Sifnos Recipe
Mastelo
Easter lamb cooked in a clay vessel with red wine and dill, on a bed of vine twigs.
Cooking time
5 hours (mostly unattended)
Serves
6
Mastelo takes its name from the clay vessel it cooks in. On the night of Holy Saturday, families layer lamb or goat with vine shoots, dill, salt and red wine, seal the pot, and slide it into the wood oven. By Easter Sunday lunch, the meat is falling off the bone and the kitchen smells of incense and rosemary.
Mastelo matters in Sifnos because it connects local ingredients with the island's pottery tradition and long, social mealtimes. Mastelo takes its name from the clay vessel it cooks in. On the night of Holy Saturday, families layer lamb or goat with vine shoots, dill, salt and red wine, seal the pot, and slide it into the wood oven. By Easter Sunday lunch, the meat is falling off the bone and the kitchen smells of incense and rosemary. That makes this page more than a shared recipe shell: it documents the actual cultural role of the dish, how long it takes, what ingredients define it, and where visitors can taste it on the island.
With a cooking time of 5 hours (mostly unattended) and a yield of 6, Mastelo is usually made for a table rather than a single plate. On Sifnos it appears with bread, wine, sharp cheese, capers, or simple salads, depending on the dish and the season.
Ingredients
- •2kg lamb or goat shoulder, on the bone, cut into chunks
- •1 large bunch fresh dill
- •Vine shoots or grape leaves to line the pot
- •300ml dry red wine
- •2 tsp coarse salt
- •Olive oil to drizzle
Preparation
- 1.Line a clay mastelo (or Dutch oven) with vine shoots or grape leaves.
- 2.Layer the meat with chopped dill and salt.
- 3.Pour the red wine over and drizzle with olive oil.
- 4.Seal the lid (with bread dough if oven-safe).
- 5.Bake at 140°C for 4–5 hours, until the meat falls apart.
Where to try it
To Liotrivi or Lembesis, Easter weekend.
If you want to compare the home-cooked version with a restaurant interpretation, order it in the village or taverna named here and then revisit the ingredient list above. That context is what makes these pages useful for travellers and cooks alike.
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