Gastronomy and Local Produce
The culinary tradition of Ios is rich, as in all the Cyclades. The local flavours and recipes of the island await to offer you unparalleled culinary experiences while Ios also offers international dishes of top quality for all tastes.
Local–Traditional Produce
Like all Cycladic islands, Ios has a tradition in producing a series of products that are made locally and are directly related to soil biodiversity, animal husbandry and cultivation.
The vegetation that prevails on the semi-mountainous island of Ios is typically Mediterranean with a predominance of phrygana. The phrygana vegetation includes sage, ladanies, fliskouni, oregano, aromatic plants rich in essential oils and clearly thyme, which is very important in beekeeping, which is traditionally noted on the island giving very high quality honey.
Capers grow near rocky areas, in dry rocks and near the sea one of the most characteristic species of the island’s flora which is inextricably linked to the traditional cuisine of the island.
In the vegetation of the land we still find small clusters of prickly pear and various kinds of greens, such as tamarisk, vlita (purple amaranth), and lyfonia, while traditionally the people of Nios also collected snails, which they considered a very good meze (appetizer) in their local cuisine.
Special reference should be made to the olive oil locally produced on the island, which although not produced in quantities that can be traded, is of unique quality. The proof is the recent operation of the municipal olive mill, which aims at producing more oil in Ios.
Not much needs to be said about fishing in the Cyclades, as fresh Aegean fish are a must at every summer table. Thus, in Ios, the local fishermen supply the island daily with various kinds of fish and other seafood delicacies.
Wine making has also been developed in Ios in recent years with the foundation of the first local winery, which supplies all local restaurants. You can visit it to taste its white, rosé and red wine made from local grape varieties.
Finally the cheeses and related products of Ios deserve a special reference because they are produced on the island, as a result of the widespread livestock breeding tradition of Ios. Thus, with the operation of two cheese dairies on the island, the visitor can taste the famous cheese of Ios, the sour, white spread cheese, with a slightly sour taste, which pleasantly accompanies the tomato and capers in the salad. The wide range of cheeses produced on the island includes mizithra, kefalotyri, gruyere and skotyri; you can taste them all in the traditional taverns of the island, but also buy them from the respective points of sale that exist on the island.
Traditional Recipes
Through all this variety of products produced in Ios, there are unique traditional recipes that every visitor must try.
If it were possible to make your order choosing from local recipes we would start the appetizers with the unique tsimetia, i.e. zucchini flowers stuffed with rice and herbs, pumpkin pie, chickpea meatballs and snail stew. Passing to main courses the order would include the local revithada(chickenpea soup) recipe, local braised rooster, and the local baked goat or if you are lucky stuffed goat in the oven. Don’t forget to leave room for dessert because the order will include Mosenta (the traditional watermelon pie of Ios), kaltsounia (fried pies with mizithra honey and sugar), local pasteli, xerotigano and macaroons.
