Today I am sharing a delicious, and not so well known, Greek appetizer: oven baked Feta with tomatoes and peppers; in Greek, “bouyiourdi”. This is a traditional dish from Northern Greece, and in particular the city of Thessaloniki, in the province of Macedonia. The city is well known for its vibrant cuisine, with its distinctive influences from Constantinople and Smyrna.
This is a typical meze dish, or starter, which you can put together in just 5 minutes. You honestly don’t need to follow a recipe to make this–all you need is a good tomato, a green pepper and a thick slice of Greek Feta cheese. At summer time I use large ripe tomatoes, but now in the spring, I prefer the smaller pearl tomatoes. The more traditional peppers used in Greece for this dish are the sweet banana peppers, but bell peppers are a good substitute.
A sprinkle of pepper flakes gives this dish a nice kick and a generous drizzle with olive oil creates a nice sauce when the dish is ready. Instead of cooking it in one baking dish, it is often cooked in individual shallow clay pots which are brought to the table straight out of the oven. A few slices of crusty, grilled bread is a must to sop up the delicious juices.
This traditional dish a classic example of what the Mediterranean diet is all about: just a handful of ingredients, cooked in a simple way, to make a delicious and very satisfying dish to enjoy with some warm bread and maybe a glass of wine, beer, or ouzo, while lingering around the table with friends and family.
- 8 ripe pearl tomatoes, or, 1 large vine-ripened tomato
- 4 TBSP. extra virgin olive oil
- --- sea salt & crushed red pepper flakes
- ½ medium green bell pepper (or 2 sweet banana peppers)
- 2 thick slices of Greek Feta (about 6 oz.)
- 1 tsp. dried Greek oregano
- 4 slices of hearty multigrain bread, grilled
- Preheat the oven to 425˚F.
- Slice the pearl tomatoes horizontally (each one in four pieces) and place on paper towels to drain. (If you are using one large tomato, cut the end pieces and slice the rest in six slices). After 3-4 minutes, turn them over and place on new paper towels. Cut the pepper into four rings and set aside.
- Oil well a small, shallow ceramic baking dish (or four individual ceramic ramekins) and place half of the tomato slices at the bottom. Sprinkle with some sea salt and crushed pepper flakes. Top with half the bell pepper slices.
- Arrange the two Feta pieces on top of the tomato/pepper layer, place the remaining tomato slices on top of each piece of cheese, and place the rest of the bell pepper rings on the tomato. Drizzle liberally with the extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle with oregano and some more pepper flakes, and transfer to the middle of the oven.
- Bake for about 25 minutes, or until the feta turns a light-golden color and the oil is sizzling. If you want to deepen the color, you can place the dish under the broiler for 1-2 minutes at the end of the cooking time.
- Brush some olive oil on the slices of good, multigrain bread, and grill on both sides. Serve the baked feta immediately with some warm grilled bread.
Here are a few more delicious Greek appetizer that involve melting cheese 🙂
Pan-Seared Greek Cheese (Saganaki)
Greek Shrimp Saganaki with Feta Cheese
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I would love to know what you think – please leave me a comment below!
Marianna says
Delicious! I am looking foreword to make some for our next barbecue gathering!
Marilena Leavitt says
That’s great! Make sure to let me know how it turns out Marianna! ?
Angela says
Oh! I love this. It looks fantastic!
Marilena Leavitt says
Thank you so much Angela. It is super easy to make and so delicious! ?
Eva Oakley says
Marlena,
I have made your oven baked tomatoes with feta and green pepper many times and often use it as a light meal. My husband and I absolutely love this dish and are amazed at the amount of flavour from such simple ingredients.
Thank you for all your recipes.
Eva Oakley
Marilena says
Thank you so much for your comment Eva, I am so glad you like it and that you have already made it so many times!
Grace Brown says
I had the baked feta and tomato when I was in kefalonia earlier this year and loved it. Looking forward to making it myself.
Marilena Leavitt says
You are going to love it, Grace!