The very best traditional Greek spanakopita recipe! Spanakopita (Greek spinach pie) is one of the most popular Greek dishes, that is known and loved around the world. A very versatile and delicious dish suitable for every time of the day, as a main dish, starter or mid-day snack! This is a very easy to follow authentic spanakopita recipe for you to recreate this traditional vegetarian delight from scratch.
Spanakopita recipe – What is spanakopita made of?
To prepare an authentic spanakopita recipe, feta cheese is crumbled and mixed with spinach into a herby spinach-feta mixture and then wrapped or layered in phyllo (filo) pastry, brushed with melted butter or olive oil and baked until golden and crispy perfection.. Simply delicious!
In the spinach-feta filling we use onions, dill, spring onions and eggs. The eggs hold the mixture together and help achieve the right texture for the spanakopita filling.
Spanakopita is a very popular dish in Greece, that comes into a variety of shapes and sizes. It can be made either in large pan and cut into individual portions (pan-sized spanakopita) or rolled into individual triangular servings (spanakopitakia).
The main ingredient you will need to make this spanakopita recipe is of course spinach. Most spanakopita recipes also use feta cheese which is a favourite ingredient in all types of dishes in Greece, be it fried, baked or used for stuffing until nicely softened and slightly melty.
Tip: A mature feta cheese gives this traditional spanakopita recipe a bold and salty flavour, so be careful to just a little salt in the seasoning!
Traditional Greek Spanakopita recipe – Make your own Homemade phyllo!
When in Greece, making a traditional spanakopita recipe requires using either homemade phyllo dough or commercial ‘village’ dough (xoriatiko phyllo), which is a little bit thicker than the usually paper thin phyllo and gives a more rustic touch.
As ‘village dough’ is a little bit difficult to find, you can make this traditional spanakopita recipe using either commercial phyllo dough, or, if you are feeling adventurous enough, make your own homemade phyllo! Roll each sheet of dough with passion for good food and it will truly reward you with a crispy, flaky and delicious crust on your traditional Greek spinach pie!
So go ahead, give this super easy and delicious spanakopita recipe a try and amaze your friends and family with its crispy and tangy flavour. Enjoy!
More delicious Greek Pies!
If you love a traditional Greek pie, the below recipes are made for you!
The traditional Greek spanakopita recipe (spinach pie) with crispy phyllo and juicy spinach stuffing! Discover how to make it to perfection just like yiayia
Ingredients
Scale
For the filling
2 red onions, halved and sliced
1 spring onion, finely chopped (optional)
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
500g spinach, washed and roughly chopped (18 ounces)
To prepare this spanakopita recipe start by making the phyllo dough first. (For step by step instructions Homemade phyllo dough). Alternatively use commercial phyllo dough.
When done, heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6.
To prepare the filling for this spanakopita recipe, sauté the onions in a large knob of butter until soft and turning golden. Add the garlic and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the spinach in batches and cook until wilted. Cool, then tip into a bowl (leaving behind any excess liquid from the spinach) and mix in the nutmeg, feta, eggs, spring onion and season.
For this spanakopita recipe you will need a non stick baking pan, about 25cm. Put the first sheet of filo in the pan and sprinkle with olive oil, letting the excess hang over the sides. Keep going with the rest of the sheets, turning a little before adding each additional pastry sheet and sprinkling with olive oil. Use 2-3 phyllo sheets, depending on how thick your phyllo is. Tip in the filling of the spanakopita and fold over the excess pastry to cover. If you like to prepare a larger pan of spanakopita for a big crowd, double the ingredients for the filling and use a 25*35 cm baking dish. Layer the 2-3 phyllo sheets to form the bottom of the spanakopita, tip in the filling and top with 2-3 more phyllo sheets.
Brush the top of the spanakopita with olive oil and scar with a sharp knife. Bake in preheated oven for about 60 minutes until the phyllo is crisp and golden.
Leave the spanakopita cool down for 10-15 minutes before cutting into pieces. Serve the spanakopita with Greek salad. Enjoy!
You can google just about anything, type in Google, grams to cups of ap flour
e.g. A cup of all-purpose flour weighs 4 1/4 ounces or 120 grams. This chart is a quick reference for volume, ounces, and grams equivalencies for common ingredients. Flours.
So I just came back from my holiday in Athens and was looking up recipes all kinds of dishes I tried there… I followed your recipe for filo pastry and Spanakopita to a tee and let me tell you: It turned out absolutely AMAZING!!!! The pastry recipe is 100% fool proof – I have never made filo before, and this turned out great. The Spanakopita was delicious.
Thank you so much for posting this! I am looking forward to trying out other recipes! <3
I am just wondering if it was accidental or purposeful to omit eggs as the binding agent for baking the spanakopita. I have been making my yiayia’s spanakopita exactly how she taught me all these years and she always used 2-4 eggs to bind the mixture in the cooking process.
This is an amazing site, for Greek dishes, never tired a Greek recipe before, so decide to try spanakopita and wow!!! it was really delicious and yummy. Planning to try few more dishes. Thanks for making it so easy to cook.
Over the past 8 years you have made My Greek Dish the number one destination for anyone searching for authentic Greek recipes! For that I cannot thank you enough!
It all started with an idea… To collate and publish all those recipes that I loved when I was young, the ones I made with so much love for my children and grand children!
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(679 votes, average: 4.61 out of 5)
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Omg this site is fabulous!
how much flour by cup?? cannot weigh it.
You can google just about anything, type in Google, grams to cups of ap flour
e.g. A cup of all-purpose flour weighs 4 1/4 ounces or 120 grams. This chart is a quick reference for volume, ounces, and grams equivalencies for common ingredients. Flours.
Wonderful and easy to make!
What temperature should the oven be?
So I just came back from my holiday in Athens and was looking up recipes all kinds of dishes I tried there… I followed your recipe for filo pastry and Spanakopita to a tee and let me tell you: It turned out absolutely AMAZING!!!! The pastry recipe is 100% fool proof – I have never made filo before, and this turned out great. The Spanakopita was delicious.
Thank you so much for posting this! I am looking forward to trying out other recipes! <3
I am so glad you loved it! 🙂
I add toasted pine nuts too
I am just wondering if it was accidental or purposeful to omit eggs as the binding agent for baking the spanakopita. I have been making my yiayia’s spanakopita exactly how she taught me all these years and she always used 2-4 eggs to bind the mixture in the cooking process.
Hi Lianna, there are 2 eggs in the recipe to bind the mixture together 🙂
Can you make ahead and freeze in pan for a couple of days (for my mom’s 88th birthday)?
This is an amazing site, for Greek dishes, never tired a Greek recipe before, so decide to try spanakopita and wow!!! it was really delicious and yummy. Planning to try few more dishes. Thanks for making it so easy to cook.
How many sheets of commercial phyllo dough?
This is a great recipe! I made it tonight and it was so good. I used a little less oil and it still came out great. Thanks for the recipe!
Does Making this food have any meaning to you
Does Making this food have any meaning to you and if so what is it
This is a great recipe! I made it tonight and it was so good. I used a little less oil and it still came out great. Thanks for the recipe!
Looks like a great recipe! I’m planning to make it tonight, but wanted to use frozen spinach instead of fresh.
Any idea what the conversion would be?
This is a great recipe! I made it tonight and it was so good. I used a little less oil and it still came out great. Thanks for the recipe!
This spanakopita recipe looks delicious and authentic! I can’t wait to try it at home. Thanks for sharing the recipe with us!