Meze Counter · Smoked Cured Pork
Apaki
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Apaki isn't smoked over wood chips like most cured meats — it's smoked over burning wild herbs, so villages in different parts of Crete each produce a slightly different flavor depending on what grows on their hillside.
Strips of lean pork are marinated in vinegar, cumin and pepper, then hung and lightly smoked over smoldering sage, thyme and marjoram until deep red and firm. Sliced thin and served as a meze at market stalls and taverna counters across Crete.
Why it's made this way: Rooted in mountain villages like Anogia, apaki let Cretan families preserve pork from an occasionally slaughtered pig for months without refrigeration, using whatever aromatic wild herbs grew on the surrounding slopes.
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Part of World of Street Food — 3248 dishes from 118 countries.
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