Must Try Greek-Cycladic Tastes

Milos’ cuisine tells the story of its people. Over the centuries, waves of settlers, from Phoenicians and Dorians to Venetians and Cretans – brought new techniques and ingredients. Handmade pastas like matsi (boiled with milk and salt) and lazania came with Venetian influence, while the Cretans introduced garlic dips like aliada and an array of savoury pies filled with local cheese and herbs. These dishes are still prepared today alongside slow‑cooked meats, fragrant stews and fresh seafood, creating a culinary mosaic that feels both ancient and alive.

One of the island’s greatest gifts is its cheese. Free‑range goats roam the hillsides, providing milk for at least ten varieties of cheese aged in volcanic caves. The most famous is melichloro, a semi‑hard cheese with a dark rind and a rich, slightly tangy flavour. When melichloro is aged for six months or more, it becomes xiro mileiko, a hard cheese with a nutty taste reminiscent of parmesan. Manoura is the freshest form of this cheese; sometimes it is pan‑fried in olive oil to create manoura saganaki, a dish with a crunchy crust and a soft centre that’s served with a squeeze of lemon. Other cheeses include skotyri, a creamy spread traditionally matured in cloth sacks, and athotyria, a salted version of the soft mizithra. The island’s dry cheese known as ladotyri has protected designation of origin status and is aged in caves to absorb the earthy aroma of the volcanic stone. These cheeses are eaten plain, paired with local honey or used as fillings in pies.

The volcanic soil of Milos produces small, intensely flavoured tomatoes. Locals sun‑dry and salt them to make a thick tomato paste called beltes, which is spread on bread or used to flavour sauces. This paste is essential to dishes like skordolazana, a flat pasta cooked with garlic, olive oil and vinegar. It also tops ladenia, a rustic flatbread baked with onions and slices of fresh tomato, celebrating the island’s love of olive oil and simple ingredients. Quick pies known as pitarakia or plakopites are stuffed with cheese and herbs and fried until their exterior is crunchy and the inside chewy. You might also taste flaounakia, small baked pies filled with wild greens and raisins. These savoury breads and pies demonstrate how local cooks turn humble ingredients into something memorable.

Milos has a playful way with vegetables. Fishermen and farmers call dishes like tomato fritters, zucchini fritters, eggplant pies and fennel pies “pseudo‑meatballs” because they satisfy like meat but are made entirely of local produce. Pitarakia, small pies filled with chickpea purée and herbs, are a common snack. Another speciality is skotyrokolokytha, where tiny, locally grown courgettes are fried once until tender, then fried again with a creamy goat cheese called skotyri until the two meld together. These dishes highlight the island’s love of olive oil frying and its inventive use of seasonal vegetables and herbs.

While cheese and vegetables take centre stage, meat and fish are also honoured. A beloved main course is pork with tomato paste, where slow‑cooked pork absorbs the tangy sweetness of the island’s signature beltes and is served with thick potato wedges. Savoro fish, an older recipe, involves frying freshly caught fish and preserving it in a sauce of vinegar, flour and rosemary, creating a dish that can be enjoyed long after the catch. Fishermen also prepare grilled or fried seafood simply with herbs and olive oil, letting the freshness of the sea shine through. These plates illustrate how Milos balances its pastoral and maritime heritage.

The island’s honey is a treasure. Bees produce three main varieties, spring flower honey, thyme honey and heather honey, each with its own aroma. Honey appears in many desserts, including pasteli, a traditional bar made with sesame and honey, and achladakia, raw almond confections sweetened with honey. One of Milos’ most cherished sweets is koufeto, a spoon sweet made with white pumpkin, honey and almonds that’s traditionally served at weddings and celebrations. Watermelon pie (karpouzopita) uses grated watermelon mixed with flour, honey, olive oil, cinnamon and sesame seeds to create a thin, fragrant cake. You might also encounter mitzithropitakia, little pies filled with mitzithra cheese, honey, mastic and cinnamon, or rafioli, crescent‑shaped pastries filled with walnuts and honey and dusted with powdered sugar. These sweets highlight the island’s affinity for honey and nuts and its creative use of local produce.

Beyond tomatoes and melons, Milos is rich in herbs and greens. Fragrant sage, rosemary, thyme and oregano are used fresh and dried in savoury dishes. Lemon geranium leaves scent spoon sweets and homemade liqueurs. Wild greens such as alifonakia and koutsounades are collected in the fields and added to salads or fillings for pies. Farmers cultivate broad beans, lentils, peas, tomatoes, courgettes and sesame. A special garlic variety known locally as bournela adds a punch to dishes like skordolazana, while small, intensely flavoured tomatoes are used for both paste and salads. These herbs and crops underpin the island’s flavours and connect the table to the landscape.