Gourmet Magazine

by Aglaia Kremezi

As soon as I opened, the extremely elegant bags with organically grown chickpeas from Thessaly, I was surprised. The tiny well-formed chickpeas were much different from the ones we are used to buying and most of them are imported, from Asia or South America. My husband Costas, through, who grew up in Volos, was not at all surprised and said that he remembered these local chickpeas, from his childhood.

Following the instructions on the package, after soaking overnight, I cooked the chickpeas in the morning for a few minutes, then I strained them, I rubbed them to remove most of the shells and placed them in a large bowl with water. The skins came to the surface and I threw them away. Then, I strained the chickpeas and I cooked them with plenty of olive oil, onion, Chilli (red pepper flakes), lemon and sage spings.. The taste of the revitada was so special and different from’ everything I was used to until now, that, excited, I handed a pack to a friend as a present, so that she also tries them, and now that I'm done I regret it….

The Tsiadi sisters who decided to use their paternal fields in Thessaly to grow organically these wonderful chickpeas, I hope that they will become an example for other farmers of the fertile land of Thessaly. It no longer makes sense to consume the precious water of the area in cotton or other mass crops that have no buyers. Let us return to traditional, high quality edibles, for economic benefits, and also for the true satisfaction with the tasty goods we will be producing.