The sympetherio is born from the “xempostanidia“— the leftover vegetables that grow in small quantities at the end of the summer garden. And just as people become in-laws (sympetheria) to mark a new beginning, so do the vegetables “join families.” Eggplants, zucchinis, vlita (amaranth greens), green beans, okra, and tomatoes together with hochlioi (Cretan snails) all go into the same pot to make an easy, tasty dish: an ode to zero waste and foraging in Cretan cuisine.
Serves 6–7
- 300 g green beans (barbounia or ampelofasoula), cleaned
- 2 garlic cloves
- 200 g vlita (amaranth greens)
- 2 medium onions, thinly sliced
- 100 g okra, cleaned
- 3 medium potatoes, cut into wedges
- 400 g eggplants, cut into 2 cm cubes
- ½ kg ripe tomatoes, grated (with their juices)
- 10–12 small zucchinis, scored
- 10–12 zucchini blossoms
- 40 hochlioi (snails) (about 250 g), cleaned and boiled for 5 minutes
- 200 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 4 sprigs of stifno (black nightshade leaves)
- Salt (Fleur de sel)
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1 small hot pepper (optional)
Method
For the Cretan sympetherio, heat the olive oil in a wide pot over medium heat and sauté the onion and garlic. Add the potatoes, eggplants, zucchinis, and tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and simmer for 5 minutes. Then add the green beans and the hochlioi; after another 5 minutes, add the okra. Continue cooking for 10 minutes and then add the vlita, zucchini blossoms, and stifno. Cook for another 5–10 minutes, turn off the heat, let the sympetherio rest for 5 minutes to thicken, and enjoy.
