What are the traditional products of Leros ?

Leros is generally an island of fishermen, so the main product of Leros is fish. Every day trucks transport tons of fish to the ferry boats at the central fishing pier of Piraeus in Keratsini.

In winter, hundreds of tons of mullet and white bate are fished in the waters of Leros with trawls. Summer is the season for bonito and sardine, as well as first-class fish such as Dentεx, Red snapper and σεα βρεαμσ, B-class such as Black tail bream, Lobsters, Swordfish, Squid, etc.

Due to the large amount of fish in the past, the fishermen of Leros could not sell their fish outside the island because there were no modern means such as ferries, ice, trucks, so many fish were pickled. This is how the traditional product of Leros became the pastos Kolios, one of the best appetizers for ouzo that also goes with bean salad, lentils and salad.

Another traditional product of Leros is Mytzithra which is made fresh or dry covered with the famous cheese, a mixture of must, oil and thyme that gives it a wonderful taste. Lerikia mytzithra is that you should either eat it with a nut oil and tomato or rub it on spaghetti. But cheeses are Ladotiro ( oil cheece) and Krasotiro (wine cheese). You will find all the cheeses and pastes in the supermarkets of the island as well as in Leros Thyme

In the summer in Leros you will find many vegetables and fruits, the most famous are Leros cucumbers, grapes, tomatoes, figs, prickly pears and gavafes (Guavas). Also try the local soft drink soumada made from bitter almonds

Agricultural and livestock production.

In Leros there is little agricultural and livestock production. There is also the production of local wine. If you look, you can find local fresh vegetables, such as tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, zucchini, etc. The deliciousness of all of them is famous. It is in no way compared to the colourless taste of greenhouse products and chemical fertilizers. The elders say that: “You understand what you eat”. The sepherds make sweet soft mizithra which is used wonderfully in cooking and also in confectionery. If this mizithra is left in the “tyrovoli” (to dry out), it becomes salty and hard and is an ideal accompaniment to ouzo and spaghetti.

Traditional sweets of Leros

The traditional sweets of Leros are also very tasty. The highly aromatic local honey and other local products are used in many of them.

So surely anyone will be excited by the sweets of the spoon, the quince, the tomato, the watercress and the aubergine.

You will love the xerotigana (diples), the puffs that are the dessert served at weddings in Leros. The local svygoi (like loukumades) melt in the mouth wrapped in honey

. A sweet refreshing drink, which is also served at all weddings, is sumada. It is made from bitter almond. All the pastry shops on the island make it and let there be no wedding.

Leros also has a long tradition of sweets such as pougakia, with bitter almond filling, xerotigana, svingoi and Lerikes cheese pies with mijithra. You will find traditional sweets from Leros in Agia Marina at Niki Karpathaki’s Paradosiako pastry Shop.