These are probably my favorite vegetable based fritters: domatokeftethes, which translates into tomato pritters. I don’t exactly know why, but I think it has to do with the fact that they have tomatoes and are an island summer dish. I especially like them because they are so simple: tomatoes mixed with a few herbs and that’s it!
These are a so tasty, they are a meze on their own. Although I’ll gladly eat these for lunch, accompanied by a dollop of nice creamy strained yogurt (also known as “Greek” yogurt outside of Greece). They are also perfect for vegans since they are nistisima, meaning that they contain no animal products (the yogurt is optional). And this is the beauty of Greek food: out of almost nothing (tomatoes and a few herbs) they make these wonderful delectable dishes that satisfy your taste buds, hunger and nutritional needs.
Other than the olive oil in which they are fried in (which is not all absorbed anyway), all the other ingredients have minimal calories but plenty of vitamins, fiber and antioxidants.
You may find several versions (with cheese, zucchini etc.), this here is a modified version from the great Evi Voutsina, chef, author and I would say Greek food historian who had literally travelled all over Greece to get these authentic recipes.
So in this particular recipe you will find that cinnamon is used, which I have not seen in other recipes. Also keep in mind that although the preparation is fairly easy, you will need to make the mixture 2-3 hours before frying as all the ingredients need to sit together, not only so the flavors can mingle but to soften the onions as well. Ms. Voutsina also points out that the secret to a good domatokeftes is to dice the tomatoes and onions by hand and not grate them.
I used regular tomatoes, but obviously if you have Santorini tomatoes all the better.
Greek Tomato Fritters from Santorini-Domatokeftedes
Ingredients
- 3 medium sized tomatoes chopped
- ½ red onion finely chopped
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon or cumin
- 2-3 tablespoons fresh chopped mint spearmint-I used a bit more as you can see in the photo
- 1-2 teaspoons dry oregano
- 1 tablespoon fresh dill
- Olive Oil for frying
- Salt/Pepper
- 1 cup flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
Instructions
- Chop the tomatoes (do not deseed, use the whole tomato) and place in a bowl.
- Chop onion and add to tomatoes
- Add cinnamon, mint, oregano, dill, and pepper to tomato mixture and mix well.
- Mix in a bowl the flour and baking soda and add to the tomato mixture and mix well. I also knead by hand.
- Let the mixture sit for abut 2 hours. The mixture/batter should be soft and somewhat liquidy and should fall off the spoon when tilted. Taste the mix and add salt as needed.
- In a pan heat the olive oil about 2 cm high at medium high heat, the oil should cover the patty half way.
- Once the olive oil is ready, add about one heaping teaspoon of batter for each patty, fry for about 1 -2 minutes on each side, flattening just a bit so that they cook inside. Make sure the olive oil is hot enough otherwise the patty will absorb more oil and not be crispy.
- Place on paper towels and serve immediately.
Photo by Elena Paravantes@ All Rights Reserved
Hi! Can these be frozen once cooked and reheated in the oven?
Are the measurements in this recipe for fresh or dried herbs? I visited Greece last year and am in love with the food. Even bought tomato seeds from a little nursery in San Torini, so I hope to use San Torini tomatoes grown in Southern California later this summer. I’m so happy I found your site – your recipes are so authentic and delicious, they transport me back to Greece!
Hi Amy, Thank you for your question, the oregano is dry and all the other herbs are fresh- I’ll add that to the recipe. Good luck with the tomatoes!
I have seen these made with garbanzo (chick pea) flour and I plan to try that, since I have an issue with wheat!
Great idea and you will get some extra fiber and protein too!
Could you use cilantro instead of mint or maybe half mint/half cilantro? I am a cilantro lover, and use it whenever I can.
Nice recipe, will try it. It is possible to buy vegan yoghurt though so maybe mention that.
Made these last night and they were absolutely fantastic. Didn’t have dill or red onion on hand (I used white onion but a smaller amount) but the flavours were still there. VERY important to let the mixture sit a minimum of two hours (three in my case), as you rightly say, and the cinnamon is integral! Like you I used more mint than the recipe called for and love love LOVED these! We had them as a “meze” before dinner, with a dollop of plain yogurt, and ate so many that dinner was an afterthought! Thank you for another gem of a recipe 🙂
Thanks Sue! Glad you enjoyed them!
Made these as a specialty for my vegetarian friend, only to find out that everyone at the party couldn’t stop eating these … Next time, I need to make a double batch!
delicious! I had a multitude of home grown tomatoes and this was just amazing! I used a non-stick pan and a lot less oil. They need some to be crispy and they were just delicious. Could be a fantastic veg patty with feta and lettuce bun, though they were gone before we could do that!
I made these for our family, they were delicious! We had some tzatziki with them and what a hit. Even my daughter’s friend who does not like tomatoes, liked them! I love this website! Wonderful!
I made these Monday night and had some batter left over that my husband took to his work studio and cooked this evening, Wednesday, and he said his guests raved about it! He printed the recipe I sent him on how to cook the patties and gave it to one of the guests. Next I’m going to try the recipe using chickpea flour that I ordered over Amazon.com and it’s a beautiful pale yellow. I’ll let you know how that turns out. I LOVE chickpeas. I believe the flour is called besan.
Great idea! That flour will raise the fiber content too.
I don’t know that I could live without tomatoes and I am so happy to have another way to enjoy them. I made these this afternoon and they are wonderful! I’m not used to tomatoes in this type of recipe which makes them even more exciting. Thank you Elena!
Thanks Amy, glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Do you do anything special with the melitzana? I know some people like to salt them to take the bitterness away, but I prefer the slight bitterness. I have one sitting on my counter right now. I was going to make (what my Papou) called Greek Pork chops, but I’m thinking maybe this recipe!!
I just made these now and had to sit down and let you know that they are excellent! I can’t wait to make them again! I’m even thing variations, maybe eggplant? Efharisto!
Parakalo Vassou! Wonderful! Yes eggplant will definitely work, they are called melitzanokeftedes. I’ll be making them soon once we have the good eggplants in august
This sounds delicious! For the tomatoes, do you scoop out and discard the seeds/pulp or do you use it all? Thanks!
Thanks Theresa! No you just use it all. You want the dough/batter to be a bit liquidy.
I made these yesterday, just a bit larger for lunch. They came out great. Thanks!
Thanks Tracy!