Mediterranean Spinach & Broccoli Recipes
Six ways Greek kitchens actually cook their greens — including the spinach pie that works without any pastry at all.
Greens are where most people’s Mediterranean cooking gets boring. Steamed broccoli, a bag of spinach wilted in a pan, a squeeze of lemon if you remember. Fine, but nobody looks forward to it.
In Greece, greens aren’t an afterthought — horta is a dish in its own right, spanakopita is a national institution, and a broccoli salad dressed properly gets eaten before the main course does. The difference is almost entirely in how they’re finished: good olive oil, acid, salt, and something salty or crunchy for contrast.
These are six I make regularly, split between spinach and broccoli. All keto-friendly, all under 25 minutes, and none of them steamed into submission.
The six recipes
- Crustless spanakopita — spinach pie, no pastry, fully keto
- Horta-style sautéed spinach — the five-minute Greek staple
- Greek spinach salad — raw, with feta and a proper dressing
- Mediterranean broccoli salad — no mayo, no sugar
- Air fryer lemon garlic broccoli — crisp edges in 10 minutes
- Broccoli with feta, olives and chilli — the one that converts broccoli sceptics
Spinach
Crustless Spanakopita
Spinach pie without the phylloTraditional spanakopita is wrapped in phyllo, which is essentially pure wheat flour and puts it out of reach on keto. Take the pastry away and what’s left — spinach, feta, eggs, dill, onion — is already the best part of the dish and needs no adaptation at all. It sets into something between a pie and a frittata.
Ingredients
- 500g frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed very dry
- 200g feta, crumbled
- 4 large eggs
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- 3 spring onions, sliced
- 3 tbsp fresh dill, chopped (don’t substitute dried)
- 2 tbsp olive oil, plus more for the dish
- 60g ricotta or full-fat Greek yoghurt
- Zest of 1 lemon, black pepper, pinch of nutmeg
Method
- Squeeze the spinach until you think you’ve overdone it, then squeeze again. This is the entire recipe in one step — wet spinach gives you a soggy pie every time. Use a clean tea towel and wring it out.
- Soften the onion in olive oil for 5 minutes, add spring onions for 1 more, then cool slightly.
- Beat the eggs, then fold in feta, ricotta, spinach, onions, dill, lemon zest, pepper and nutmeg. Go easy on salt — feta brings plenty.
- Spread into an oiled baking dish and bake at 350°F for 30–35 minutes until set and golden at the edges.
- Rest 10 minutes before cutting. It firms considerably as it cools.
Using fresh spinach? You’ll need about 900g — it collapses to roughly a third. Wilt it first, then cool and squeeze exactly as above.
Horta-Style Sautéed Spinach
Χόρτα — five minutes, three ingredientsHorta traditionally means wild foraged greens boiled and dressed simply. Spinach is the accessible weeknight version. What makes it Greek rather than just “cooked spinach” is the ratio — considerably more olive oil and lemon than feels reasonable, added off the heat.
Ingredients
- 400g fresh spinach
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Juice of 1 whole lemon
- 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- Flaky salt, black pepper
Method
- Warm 1 tbsp of the oil, add garlic and let it barely colour — 30 seconds, no more.
- Add spinach in batches, tossing until just wilted. Pull it while it’s still bright green.
- Off the heat, add the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil and all the lemon juice. Adding the good oil off-heat is what keeps its flavour and its oleocanthal intact.
- Salt generously and serve warm or at room temperature — both are correct.
If spinach makes your teeth feel strange, that’s oxalates, not you. There’s a full explanation and a fix in Why Does Spinach Taste Metallic.
Greek Spinach Salad
Raw, with feta and red onionBaby spinach instead of lettuce, dressed heavily enough that it doesn’t taste like diet food. The trick is dressing it right before serving — spinach wilts under vinaigrette far faster than romaine.
Ingredients
- 150g baby spinach
- 100g feta, cubed
- ½ red onion, very thinly sliced
- A handful of kalamata olives
- 2 tbsp toasted pine nuts or walnuts
- 10 cherry tomatoes, halved
- 4 tbsp ladolemono, dried oregano
Method
- Soak the sliced onion in cold water for 5 minutes to take the harsh edge off, then drain well.
- Combine everything except the dressing and nuts.
- Dress immediately before serving, toss gently, and scatter the nuts on top so they stay crunchy.
Broccoli
Mediterranean Broccoli Salad
No mayo, no sugarThe American broccoli salad is bound in mayonnaise and sweetened with sugar or dried cranberries. The Mediterranean version dresses it with olive oil and lemon instead, which lets the broccoli actually taste of something. It also keeps far better — no mayo means it improves overnight rather than separating.
Ingredients
- 1 large head broccoli, cut into small florets
- ½ red onion, finely sliced
- 80g kalamata olives, halved
- 100g feta, crumbled
- 2 tbsp capers
- 3 tbsp toasted almonds, roughly chopped
- 5 tbsp olive oil, juice of 1 lemon, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1 garlic clove grated
Method
- Blanch the florets 90 seconds in well-salted boiling water, then straight into ice water. This is what keeps them bright green and snappy rather than dull and soft.
- Drain thoroughly and dry — wet broccoli dilutes the dressing.
- Whisk the dressing, toss everything except almonds and feta.
- Rest 20 minutes if you have time, then fold in feta and scatter almonds.
Make-ahead: this is genuinely better on day two. Keep the almonds separate and add them at serving.
Air Fryer Lemon Garlic Broccoli
Crisp edges, 10 minutesRoasted broccoli beats steamed broccoli by a wide margin, and the air fryer does it in a third of the oven time. The charred floret tips are the entire point — aim for slightly too dark rather than pale.
Ingredients
- 1 head broccoli, cut into medium florets
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ tsp dried oregano, ¼ tsp chilli flakes
- Zest and juice of ½ lemon, salt, pepper
- Optional: grated pecorino to finish
Method
- Toss florets with oil, oregano, chilli, salt and pepper — hold the garlic back, it burns in 10 minutes at this heat.
- Air fry at 390°F for 8 minutes in a single layer, shaking at the halfway point.
- Add the minced garlic, toss, and cook 2 minutes more.
- Finish off the heat with lemon zest, juice and pecorino if using.
Crowding is the enemy here too — same principle as crispy cauliflower rice. Two batches beat one soggy one.
Broccoli with Feta, Olives & Chilli
The broccoli-sceptic converterPan-charred rather than roasted, then hit with enough salty and spicy contrast that it stops reading as a health food. This is the one I make for people who say they don’t like broccoli, and it has a decent conversion rate.
Ingredients
- 1 head broccoli, florets halved so they have a flat side
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 100g feta, crumbled
- 60g kalamata olives, torn
- 1 red chilli, sliced (or ½ tsp flakes)
- 2 garlic cloves, sliced
- Juice of ½ lemon, oregano, black pepper
Method
- Heat oil in a wide pan until properly hot. Lay florets cut-side down and leave them alone for 3 minutes — that undisturbed contact is what gives you the char.
- Toss, add garlic and chilli, cook 3–4 minutes more until tender-crisp.
- Off the heat, add lemon, olives, oregano and pepper.
- Scatter feta over the top so it softens but doesn’t melt away completely.
Which to Make When
| If you want… | Make | Time |
|---|---|---|
| A meal, not a side | Crustless spanakopita | 50 min |
| Something in five minutes | Horta-style spinach | 5 min |
| No cooking at all | Greek spinach salad | 10 min |
| To prep ahead | Mediterranean broccoli salad | 15 min |
| Crisp edges, minimal effort | Air fryer lemon garlic broccoli | 10 min |
| To convert a broccoli sceptic | Broccoli with feta and chilli | 15 min |
Why These Two Vegetables Earn Their Place
Spinach and broccoli both show up repeatedly in anti-inflammatory eating, and not just as generic “eat your greens” advice. Broccoli carries sulforaphane, which supports the liver’s detoxification pathways — relevant to estrogen balance specifically. Spinach delivers magnesium and folate, and it’s one of the few greens that’s genuinely dense in both.
Both are also low enough in carbs to eat freely on a Mediterranean-leaning keto approach, which isn’t true of every vegetable. More on how they fit the wider picture in Best Anti-Inflammatory Keto Foods.
On the oxalate question: spinach is high in oxalates, which is worth knowing if you’re prone to kidney stones or notice that chalky teeth feeling. Cooking reduces them meaningfully, and pairing spinach with a calcium source — the feta in every recipe above, as it happens — binds oxalates in the gut. Traditional Greek cooking arrived at that pairing long before anyone measured why it works.
Cooking greens in your air fryer
Recipe 5 puts broccoli in direct contact with a hot basket at 390°F, which is the scenario worth thinking about if you air fry vegetables several times a week. I worked through the PTFE and PFAS question in The Best Non-Toxic Air Fryer for Anti-Inflammatory Cooking — it’s a one-time decision rather than an ongoing worry.
More Mediterranean Vegetables
These sit alongside the rest of the vegetable collection: eggplant, roasted, grilled and stuffed, the cucumber and tomato salad that needs no cooking, and zucchini done four ways. For a fuller dinner, most of these work as a side to anything in the 15 anti-inflammatory air fryer dinners.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you make spanakopita without phyllo pastry?
Yes — the filling sets on its own into something between a pie and a frittata. Spinach, feta, eggs, dill and onion baked in an oiled dish at 350°F for 30–35 minutes gives you all the flavour of spanakopita at around 4g net carbs per portion instead of the phyllo’s wheat flour.
Is broccoli keto-friendly?
Yes, comfortably. A cup of broccoli florets carries roughly 3–4g net carbs and a good amount of fibre, making it one of the more generous vegetables on a keto approach. Spinach is lower still at around 1g per cup raw.
Should I use fresh or frozen spinach?
For cooked dishes like spanakopita, frozen is genuinely better — it’s picked and frozen quickly, it’s cheaper, and it’s already broken down. Use fresh for salads and quick sautés where texture matters. If substituting, 500g frozen equals roughly 900g fresh.
How do you stop broccoli salad going soggy?
Blanch the florets for only 90 seconds, then shock them in ice water immediately to stop the cooking. Dry them thoroughly before dressing — residual water dilutes the vinaigrette and softens the texture over the following hours.
Why does spinach make my teeth feel chalky?
Oxalic acid binding with calcium in your saliva to form tiny crystals. It’s harmless for most people. Cooking spinach reduces oxalates substantially, and eating it with a calcium source such as feta binds them in the gut instead of on your teeth.
Can I air fry frozen broccoli?
Yes, but don’t thaw it first — cook from frozen at 390°F for 12–14 minutes, adding 3–4 minutes over fresh. Skip the oil for the first 5 minutes so the surface water evaporates rather than pooling in the basket.