Giouvarlakia Revisited

by Peter G on June 17, 2009 · Greek Food, Recipes

giouv1 Giouvarlakia Revisited

I’ve decided to redo giouvarlakia (Greek meatball soup recipe) this winter.

I’ve blogged about giouvarlakia before and you can find my recipe here.

I love the “heartiness” of this dish and I can eat them non stop. They definitely warm up the insides. However, in my “extreme makeover” (ok, maybe not that extreme) I did add a bunch of chopped silverbeet or swiss chard and some brown lentils to cook with the stock created by the meatballs.

And I don’t add any avgolemono to finish this Greek meatball soup off. Yes I know it’s sacrilege but I’ve often said I like playing around with my food.

giouv2 Giouvarlakia Revisited

I prefer to squeeze some lemon juice just before serving them. It’s really filling and satisfying and a great way to get some extra fibre in your diet.

To enhance the health properties of this dish I enjoy it with another great Aussie red! This time it was a lovely Merlot.

I hope you like my variation of this Greek meatball soup dish.

giouv3 Giouvarlakia Revisited

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Tagged as: Greek, soup, vegetables, winter

Article by Peter G

Peter has written 366 awesome articles.

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1 Joan Nova June 17, 2009 at 08:25: It’s amazing how with your photography skills you presented a whole different vibe between this post and the link you provided. The meatball soup here hit me as dramatic, maybe even somber, definitely serious surrounded by all that darkness; the other, sitting in the white pot, homey and comforting. I love the visual contrast.
2 Tartelette June 17, 2009 at 08:31: I love this type of soup Peter! It’s not winter here at all (actually 100F-100% humidity) but I can’t wait a few months!! This is going on the menu for next week!
The blues in your pictures are so rich…The second picture had me say “Come to Mama” outloud
3 Rosa June 17, 2009 at 08:35: A great makeover! That dish looks and sounds so good! Perfect for the wintertime…

Cheers,

Rosa
4 Bellini Valli June 17, 2009 at 09:31: I’m agreeing with Joan and Tartlette. Your photos always habve me imagining your dishes jumping right off the pages.
5 Heather June 17, 2009 at 09:54: http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/7430/tasty.jpg

I love that it’s a totally different time of year for you.
6 Soma June 17, 2009 at 13:53: Love the BLUE! esp. the way the lemon stands out in it.
7 Arwen from Hoglet K June 17, 2009 at 23:32: The spinach instead of egg looks so different. I like the idea of a new dish out of an old favourite. Beautiful photos too!
8 maria June 18, 2009 at 02:20: this looks so filling – youvarlakia in a lemon sauce go really well with geen leafy vegetables

love the photo of the wine on the blue tablecloth
9 il ramaiolo June 18, 2009 at 02:55: hi, I see your beautiful photos, but I don’t understand the mean of words… I don’t speak English… mmmmhhh! I see you again! By
10 Peter June 18, 2009 at 04:45: AXXXX, amartia! lol It’s cool and rainy here and I’m ready to get a pot of soup on…Giouvarlakia is a good as any soup to make.

You can play with your food all you want…experimentation brings failures and successes and in the end, progress.
11 Sylvia June 18, 2009 at 05:33: This soup is perfect for winter, that, is starting now.Love the glass,, is Riedel ??
12 elly June 18, 2009 at 17:56: Great twist on the classic Greek recipe, Peter. I just love the idea of chard in there. I’m going to do that next time!
13 Trish Lathourakis June 19, 2009 at 02:10: Hey Peter

This is one of my favourite dishes, out of all that my Yiayia makes, it is definitely something we request often, no matter if it is summer or winter, it is so satisfying with the thick foam layer on top. One of the best parts, and probably something common with all Yiayiathes, is the fact that once you put it in the fridge, a layer of fat will form on top, but you don’t care as it just tastes too good,

I do like your take though with the fresh vegetables, as it is a dish that if eaten regularly, cannot be the best for you.
14 Jenn AKA The Leftover Queen June 19, 2009 at 10:40: Looks delicious Peter! Playing with food and flavors is the best!
15 Ben June 19, 2009 at 11:59: This is a perfect winter meal, all warm and stuff, hehe. I love how you worked the blue in this shots! It brings out the food perfectly!
16 Simone van den Berg June 20, 2009 at 10:41: It’s the title alone that makes me want to have some… The greek names for food are just so much more ‘adventurous’ ! (probably because I have no idea what it means in general..lol) Love this soup and your new take on the recipe sounds great!
The third photo of the Merlot is just pure genius. Just a hint of light on the wine… Look wonderful!
17 arfi June 21, 2009 at 18:18: I think I’ve made this one too, isn’t it meatballs in lemon sauce? Still looks good, P!!
18 FoodJunkie June 23, 2009 at 02:45: What a great makeover Peter! I was never a fan of giouvarlakia, but this take is definitely interesting to say the least. And very healthy too.
19 Maria June 23, 2009 at 18:15: Perfect winter comfort food. I miss these dishes in summer. Like the way you changed things up a bit … it’s always good to play around with ingredients and enjoy something a bit different.
20 spiceandmpre June 28, 2009 at 08:44: This looks and sounds sensational!
21 Lou June 29, 2009 at 02:43: Must thank you for this – I made it last week, almost exactly as written, and husband raved.
22 Angela Artemis July 5, 2010 at 22:00: Pete
I haven’t had youverlakia since – my grandmother passed away. Agh, how I miss them. Thanks for the recipe. Your photography is amazing.

Yia sou,
Angela
23 Demetra Lambros October 4, 2010 at 05:21: wow, would never have thought of this! just made a “regular” pot of giourvarlakia and it is begging me to be this instead. will definitely give it a try! i think you were particularly inspired on the day this came to you. thanks for posting. cheers from athens.
24 Alexander The Greek Gastronomos February 10, 2011 at 01:20: I agree that you don’t need avgolemono. I don’t, though, see it as sacrilege. A squeeze of lemon is really all they need. The chard in there is awesome, but, personally, I skip the lentils.