We’re heading off for a little holiday on the Greek island of Kos in a few weeks, and I’m pretty excited. This will be the first holiday my husband and I have had just the two of us since maybe ever. I’ve never been to this part of the world, and I have no idea what to expect. Whatever’s out there, I can’t wait to explore it with the man I love.
I imagine the Greek Islands to just be positively dripping with history. I mean, this is sort of where Western history starts, so I imagine the entire island is like a living museum. I’m probably wrong, but there’s no denying this place will have seen a lot of action over the centuries.
As a picky eater, I’m always a little bit concerned about going hungry when I travel, but I love hummus, and falafel is usually a winner as well, so I think I can survive four days in Greece without having to go to McDonald’s.
You know what else is awesome? Halloumi Fries! Have you tried this? Halloumi is a dense, salty cheese, the sort that squeaks against your teeth when you bite into it. Dredged in flour and quickly fried, these are a lightly crispy dream. I loved them dipped in sweet chilli sauce. I think the sweet heat is the perfect foil to the intense saltiness of this cheese.
Making Halloumi Fries at home couldn’t be easier. To keep from burning your house down, make sure you have a deep, heavy-bottomed pot, long tongs, and a thermometer to control the temperature of your oil. All you have to do is cut your brick of cheese into sticks, dredge it in seasoned flour, and drop it into the oil for a minute or two until it’s golden brown. Give it a minute to cool on a wire rack so you don’t burn your face off, then try to stop eating them before you clog all your arteries.
Have any of you been to Kos before? What should we do? Where should we eat? Share your wisdom. I hope it’s awesome.
- 1/2 cup plain flour
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 225 gram block of halloumi
- Oil for frying
- Sweet chilli sauce, for dipping, optional
- Add your oil to whatever vessel you'll be frying in, giving yourself about two inches in depth. Clip on your thermometer and heat your oil to between 350 and 375. Keep an eye on the temperature throughout the cooking process and adjust the heat to stay within this range.
- On a plate or another flat container, mix together the flour, paprika and pepper. You don't need salt as the cheese is plenty salty on its own.
- Cut your block of halloumi into sticks.
- Dredge each stick of cheese in the seasoned flour and carefully lower it into your pot of hot oil. I can usually add about four sticks of cheese before the first one needs to come out. They brown fairly quickly, so just keep an eye on the pot as your dredging and dropping, and use your tongs to remove the cheese sticks that have browned as much as you like.
- As you remove the cheese sticks, allow them to cool on a wire rack over a baking sheet. They'll crisp up as they cool.
- Serve warm with sweet chilli sauce for dipping.
