Orthodox Fasting Recipes
Orthodox Christians keep some form of fast on roughly half the days of the year — all of Great Lent, the other fasting seasons, and most Wednesdays and Fridays. The rule is graded: strict days set aside meat, dairy, eggs, fish, wine and oil; gentler days restore oil, then fish. The dishes below are the ones Orthodox kitchens actually cook inside that rule, grouped by the strictest level each one satisfies — a strict-day dish is welcome on any fast day. For the rule itself, see Orthodox Great Lent explained.
Strict fast days
Recipe · Strict fastFakes (Greek Lentil Soup)Fakes, the everyday Greek lentil soup, made the strict-fast way: lentils, tomato, carrot and bay simmered without a drop of oil, finished with a splash of vinegar.1 h · 6 servings
Recipe · Strict fastFasolada (Greek White Bean Soup)Greece's beloved white bean soup in a tomato broth — prepared oil-free here, so it suits even the strict fast days of Orthodox Great Lent.1 h 20 min · 6 servings
Recipe · Strict fastRevithia (Greek Chickpea Soup with Lemon)Revithia — chickpeas slow-simmered with onion, garlic, oregano and lemon — made oil-free here, so the classic island Lenten soup suits even the strict fast days.2 h 45 min · 4 servings
Recipe · Strict fastGreek Semolina Halva (Oil-Free)Greek semolina halva — toasted semolina set in cinnamon-lemon syrup with raisins and almonds — dry-toasted here without oil, so the beloved Lenten sweet suits strict fast days too.40 min · 10 servingsOil & wine days
Recipe · Fast with oilBriam (Greek Roasted Vegetables in Tomato and Olive Oil)Briam — zucchini, potatoes, peppers and onion roasted in tomato and olive oil until caramelised at the edges. Greece's answer to ratatouille, for wine-and-oil days.1 h 50 min · 6 servings
Recipe · Fast with oilFasolakia Lathera (Greek Green Beans in Tomato and Olive Oil)Fasolakia lathera — green beans and potatoes simmered slowly in tomato and olive oil until soft and silky. The defining dish of the Greek lathera family, for wine-and-oil days.1 h · 6 servings
Recipe · Fast with oilGigantes Plaki (Greek Giant Beans in Tomato Sauce)Gigantes plaki — enormous butter beans simmered, then baked in a rich tomato sauce with peppers, carrots and dill. A wine-and-oil day centrepiece of the Greek fasting table.2 h · 5 servings
Recipe · Fast with oilImam Bayildi (Olive Oil–Braised Stuffed Eggplant)Imam bayildi — eggplant halves roasted, stuffed with caramelized onion and tomato, and braised in olive oil until melting. The legendary Turkish dish is a natural wine-and-oil day meal.1 h 40 min · 4 servings
Recipe · Fast with oilSpanakorizo (Greek Spinach Rice with Lemon and Dill)Spanakorizo — rice simmered with spinach, dill and lemon until green and fragrant. A thirty-minute wine-and-oil day staple of the Greek fasting kitchen.30 min · 4 servingsFish days
Recipe · Fast with oil and fishPsarosoupa (Greek Fish Soup with Lemon — No Egg)Psarosoupa — whole fish simmered with potatoes, carrots and celery, the broth finished with lemon and olive oil. Made the plain way here, with no egg-lemon sauce, as the fast requires.1 h · 6 servings
Recipe · Fast with oil and fishTaramosalata (Greek Fish Roe Dip)Taramosalata — salted fish roe whipped with bread, olive oil and lemon into a silky dip. The centrepiece of the Clean Monday table, tagged for the fish days of the fast.15 min · About 8 meze servings (roughly 500 g of dip)