Grandmothers, Tavernas, Athens: The Best Greek Cookbook

The best Greek food has the same appeal as a good plate of frijoles or a pot of slow-cooked greens: humble ingredients, handled by someone who has done it a thousand times. That is why grandmothers keep turning up in these books, and why a good Greek cookbook often reads like a family story.

This guide gives seven books from named authors and established publishers, and we stopped at seven because those were the ones we could stand behind. We say which rest on a named review and which on the publisher’s details. It is about cooking and flavor, and it makes no diet claims, so we have left out the Greek books sold mainly on longevity.

Julia’s earns a commission on purchases made through links on this page, at no cost to you. Recommendations are based on what a restaurant kitchen looks for in a cookbook, the Amazon listing, publisher and author information and published reviews, which we name where we use them.

Quick verdict: the best Greek cookbook to start with

The other four cover simple seasonal dinners, easy everyday recipes, a church community’s collection and the islands.

Five Greek cookbooks side by side

Five of the seven, one for each kind of cook. All seven are described in full below.

Cover images from Amazon. Page counts and formats are from the Amazon listings for the editions linked. Recipe counts are from the publisher’s copy.

Our picks for the best Greek cookbook, book by book

All seven were in stock, in print and new, and sold by Amazon when we checked. We have not cooked from these books; where we describe a strength, we say whose view it is.

How to choose a Greek cookbook for your kitchen

Greek cooking asks little in the way of equipment, so the choice mostly comes down to voice and range.

• Family stories or a full reference? Yiayia gives you people. Greece: The Cookbook gives you coverage.
• Traditional or changing? Kochilas’s Athens shows a modern city. The St. Paul’s collection shows a community keeping things as they were.
• Do you make your own yogurt and pastry? Some Greek dishes reward it. Our guide to Greek yogurt makers helps if you want to, and a mortar and pestle handles garlic and herbs.
• Which measures does it use? Three of these come from UK or Australian publishers. A kitchen scale settles the question if the book uses grams.

How we chose these Greek cookbooks

We searched Amazon’s book listings first and kept print editions from named authors at established publishers, plain in stock with a new lead offer. We left out every title already on our other book pages, including Kochilas’s My Greek Table. We also left out Kochilas’s The Ikaria Way and Ikaria, because they are framed around long life and this page makes no diet claims. Author, year, format and page count come from the Amazon listing. Recipe counts and descriptions come from the publisher’s copy, as carried by booksellers, unless we credit someone else.

Here is what stands behind each pick. Yiayia has a Publishers Weekly review we read ourselves. Greece: The Cookbook, Athens and Yassou have praise we read only as quoted by the publisher. Eat Like a Greek and The Greek Islands Cookbook rest on publisher and author details. The Complete Book of Greek Cooking rests on a short listing. Michael Psilakis’s books did not turn up as plain in stock when we looked.

Greek cookbook questions, answered

What is the best Greek home cooking book?

Yiayia, built from recipes cooked with grandmothers in their homes. PW calls its recipes precise enough for home cooks.

Which Greek cookbook has the most recipes?

Phaidon says Greece: The Cookbook has hundreds, without giving an exact figure. Of the books with stated counts, the St. Paul’s collection has more than 200.

Is there a good Greek cookbook for beginners?

Eat Like a Greek offers simple methods, and Yassou is designed to be approachable, according to their publishers.

Are these books vegetarian friendly?

Yiayia is mainly vegetarian sharing dishes, per its publisher, and Eat Like a Greek has a vegetarian and vegan section. For more, see our vegetarian cookbook guide.

Is Greek cooking the same as Mediterranean cooking?

Greek cooking is one part of a much wider region. Our best Mediterranean cookbook guide covers the wider shore.

Which Greek cookbook should you buy first?

Buy Yiayia if you want one book with both recipes and heart. Choose Greece: The Cookbook for reference and Athens for a modern view. Choose Yassou or Eat Like a Greek for simple dinners. For books on the wider region, see our best Mediterranean cookbook guide.

And if you would rather eat Mexican food someone else has cooked tonight, see the menu or call to order.