In 1492, any Jews who did not convert to Christianity were obliged to leave Spain, their homes and belongings behind.
Exiled Jews were accepted in different parts of the Ottoman Empire and many Jews settled in Thessaloniki, Greece's 2nd largest city, in northern Greece.
What little the Jews could bring with them was their faith, sense of survival and culture. A big part of anyone's culture is their food.
Up until the beginning of WWII, Thessaloniki had a thriving Jewish population of over 50,000.
As long as I can remember, my family and relatives have enjoyed Strapatsatha as a brunch as Greece, a late night supper. A 6Pm dinner in Greece is unheard of!
Strapatsatha was a dish brought to Greece by the Sephardic Jews from Spain. It's a loose omelet of tomatoes and feta and there are many variations of ingredients in between.
What you have here is my family's interpretation and you may certainly take the basic premise of the dish and run with it. I like adding thin slices of fried spicy sausage. Try some Chorizo, Kielbasa or even Pepperoni...all fantastic!
The key to this dish is having very ripe, tasty tomatoes otherwise, don't bother! This dish is also similar to the Greek omelet called Kagiana. Strapatsatha is a loose omelet and perfect for mopping up with some good, rustic bread.
Strapatsatha (Στραπατσάδα)
(for 1)
2 Tbsp. olive oil
Slices of Chorizo sausage
1 ripe tomato
1/4 cup diced sweet banana pepper
3 scallions, diced
handful of crumbled feta
2 eggs
- Pour your olive oil into your skillet and heat up on medium-high heat. Add your sausage and and saute for a couple of minutes to brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and reserve. Wait 5 minutes for your oil to cool in your skillet
- Using a box grater, grate your tomato into the skillet and reduce to medium to simmer for a couple of minutes or until most of the water is gone. Now add the scallions and saute for a minute or two.
- Add your crumbled feta and let it heat through for a minute. Now add your eggs and sausage and stir the eggs to scramble them until you have cooked your eggs to a loose mixture of an omelet. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
- Plate your omelet, drizzle some extra-virgin olive oil and serve with crusty bread.
