Chef Dimitra
Aegean Island Katsiki sti Souvla (Κατσίκι στη Σούβλα)
Aegean Easter goat on the spit, lean and full-flavored, turned slowly over charcoal and basted with lemon, oregano, garlic, and good olive oil.
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Attica Taverna Biftekia (Μπιφτέκια σχάρας)
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Attica taverna biftekia are grilled beef and lamb patties with grated onion, oregano, and soaked bread, charred outside and tender inside.
Main Dishes
Greek
Weeknight
BBQ
Comfort Food
25 min
Active Time
12 min cook•37 min total
Yield4 servings
Attica taverna biftekia are the grilled patties of Athens and Piraeus, the ones that come off the coals browned hard at the edges and soft in the middle. They are not keftedes. They are larger, flatter, usually grilled rather than fried, and the seasoning is spare: onion, oregano, parsley, a little garlic, and good meat with enough fat to forgive the fire.
The whole dish rests on the bread. Soak stale country bread first, squeeze it lightly, then crumble it into the mince before you shape the patties. That softened crumb traps the onion juices and keeps the meat tender while the outside chars. Skip it and you'll still have meat on the grill, yes, but not biftekia worth writing down.
I use beef with lamb here because that is the taverna taste I know from northern and southern Greece both, but all-beef is also common in Athens homes. The region is the dish's surname, and this is the Attica grill version: plain, smoky, generous, made for a Tuesday night or a table under hard white light with lemon wedges waiting.
Biftekia take their name from the French bifteck, a word that entered Greek urban food language through the restaurant and taverna culture of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In Athens and Piraeus, the word gradually came to mean seasoned minced-meat patties grilled over charcoal, not a whole steak. The Greek change was practical and domestic: grated onion, stale bread, herbs, and olive oil turned minced meat into a softer, more economical dish for the family table.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
beef mince
Quantity
400g
15-20% fat
lamb mince
Quantity
200g
stale country bread
Quantity
100g
crusts removed
whole milk or water
Quantity
80ml
for soaking the bread
yellow onion
Quantity
1 medium, about 140g
grated
garlic cloves
Quantity
2
finely grated
large egg
Quantity
1
extra virgin Koroneiki olive oil
Quantity
20ml
plus more for brushing
flat-leaf parsley
Quantity
10g
finely chopped
dried Greek oregano
Quantity
2 tsp
fine sea salt
Quantity
1 tsp
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
1/2 tsp
red wine vinegar
Quantity
1 tbsp
lemon
Quantity
1
cut into wedges, for serving
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| beef mince15-20% fat | 400g |
| lamb mince | 200g |
| stale country breadcrusts removed | 100g |
| whole milk or waterfor soaking the bread | 80ml |
| yellow oniongrated | 1 medium, about 140g |
| garlic clovesfinely grated | 2 |
| large egg | 1 |
| extra virgin Koroneiki olive oilplus more for brushing | 20ml |
| flat-leaf parsleyfinely chopped | 10g |
| dried Greek oregano | 2 tsp |
| fine sea salt | 1 tsp |
| freshly ground black pepper | 1/2 tsp |
| red wine vinegar | 1 tbsp |
| lemoncut into wedges, for serving | 1 |
Equipment Needed
- •charcoal grill or heavy cast-iron grill pan
- •box grater
- •wide mixing bowl
Instructions
- 1
Soak the bread
Put the bread in a bowl with the milk or water and let it soften for 5 minutes. Squeeze it lightly, then crumble it with your fingers. This is the step that decides the biftekia: soaked bread holds moisture while the patties char, so they stay tender instead of tightening into dry little bricks.
- 2
Mix the meat
In a wide bowl, combine the beef, lamb, soaked bread, grated onion with its juices, garlic, egg, olive oil, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper, and vinegar. Mix with your hands just until everything is even. Don't knead it like dough. You want the mixture soft and a little loose, not springy.
- 3
Rest the mixture
Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes if you have the time. The bread finishes drinking the onion juices, the oregano opens, and the mixture firms enough to shape cleanly. Weeknight cooking is allowed here. If the coals are already ready, shape them now.
- 4
Shape the patties
Divide the mixture into 8 patties, about 90g each. Shape them oval or round and press a shallow thumbprint in the center of each one, because the middle rises as it cooks. Brush both sides lightly with olive oil.
- 5
Grill over heat
Heat a charcoal grill, gas grill, or heavy grill pan until properly hot. Cook the biftekia for 5-6 minutes on the first side and 4-5 minutes on the second, until well browned with dark grill marks and cooked through. Turn them once if you can. Too much fussing tears the crust.
- 6
Serve at once
Rest the biftekia for 3 minutes, then serve with lemon wedges and a little extra olive oil if you like. They belong with fried potatoes, horiatiki without lettuce, or a spoon of tzatziki. Good olive oil, and patience, that is enough.
Chef Tips
- •Use mince with some fat. Very lean beef makes a neat-looking bifteki and a dry one. If your butcher will grind beef and lamb together for you, ask for it.
- •Grate the onion, don't chop it. Chopped onion leaves hard little bits in the patty, while grated onion disappears into the meat and gives its juice where it's needed.
- •No grill today? A heavy cast-iron grill pan is honest enough. Get it hot, oil the patties rather than the pan, and give them space so they brown instead of sweating.
Advance Preparation
- •The mixture can be made up to 12 hours ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator.
- •Shape the patties up to 4 hours ahead, then chill them on a tray and brush with olive oil just before grilling.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 225g)
Calories
525 calories
Total Fat
34 g
Saturated Fat
12 g
Trans Fat
1 g
Unsaturated Fat
19 g
Cholesterol
145 mg
Sodium
740 mg
Total Carbohydrates
18 g
Dietary Fiber
2 g
Sugars
4 g
Protein
36 g
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