clay jars to ferment. The wine is stored in these jars as well.
Popular Dishes & Ingredients to Try
At weddings, the traditional dish served is “hondros”, made with coarse wheat and meat. It can be cooked in milk for a creamy consistency or boiled in water and topped with sautéed onions and cheese just before serving. The distinctively shaped hand-rolled pasta called “makarounes” is notably delicious. Prepared from elongated dough pieces cut into three-centimetre sections, they are firmly pressed with fingers to create a central indentation before being left to dry. Once boiled, the pasta is smothered with sautéed onions and garnished with cheese. “Psomomakarona” (‘bread pasta’), small chunks of stale bread boiled briefly in salted water, are served in a similar way.
For something sweet, try “sousamomelo”, a delicious sesame-honey wedding treat. The exceptional local honey is also drizzled over “xerotigana” (fried dough strips), “loukoumades” (fried doughnuts), “tiganites” (crisp, deep-fried dough strips), baklava, and “alevria” (honey and butter dough rings). Psilokoulouro, a bread ring, is considered more of an artistic creation than mere food. This large, circular bread features twelve interwoven dough strips at its centre, dusted with sugar-coated sesame seeds before baking.
The most popular Karpathos dessert is a small, crunchy triangular pie, filled with melted mizithra cheese and topped with sugar and nutmeg. Another sweet delight is “zebilia”, crescent-shaped pastry stuffed with raisins and nutmeg and sprinkled with white and black sesame seeds before baking.
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Best places to eat in Karpathos
