Lamb Klephtiko is a legendary Greek dish that at least dates back to the days of the Ottoman occupation of Greece. The klephts were Greek warriors who fought the Ottoman Turks to free Greece from 400 years of occupation, or “sklavia”, which we considered to be slavery.
So that they would not be detected up in the mountains by the enemy, the klephts would wrap the animal in its own skin and bake it in a hole under the ground, long and slow.
Making this dish I found that the peppers and onion literally give themselves up and practically melt into the meat, offering up their aroma.
Fresh rosemary, thyme & dry oregano give it a beautiful earthiness.
As this is not a traditional meal of Kefalonia where my family is from, so it is not a meal that I grew up eating. However, my husband is from Trikala, and it is certainly a dish that he enjoyed countless times. He had even eaten it made by someone who actually dug the hole in the ground to bake this!
You see, while the rest of Greece was under occupation of the Ottoman Turks, the Ionian Islands were occupied by Venice, at some point, Britain as well as France. As a result, there are various regional differences in our Greek dialects, culture & cuisine.
As a result, I scoured the recipes of various Greek chefs like Akis Petretzikis and Argiro Barbarigou, among a few others and did what I do best! Took the parts of the recipe that I liked and added my own flair.
Ingredients:
4 lbs of lamb
1 whole red onion
2 bell pepper
2 lbs baby Yukon gold potatoes
1 lb of kefalograviera cheese
1 stick of salted butter
3 fresh (or dry) bay leaves
1 lemon & 1 orange for overnight tenderizing
Marinade
4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
5 sprigs of fresh thyme
2 tbsp coarse sea salt
1 tbsp ground pepper
1 whole head of garlic
Juice & zest of 2 lemons
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp chili flakes
3 tbsp honey
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
Directions:
Overnight – optional:
Cut the lamb into large chunks. Squeeze the juice of an orange & a lemon or lime. Massage the lamb in that very well. Let it sit overnight. You want to practically cover it in the juice. If you need to add another citrus fruit, go right ahead. Soaking in this acidity tenderizes the lamb, but also got rid of any gaminess. I think it’s a necessary step, though it’s not usually suggested for this dish.
In the morning:
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Put all of the ingredients of the marinade mixture into a food processor & pulverize.
Cut up your potatoes, onion & peppers & set aside in a bowl.
Drain the lamb from the citrus mixture.
Pour half of the marinade in the vegetables & half into the lamb. With your hands, mix each well to coat.
Line a 9×12 pan in aluminum foil & parchment paper. Pour in the vegetables & then pour the lamb on top of that.
Cube the kefalograviera and the butter and add that to the pan. Tuck it into some parts, let it sit on top in others. Lay the bay leaves on top.
Now you will wrap this up to mimic the style of cooking that the klephts used to make this.
Bake wrapped for 4 hours. Unwrap and raise the temperature to 400 F. Bake uncovered for an additional 30 minutes to brown the meat.
Enjoy this with any seasonal salad that you love!
Kali Oreksi!
on xenia street 