The Tyrokafteri

I don't know if I've told you this, even though you may have already guessed it if you've been reading this blog for a while, but I can't live without feta. Feta cheese I mean. It's as simple as that. If someone told me that for some reason I couldn't eat feta, I would fall into deep culinary depression. Not even chocolate would be able to save me.

Don't make fun of me, but whenever I eat Greek cheese pie, which is a pie filled to the brim with feta, I have to have feta on the side, and to further embarrass myself, I'll admit that whenever I eat Chinese, Indian, Japanese or Thai food, I always have a huge piece of feta next to my plate. I'm totally aware that the flavors don't match—somehow I don't think people in Thailand consider feta cheese a staple—but I just can't eat something without having feta on the side.

I don't know why I'm addicted to it, I can't figure it out. One could argue that it's because I'm Greek but, no, there are other Greeks, many Greeks, who prefer other cheeses. I guess it'll remain a mystery. I'm pretty sure some of you empathize with me, though. You too may have some type of food that you just can't part with no matter what. C'mon, admit it.

My whole life I've been enjoying Greek, barrel-aged feta and when I moved to Holland five years ago I knew I'd have a problem. My greatest fear was that I would have to compromise with an inferior type of feta or even worse, imitation feta. Thankfully, I was wrong since I can find Greek feta of excellent quality here, so crisis averted.

Anyway, enough with my feta rumblings. Let's get to this dip/spread. There is a multitude of recipes in Greek cuisine that contain feta but one of my absolute favorites is the mezes called tyrokafteri. Tyrokafteri literally means 'hot cheese' and it's just that. Whipped cheese that is super hot; the heat coming from the addition of either fresh green hot peppers or boukovo, which is Greek dried red chilli flakes.

There are two types of tyrokafteri, the classic white one (aspri) and the other one, the more playful one, the red (kokkini). The white consists mainly of cheese and hot green peppers and it is indeed delicious, otherwise I wouldn't have whipped up some yesterday, nevertheless the red one is the superior of the two. It is far more complex and interesting flavor-wise as it contains long sweet red peppers that add sweetness and level out the heat of the boukovo, Greek strained yoghurt which gives an extra dimension of creaminess, and smoked paprika that adds a depth of flavor and a pleasant smoky quality to the dip.

Slathered on a slice of good sourdough bread or whole-wheat crackers, added in your favorite sandwich, served as a side dish for steaks or biftekia (Greek meat patties), or as a simple dip for crudités or pita, it's one of those Greek classics that should be a part of your repertoire. Tzatziki is not the only delicious Greek dip out there.

Tyrokafteri Kokkini - Greek Feta and Sweet Red Pepper Spicy & Hot Dip
Adapted from Aglaia Kremezi

Tyrokafteri is smooth and creamy but once you put it in the fridge it hardens up, making it difficult to spread. Before you serve it, make sure to leave it out of the fridge for half an hour.
Use good quality Greek feta and if you can find barrel-aged feta, which has a peppery flavor, then the results will be spectacular.

Yield: about 700 g / enough for about 12 people

Ingredients
500 g feta (if you can find different varieties where you live, use medium to soft in texture feta)
80 ml extra virgin olive oil
2 fresh long sweet red peppers (about 220 g), deseeded and roughly chopped
1 tsp boukovo or crushed dried red chilli flakes (or 1½ tsp if you enjoy the heat)
3 heaped Tbsp Greek strained yoghurt, 2% or full-fat (I use Total)
1 tsp red-wine vinegar
1 tsp sweet smoked paprika or sweet paprika

Fresh chives, finely chopped, for garnishing

Special equipment: large food processor


Preparation
Place the feta in a bowl and add enough water from the tap to cover it. Leave it in the water for 15 minutes which will get rid of the saltiness. This process is called in Greek "ksalmirisma" meaning removal of the salt.

In the meantime, add the olive oil to a medium-sized skillet and heat over medium heat. Add the chopped red peppers along with the boukovo and sauté them, stirring regularly, until they soften but don't brown. Take the pan off the heat and let the peppers cool in the pan.

When the 15 minutes have passed, drain the feta from the water, cut it into pieces and place it in the food processor. Add the cooled down peppers, along with all the juices accumulated in the pan, scraping it well, followed by the yoghurt, the vinegar, and the paprika.
Process until you have a smooth and creamy mixture. Give the tyrokafteri a taste and if you find it to be too salty, add a little more yoghurt.

Empty it into a bowl, sprinkle with the chopped chives and serve.

You can serve it immediately or you can place it in the fridge, where you can keep it covered with plastic wrap, for 1 week.