Most probably you have tasted Tzatziki at least once in your life? But have you ever tried Tirokafteri? Tasty and spicy Greek feta-based sauce perfect on toasted bread and more.

All you need to prepare tirokafteri is a few tasty ingredients, feta, yoghurt (Greek or plain white) chilli peppers in fizz, fresh chilli (you can use either green or red) oil and vinegar.

We struggled a bit to find a recipe “faithful to the original”, the opinions on the net are rather discordant, so we leave you free to test the version that most piques your curiosity.

To prepare Tirokafteri, first let the feta soften at room temperature, the final consistency of the sauce will be more pleasant.
The second most important ingredient, the chilli pepper, is the element on which we have found the most discrepancies. Some people use florina peppers to prepare it, others green habanero (perhaps the closest in taste to the green chillies used in Greece for Tirokafteri), others the classic sweet horn peppers or green friggitello . But above all, there are those who use the product raw and those who prefer it roasted.

To enhance the taste of chilli peppers, especially when raw, after washing and chopping them, you can reduce them to a cream in a mortar.
Pour it into a blender, add the two tablespoons of oil, the chilli flakes and start processing, add the feta (about 250g) and Greek yoghurt (100g), oregano to taste and a splash of wine vinegar, continue processing until you have the desired consistency.

Let the sauce rest before serving, it will be much tastier.

What does tirokafteri sauce go with?

T tirokafteri sauce, as mentioned above, is great on bruschetta, and with pita bread, combined with meat and roasted vegetables.

Alternative vegan version

If you want to try tirokafteri ve in a version compatible with the vegan diet, you can try replacing the feta cheese with its vegetable equivalent or marinated tofu, and the yoghurt with soya or almond yoghurt.