Boyourdi with fennel salad and tzatziki

Boyourdi is a Greek cheesy feta and vegetable dip, typically served with bread for dipping. This version from Kon Karapanagiotidis is served with a homemade tzatziki that uses a clever tip for straining the yoghurt overnight to make an extra-creamy and rich dip.

Credit: Jiwon Kim

• serves

  6

• prep

  15 minutes

• cook

  15 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

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Ingredients

Boyourdi (Feta saganaki)

• 120 ml extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large fennel bulb, cut into thick wedges
• 2 red onions, quartered
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 green capsicum, thickly sliced
• 1 yellow capsicum, thickly sliced
• 1 lemon, zested, plus slices to serve
• 4 tomatoes, quartered
• 200 g Greek feta
• 2 tsp lemon thyme
• 5 g fresh mint, finely chopped
• 15 g dill, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp Greek oregano leaves, fresh or dried
• 1 tsp dried chilli flakes (optional)
• salt and black pepper, to taste
• pita bread, to serve

For the tzatziki

• 1 kg Greek-style yoghurt
• 3 Lebanese cucumbers, grated with excess moisture squeezed out
• ¼ tsp salt
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve
• 4 tbsp white vinegar
• ⅓ cup dill, finely chopped, plus extra to serve

For the fennel salad 

• 2 fennel bulbs, thinly sliced into 2 cm pieces
• ½ bunch dill, finely chopped
• 1 spring onion, sliced
• 1 lemon, juiced
• ¼ cup (60 ml) extra virgin olive oil
• salt and black pepper, to taste

Straining time: overnight

Instructions

1. Start the tzatziki the day before you need it. Line a colander or strainer with a very thin tea towel or muslin cloth and place over a bowl, ensuring there is plenty of space under the strainer to catch the liquid. Spoon the yoghurt into the lined strainer and place in the fridge, or a cool place, to strain overnight.

2. The next day, place the drained yoghurt in a large bowl. Add cucumber, salt, garlic, oil, vinegar, dill and stir to combine. Drizzle with extra oil and set aside until ready to serve.

3. For the boyourdi, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over low heat. Add the fennel, onion and garlic and fry for 2 minutes. Stir through the green and yellow capsicum with the lemon zest and cook for a further 2 minutes. Add the quartered tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes, or until beginning to soften. Stir through the herbs and chilli flakes (if using!) and season to taste with salt and pepper. Top with the Greek feta and cook, covered, for a few minutes or until the feta softens.

4. What you are looking for is a dish where all the vegetables are fried and golden, the tomato sauce is thick and the feta is starting to melt and is all soft and easy to break up with your fork.

5. While the boyourdi is cooking, combine the ingredients for the fennel salad in a large bowl and season well with salt and pepper and toss well to combine. Serve the boyourdi with the fennel salad, tzatziki, pita bread and sliced lemon.

Photography by Jiwon Kim.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

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