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Spicy Greek Feta Dip (Tyrokafteri)

Name: Spicy Greek Feta Dip (Tyrokafteri)
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Ingredients: 2 large roasted red bell peppers (from the jar*); 1 whole jalapeno (stem removed, roughly chopped (with or without seeds)); 1 pound feta cheese (in brine) (crumbled); 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt; 1/2 cup ricotta or cream cheese; 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice; 1/4 cup olive oil (extra virgin); freshly ground pepper and sea salt (to taste)

Recipe By: Sara @ TheFrayedApron
October 9, 2019

 5/5

Make this Spicy Greek Feta Dip with jarred roasted bell peppers for a quick and easy appetizer. This feta recipe takes 5 minutes to make in a food processor and tastes unbelievably good with everything from vegetables to chicken.

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 0

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Recipe Rundown

feta cheese dip with roasted red peppers, pita chips, endive, and cucumber

You know how some food is so good, you just want to start putting it on everything? That’s this Spicy Greek Feta Dip.

I love this spicy feta dip with endive leaves for that salty, crunchy bite. It’s also really tasty on olive-studded bakery bread or as a delicious side with sauteed zucchini and chicken. The possibilities are endless!

More Recipes

What is Tyrokafteri?

Tyrokafteri (tee-roh-kahf-the-REE), from the words Tyro (cheese) and Kafteri (hot), gets its name from the traditional Greek method of beating the cheese with a mortar and pestle. Make this cheese dip as hot or mild as you like by adjusting the amount of fresh jalapeno pepper. While you could use any roasted red pepper in this recipe, I recommend the bell pepper because it adds flavor without increasing the heat.

Greek feta dip with roasted red peppers and pita chip

Salty, tangy feta with roasted bell pepper are so well-matched – they create this creamy texture that’s super fresh and intensely flavorful. There’s also Greek yogurt, jalapeno, ricotta, lemon, and olive oil, basically all the best ingredients in one dreamy dip!

Have you ever noticed endive and wondered what to do with it? It’s actually really light and crunchy, the perfect compliment to a vegetable crudités platter (and this feta dip). It also looks really pretty too if you fan the leaves out. I also like to add endive leaves to the colorful winter fruit salad or citrus salad with basil vinaigrette which are incredibly fresh and easy to make.

The Types of Feta Cheese – And What It Is

Feta is a popular brined curd white cheese made from a mixture of sheep and goat’s milk. It’s produced in blocks, has a crumbly – creamy texture, and may be sold in brine or dry.

For this feta recipe, I recommend feta in brine because it keeps the cheese nice and moist, which is really ideal for getting a nice, creamy dip.

Is feta cheese healthy?

Compared to other types of cheese, feta is a low calorie, low fat cheese that’s rich in B vitamins, phosphorus, and calcium which can benefit bone health. It contains beneficial bacteria and fatty acids but is higher in sodium (so don’t add any salt to the dip before you taste it).

How to Make Spicy Greek Feta Dip

You will need to either roast your own bell peppers or buy them in the jar. If you like a spicy dip, go ahead and add the entire jalepeno (seeds and all) and all the ingredients. Let the food processor do all the beating for you until you end up with a really creamy texture (photos 1 & 2 below).

Assemble the feta dip with extra crumbled feta on top or garnish with more red pepper.

Add some freshly ground black pepper and serve!

Serving Suggestions

I serve this feta dip just as-is for a light snack or as a meze platter. You can also make an entire meal out of it with this Mediterranean Quinoa Bowl or use as a spread for a grilled chicken wrap.

feta dip with cucumber and pita chips, red pepper garnish

Top Tips for Making a Meze Platter

Prep the feta dip in advance and store in the fridge until you are ready to serve.
You can also prep the vegetables so when you are ready to plate them all you need to do is assemble the dish.
Cut cucumber, carrot, or celery into batons (sticks) around 4 inches long or 6 cm so they can be held easily for dipping.
You can avoid a lot of chopping by serving endive leaves whole, just trim away the root and then fan out the leaves.
You can also add pita chips, sliced bread, and olives with lemon zest to your meze platter.

More Delicious Appetizers You Might Like

If you’ve tried this cheese dip or any other recipe on the blog, please let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

Spicy Greek Feta Dip (Tyrokafteri)

5 from 3 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Greek

Keyword: bell pepper, cheese, dip, feta, gluten free, greek, spicy, vegetarian

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 0

Total Time: 5

Servings: people

Calories: 121kcal

Author: Chef Sara Furcini

Ingredients

2 large roasted red bell peppers from the jar*
1 whole jalapeno stem removed, roughly chopped (with or without seeds)
1 pound feta cheese (in brine) crumbled
2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup ricotta or cream cheese
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil extra virgin
freshly ground pepper and sea salt to taste

Instructions

Place all the ingredients in a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse on high until very smooth and creamy. Season with salt and pepper and serve with fresh bread, pita chips, or endive.

Notes

Note: You can also use the traditional method of beating the ingredients in a mortar and pestle.

Roasted Red Bell Peppers:

I really like using the jarred roasted red bell peppers in this recipe, but if you want to roast your own, it’s easy to do:

On a baking tray, roast 2 bell peppers at 350°F in the oven until the skin is blackened and blistered on all sides. When cool, peel away the skin and remove the seeds. Alternatively, place the bell pepper into the flame of a gas stove-top and rotate with tongs every few minutes until blackened.