The traditional Greek diet wasn’t so meat-centered as it is today but meat always was part of the diet.
My parents (both from the the northern Prefecture of Florina) recall when the family pig was slaughtered. Nothing went to waste. The whole pig was used from snout to tail to hoof…everything but the pig’s squeal.
Up until yesterday, Greece has been enjoying some mild temperatures (even by Greece’s standards). I saw Greeks sitting and supping at the tavernas but not indoors. They were seen & heard dining and drinking at the tables situated outside tavernas!
At last, Greeks can seek the warm comforts of a taverna, many with a fireplace lit, the sounds of Greek music in the background and Greek wine flowing. Dionysus would be proud.
This dish is a Greek classic: pork with celery and leeks. All three ingredients abundant in the winter. The pork, fresh from the slaughter; leeks and celery, two vegetables that flourish in the Greek winter.
For this dish, I like using lean pork loin, sliced into 1/2 inch servings and pounded into thin cutlets. Leeks provide the bottom end of the flavour, the celery chimes in on the mid-range and the dried Greek oregano and fresh dill round out this symphony of flavours.
I’m also using lemon peel. I want the lemon flavour without excessive tang. A squeeze of fresh lemon juice at the end is all that’s needed.
Finally, smoked paprika. One of my favourite items in the pantry. I used to have to get my smoked paprika from the farmer’s market (each Monday) that passed through my dad’s hometown (Amynteon) until last year. I found a source of Greek, YES Greek smoked paprika at the Kapani central market in Thessaloniki. 
Pork With Leeks & Celery
(Serves 4)
1lb. of pork loin, cut into 1/2 inch slices
salt and pepper
flour for dredging
1/2 cup Greek extra-virgin olive oil
2 leeks (white part), rinsed well/rid of any dirt/grit and sliced
2 stalks of celery, sliced
peel of 1/2 lemon, sliced + its juice (use a vegetable peeler to remove the peel)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup of vegetable or chicken stock
1 red shepherd sweet pepper (Florinis), sliced into rings
4 Pepporincini, pickled green peppers, sliced
1 tsp. smoked paprika
sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
1 tsp. dried Greek oregano
2 tsp. chopped fresh dill
- Rinse and pat-dry your pork. Cut into 1/2 inch slices and place between two pieces of cling-wrap and pound out into 1/2 cm. cutlets. Season with salt and pepper and lightly dredge in all-purpose flour.
- Place a large skillet on your stove-top over medium heat and sprinkle some flour to test if the oil is hot enough. Brown your pork for a couple of minutes a side and reserve.
- Into the same skillet, add your vegetables (leeks, celery, red peppers, peperoncini), smoked paprika and sliced lemon peel and allow to sweat for a couple of minutes while stirring. Now add your stock, white wine and lemon juice and bring to a boil.
- Now add your pork cutlets back into the skillet – nestled into the sauce. There should be enough sauce to just come-up to the sides of the pork. Add some more water or stock if needed. Cover and bring to a boil. Now reduce heat to medium and simmer for 30-35 minutes. Check halfway through for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper to taste.
- Your sauce should have thickened by now. Take off the heat, check for seasoning and adjust. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and your dried Greek oregano and chopped fresh dill.
- Serve with some garlic mashed potatoes, some steamed broccoli tossed in olive oil and lemon juice and serve with a Vatistas Petroulianos white. Don’t forget that crusty bread!
If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at https://kalofagas.ca then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.
© 2007-2010 Peter Minakis
37 Responses
What a delicious-looking dish. Who’d have thought a pork dish could look so colorful? But you added all those wonderful ingredients!
That is a wonderful combination! I love all three ingredients!
Cheers,
Rosa
This is one of my favourite dishes and I love all the ingredients you’ve added to it. I cook it in the oven in a gastra.
I’m not a huge celery fan but you’ve made it look appetizing in this dish. :)
This “hirno” dish really is a classic Peter. My parents usually prepare something similar using beef (all stewed together). I’m going to bookmark this and prepare it when the weather gets cooler.
Looks great. You can never have too much pork and I love seeing new recipes for it. I’m a huge fan of smoked parika too.
mmm…delicious !!!
We call it “xoirino prasoselino” and it’s really delicious!!!
Your dish looks great, so colourful and delicious!!!
I’m doing a lot with leeks right now, too. This recipe sounds great. Paprika never comes to mind when I am thinking Greek in the kitchen, so it’s an education for me, to learn that there is such a thing as Greek paprika! Thanks for the post.
I am envying your sunshine to take photos in natural light as we are socked into a valley winter. A dish like this would brighten up our days.
Love leeks in anything! This looks so delicious.
Love the carmelization on that pork!
You don’t see pepporoncini in enough recipes! I love the things but I think I have only cooked with them once!
I’m still laughing at ‘everything but the pig’s squeal’. Delicious looking plate!
Well doesn’t this look awesome! Pork, lemon and pepperocinni – YUM! You are making my tummy growllll.
This looks wonderful, Peter. And you’ve just wielded the two by four that I needed to remind me that leeks should be showing up in my winter recipes. Thank you! :)
I am not a huge fan of raw celery, but braised like this…heavenly!! I love pork but there are a few parts other than the pig’s squeal that I will not eat!!! This dish however…bring it on!!!
i am not sure about the “pork, fresh of the slaugher” ;) but, for sure, i love all the other ingredients.
You do such tantalising things with pork! This looks delicious.
Delicious!!
ah, everything but the squeal. if only we could find some way to harness that acoustic energy and use it too. :)
What a beautiful winter dish, I can almost taste the flavors right now
Really nice original recipe.
Sorry about the truffle.
LL
Î Î¿Î»Ï Î±Î³Î±Ï€Î·Î¼Îνο από την αυθεντική Ελληνική κουζίνα!!!
Peter you make everything looks so good! Because of you I bought smoked paprika, and love it now. This sounds and looks outstanding!
Not only did this recipe look amazing; I think it will be a blast to cook this weekend. Thank you!
leeks are such a great vegetable – fantastic with both pork and celery
Î ÎÏ„Ïο χÏόνια πολλά και καλή χÏονιά!
Καταπληκτικό το χοιÏινό με το Ï€ÏασοσÎλινο.
Lovely, lovely, lovely!
What a fantastic looking dish. I really like the all the colours – yum! :)
Thihs looks lovely – always on the lookout for quick weekinght pork recipes!
I always bake pork tenderloin as an easy and fast dish I wonder if these yummy spices could be used with it!
your photos always make it mouthwatering.
I am looking for a wooden mold that says “Christ is risen” in Greek. Do you have any idea where I might look? It is to imprint some traditional rolls we eat in Lebanon coming out of service (the greek orthodox, but then everybody eats them!)
Merci!
What a delicious and homey dish, Peter. I adore leeks in pretty much anything.
That looks really good! It is so vibrant, juicy and colourful. I just happen to have a jar of pepporincini that is just looking for a home as well.
Peter,
I made this the other night; it was so easy, and soo yummy!
thanks again :)
Just came back from the Thessaloniki Film Festival. Bought some (loose) smoked paprika from the local market. Holy Toledo! The smell was intense and smelled up the hotel room. It had been packed in a little sack and the red color burned through so the white sack turned red. A week later, you can smell it in my kitchen at home, even though it’s in a spice container. I don’t mind at all! I figure it is the real deal, since it was in a tiny shop with other loose spices as well as a jar of leeches for sale.
R, sounds like you visited the shop I like to buy spices from. Thanks for the note!