Greek Cooking Class in Athens

Greek cuisine is one of my top favourite cuisines in the entire world, no matter what weather it is, the smell of a fresh souvlaki just gets my taste buds running wild. On my second visit to Greece, I took my love for food to a whole new level and experienced something I’ve never done before, a Greek cooking class. Massive thanks to the wonderful guys at THE GREEK KITCHEN in Athens for having me and teaching me how to make some of my favourite Greek foods from scratch. And since you are in Athens already might as well check out my list of Must Try Food In Athens.

What is The Greek Kitchen?

The Greek Kitchen is a cooking school where you can get a first-hand experience at the Greek cuisine. It is run by highly knowledgeable teachers who conduct Greek cooking classes, almost on a daily basis and organize food tours as well. Each session lasts for about 4-5 hours and includes a guided tour of the Athens Central Market next door.  They are located on Athinas Street, very close to Monastiraki Square, which is where you will be spending most of your time.

Where to stay in Athens?

Generally staying around the Monastiraki square will be an ideal location to make the most out of your stay in Athens. I stayed at BEDBOX HOSTEL, a block away from The Greek Kitchen and probably one of the best hostels to stay at in Athens. Location, couldn’t be better, a souvlaki place right around the corner, an epic bakery serving fresh goods and coffee from the early hours of the day and walking distance to all the major attractions. The hostel itself was very spacious and comfortable; air conditioned rooms, private balcony, ample bathrooms and very friendly staff who are always willing to offer free tasting of ouzo. Basically it has everything that a 30 year old solo traveller like me would need for a budget relaxing holiday. Click here to know more about this hostel.

Alternatively, if you are with your partner or a family and fancy a bit of privacy then ATHENS SUITES is an excellent option. I stayed here on my previous trip to Greece, a very modern and clean place with hotel apartments including very spacious apartments, gigantic beds, a well equipped kitchen and minutes away from Monastiraki square. Check them out here.

What did I do at The Greek Kitchen?

I reached The Greek Kitchen at 9:30am where I met Antonia, who was going to be sharing some of her knowledge of Greek cuisine with us for the next couple of hours.

Once everyone had arrived we set off to the ATHENS CENTRAL MARKET, a bustling market where you see dozens of locals buying fresh meat, fish, cheeses, fruits and vegetables. Antonia took us around this market explaining the different types of cheeses, what meats are generally used in Greek cuisine and how it differs region to region because of differing environmental conditions. Did you know that there is a small production of Bananas which are grown in Crete Island of Greece? I didn’t.

We bought all the ingredients required for the cooking class and returned to the school in just under an hour. Antonia divided us in groups of 2 per work station which were already set up in a big table at the cooking school. It was time to get our hands dirty, figuratively.

Dish 1: Spanakopita (Spinach Pie)

I had Spanakopita at least once a day in Greece, whether it’s for breakfast, for lunch or a quick snack, it just tastes too good. Spanakopita is a savory spinach pie which can be found in every single corner of Greece, it’s the best on-the-go pastry you can buy and today we were going to make it ourselves.

Our Greek cooking class began with chopping all the vegetables, mixing it with crumbled feta cheese and stuffing it in a phyllo pastry, as you can imagine, the stuffing was the trickiest but the most fun part. Normally Spanakopita is a flat stuffed pie but for the sake of simplicity we prepared it into a swirl and garnished it with sesame seeds.

The end result, I had 2 full portions of this pie, again, even if I made it myself.

Dish 2: Dolmades (Stuffed Vine Leaves)

The concept of stuffed vegetables is quite popular around the Mediterranean region. This dish which actually originated from Turkey, plays a vital part in the Greek cuisine and that was our next dish in this Greek cooking class. We prepared Stuffed Vine Leaves by mixing up all the ingredients and stuffing small portions into wine leaves, yayy! more stuffing again. For me, this was actually the most challenging dish to make, they just don’t want to stay in. The peculiar shape of the leaves and my brilliant cooking skills took quite a few tries to get a decent dolma.

Our dolmades turned out quite well, Antonia told us that the key to good dolmades is the accuracy in the cooking process, the amount of water used, the pot it is cooked in and the duration, thankfully that was Antonia’s part.

Dish 3: Imam Bayildi (Stuffed Eggplant)

This is another dish taken from the Ottomans which forms part of the Greek cuisine. Eggplant stuffed with tomatoes, onions, garlic, insides of the eggplant and some red wine for flavor. We prepared the whole thing from scratch and topped it off with crumbled feta, because cheese makes everything better, and cherry tomatoes for garnishing.

If you love posting photos of your cooking skills online, this dish is definitely for you, not only does it taste brilliant, but it’s very instagrammable as well. You might have to wash quite a few dishes though.

Dish 4: Carrot Tzatziki

If you’ve ever had Greek food ever, Tzatziki would definitely be a part of the spread. It’s a yoghurt based dip with mainly cucumbers and a good amount of garlic. To make things a bit more interesting, we added shredded carrot to the mix to give it a nice twist in flavor and also a tint of orange. It’s the simplest and the quickest dish to make so you can have it as a side dish, as a spread or straight up with a spoon, just don’t forget to brush your teeth after.

Dish 5: Portokalopita (Orange Pie)

How could the meal end without dessert? We started off by cutting the phyllo pastry into very small pieces, whisking it up with eggs, orange zest, sugar, greek yoghurt and the other ingredients into a thick batter. This batter was then nicely poured in a baking dish and while it was being baked, we prepared the sugar syrup.

I’ve had Portokalopita before at restaurants and tavernas, but the one we made was undoubtedly the best I’ve ever had, not really sure why though.

A good one hour passed enjoying all the food we had prepared for the very first time and getting to know my fellow chefs, bravo to me for licking off the entire plate on a full stomach. Before saying our goodbyes, Antonia gave each one of us a Certificate of Participation along with a shot of the Greek liquor ‘Mastika’ to celebrate the success of this Greek Cooking Class.

What I liked about The Greek Cooking Class at The Greek Kitchen?

Everything. The staff was very well organized and Antonia was ready to answer every question we threw at her. The cooking process was a lot of fun, I met a lot of interesting people in my group and the food turned out to be way better than I expected, especially the portokalopita. The free flowing wine and snacks during the class was a nice touch.

What I didn’t like about The Greek Cooking Class at The Greek Kitchen?

I know hundreds of people who’ve traveled to Greece and not a single one of them has done or heard about this class. The Greek Kitchen needs to spend a good amount of time marketing themselves because they already have the potential; all they need is the fame.

My Verdict

This is without a doubt one of the most amazing things to do in Athens and a great activity for couples, families or friends. You learn a lot about the Greek cuisine and get to make some of the most delicious foods which are also quite easy to make, so you can even ‘woah’ people back home. If you ever plan a trip to Greece, maybe on your way to Santorini, Mykonos or any of the Greek islands, make sure to spare just half a day at The Greek Kitchen. You can read more about my trip in Santorini here.

So what are you waiting for? Book your Greek Cooking Class here and use the hashtag #PleaseStampMyPassport to be featured.