Magiritsa

Ingredients

Offal

• 1lamb pluck, the liver, lungs and heart
• the lamb intestines, optional
• juice of 2 lemons
• salt
• flour, for cleaning

Broth

• 2onions
• 4spring onions
• 2 litreswater
• 1bay leaf
• salt

Pot

• 3 tbspolive oil or butter
• 6spring onions, chopped
• 2cos lettuces, shredded
• 1large bunch dill
• 1 bunchparsley
• 100 grice, optional

Avgolemono

• 3eggs
• juice of 2 lemons

To serve

• bread
• red-dyed eggs

Directions

1. Boil the pluck with the onions and bay for about 45 minutes, skimming thoroughly, then lift it out and keep the broth.
2. Cool the offal and chop it finely, discarding the windpipe and any hard tubes. Chop it small.
3. Fry the spring onions in the oil until soft, then add the chopped offal and cook 5 minutes. Add the strained broth and simmer 30 minutes.
4. Add the shredded lettuce, dill and parsley, and the rice if using, and cook a further 15 minutes. Take the pot off the heat and let it stop bubbling entirely.
5. Whisk the eggs hard until pale and frothy, then whisk in the lemon juice. Now add hot broth to the egg mixture one ladleful at a time, whisking continuously, until you have added at least four ladles and the mixture is warm.
6. Pour the tempered mixture back into the pot, stirring, and warm it very gently without ever letting it approach a simmer.
7. Season and serve at once, with bread and the red-dyed Easter eggs.

Technique

• Many households now make a version with just lettuce, dill and avgolemono and no offal at all.
• The red eggs on the table are cracked against each other in a game, and the last unbroken egg is said to bring luck.
• Avgolemono appears across Greek cooking and the tempering technique is the same everywhere.

Substitutions

• Lamb shoulder in place of offal, for a version people will actually eat.
• Cornflour slaked in the lemon juice, which stabilises the egg for a nervous cook.

Variations

• Without offal, as a lettuce and dill avgolemono soup.
• With more rice, as a thicker soup.
• Kokoretsi, made from the same animal on the same day.

History

Eaten after the midnight Resurrection service to break the Lenten fast, using the offal of the lamb roasted later that day.

Frequently asked questions

What is Magiritsa?

Magiritsa is a soup & stew from Greece: lamb offal and lettuce soup thickened with egg and lemon. Eaten after the midnight Resurrection service to break the Lenten fast, using the offal of the lamb roasted later that day.

How long does Magiritsa take to make?

Magiritsa takes 1 hr of preparation and 2 hr of cooking. The recipe makes 8 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Magiritsa?

Yes, within limits. Lamb shoulder in place of offal, for a version people will actually eat. Cornflour slaked in the lemon juice, which stabilises the egg for a nervous cook.