Thursday is a National Holiday. It is the commemoration of the beginning of the war of independence against the ottoman turks in 1821 and it is also a church holiday. On the 25th March the church celebrates the Annunciation when Archangel Gabriel revealed to Mary that she would become the mother of Jesus Christ
2021 celebrates 200 years since the Declaration of Independence and there will be
activities throughout the year to commemorate the struggle of the Greek people for their freedom.
We always fly the Greek flag on national holidays.
K puts the flag up our flag pole.
The tradition on 25th March is to eat salt cod with garlic sauce. The photo shows the salt cod as it is sold in the shops, big fillets covered in salt. Called bacaliaros here.
The fillets are washed and cut into smaller pieces and covered in fresh water for a couple of days. I change the water 3 or 4 times during the day to get rid of the salt. If it's de-salted properly you actually have to add salt when it's cooked.
The bacaliaros can be made into soup or grilled on the BBQ. I prefer the soup which is made with carrots, celery, olive oil of course and lemon juice.
I will probably fry half of the fillets so we can eat it as tradition dictates with skorthalia, garlic sauce, and beetroot.
I'll keep the rest to make into soup.
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