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Delicatessen
Charcuterie:
Corfu's tradition of charcuterie goes back to the days when there
were no refrigerators and people used various natural methods to
preserve food. In the outlying pastoral district of Oros, families
would slaughter their animals, usually a pig, at Christmas, salt
the meat and leave it in a pot for around twenty days. They would
then smoke it in the fireplace, hanging it from a meat hook high
in the chimney. During this procedure they would burn lentisk branches
so that the smoked meat acquired a special, delicate aroma. Noumbolo
(made from pork fillet), pancetta (bacon), salado (wind-dried salami)
and sausages were the products of that era which are still on the
market today.
 Noumbolo: a smoked meat product of excellent quality, made from
pork fillet, traditionally produced in the region of Oros, where they
also make salami and sausages
Bourdouni: a popular mezes, it is a kind of black pudding made
with pig's blood, onion, parsley and various spices stuffed into the
intestine. It is eaten fried and cut into thin slices. While in days
gone by it was the most popular accompaniment to wine, today it is
rare and can only be found to order.
Omira: is a plant similar to fennel which grows on the rocks of
the seashore. In the fishing villages, people pick it and serve it
as a salad, dressed with oil and vinegar..
Olives: (elies) the Corfiot variety is tiny and black, and
while they do not produce 'virgin' oil, they are very tasty to eat.
Sikomaida: or Sikopitta, is made from wine must and dried figs and
flavoured with aniseed, pepper and ouzo. You can still find them in
a few greengrocer's shops in the town
 Tsitsibira (ginger beer): the trademark of the Seven Ionian
Islands from the time of the British is now made only in Corfu. Using
lemon juice, natural lemon oil, best quality grated ginger, water
and sugar, one small factory on the island brews this historic soft
drink in huge cauldrons. Most delicious and thirst-quenching, it is
served in local cafes between Easter and autumn, and due to the great
demand it is always freshly made. Those responsible for its manufacture
say it can be kept for up to a year in a fridge, but a much greater
lifespan has been recorded with bottles up to forty years old having
been found in wells where people used to keep them cool!
Desserts
Koum Kouat: is the fruit of the Citrus Japonica tree, which
was introduced from Japan in 1846, and was planted experimentally
by the British. Since then, the sweet products derived from the
fruit have become a trademark of the island.
Rice pudding and fresh creams: are delicious and freshly made
every day, something rare in modern Greece. They are to be found in
many dairy shops in Corfu Town. The owner of the dairy shop 'O Kastros'
makes yoghurt and dribbles it with a syrup made from his own tiny
aromatic strawberries. Try it!
Mandolato (nougat): should only be sampled if you have no problem
with your teeth!
Pudding: an obvious legacy of British rule. Good housewives
make special efforts at Christmas time, when preparations begin a
month beforehand!
Tzaletia: small cakes made from maize flour and raisins, fried
in oil.
Tzintzola: consist of dried jujubes with raisins and sesame
seeds, served as a dessert to those who have not quite finished their
wine.
Tiganites: are better known as loukoumades - a sort of fried
doughnut - and were once common in Corfu. Now it is not easy to find
them except around the name-day of Saint Spiridon, when the custom
is revived. In the old days, along the street beside the Saint's church,
there were two or three shops which made and sold tiganites to take
away wrapped in greaseproof paper..
Fogatsa: is a type of brioche.
Ice
cream
 Corfu
has been famous for many years for the quality of its ice cream.
Seasonal shops had 'secret recipes' and the afternoon stroll usually
ended at some café-confectionery for a moka ice cream or
a cassata. Here ice cream was always made with the fruit of the
season, such as the tiny fragrant Corfiot strawberries, peaches
and apricots. There was also the amazing cream ice with the rich
flavour of butter, chocolate and moka ice cream too. At Adranik's
café-bar on the Mouragia, at Zisimos on the Liston, and at
Tsimis in Capodistria Street, the best ice cream was made on the
premises, according to those 'secret recipes'.
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