Move over, sausage rolls – this Greek meat pie is ready to party

For Conor Curran, Greek food isn’t just a culinary style – it’s a celebration of heritage, delivered with modern flair. Since making the top 20 on MasterChef in 2021, he has built a reputation (and a social media profile) by stripping the intimidation out of classic Hellenic cooking, exchanging rigid traditions for vibrant, accessible flavours designed for the busy home cook.

These recipes, a sneak peek from his debut cookbook that’s out in September, blend his deep family roots with a contemporary Australian edge.

From mastering everyone’s favourite gooey, pan-fried starter to a beautifully spiced minced-meat pastry spiral that deserves a spot in every baker’s rotation, these dishes are pure comfort food made for sharing.

Fried kefalograviera cheese (saganaki)

I’m going to clarify something here: saganaki refers to the small heavy-based frying pan used to fry dishes, not the cheese itself. This is why you’ll see dishes like prawn saganaki on restaurant menus. Over time, the word “saganaki” has come to mean gooey, charred piece of Greek cheese that you hit with lemon to punch through the sweetness of the honey and the fattiness of the cheese. It’s gobbled up as a starter before getting into a Greek feast.

INGREDIENTS

• 30g honey
• 30ml fresh lemon juice, plus extra lemon wedge to serve
• 30ml ouzo
• 100g piece kefalograviera cheese
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil for frying
• 1 tbsp dried oregano

METHOD

1. Place the honey, lemon juice and ouzo in a lidded jar. Seal and shake super hard to bring it together.
2. Place a small, heavy-based, non-stick frying pan over high heat. Coat the kefalograviera in the flour. Shake off the excess. Heat a little olive oil in the pan. Add the cheese and cook for 90 seconds-2 minutes, or until caramelised around the edges.
3. Using a thin spatula, flip the cheese and cook for a further 1-2 minutes. Pour the honey mixture around the cheese and cook for a further minute. Gently spoon the syrup over the cheese. Remove from the heat.
4. To serve, either plate up with the syrup on top or serve it in the pan (which is more traditional).
5. Sprinkle with the oregano, serve with the extra lemon wedge and fight over it with someone you love.

Serves 2 as a starter

Kreatopita (Greek meat pie)

The best way to describe this is like a Greek sausage roll. This filo pie is not as well known as other Greek pastries, but it should be. Layers of pastry wrap up spiced mince like a delicious parcel.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 brown onion
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1kg minced beef
• 2 tsp ground allspice
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp ground paprika
• 70g tomato paste
• 350g chilled filo pastry sheets (see note)
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds
• olive oil (you will need a decent amount)
• salt and cracked black pepper, to taste
• 260g (1 cup) Greek-style yoghurt

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 200C fan-forced (220C conventional).
2. Heat a large saucepan over medium heat, then add 1 tablespoon oil. While the pan heats up, roughly dice the onion. Add the onion and a big pinch of salt to the hot pan. Stir through and sweat down for 5 minutes.
3. While the onion sweats, finely chop the garlic. Add the garlic to the pan and sweat down for a minute. Increase heat to high and add the beef.
4. Cook, stirring to break up any lumps, until evenly browned. Add the spices and season with salt and pepper. Mix through, then cook for about 5 minutes, or until the liquid from the beef reduces by half. Stir in the tomato paste, then cook for 5 minutes, or until barely any liquid remains. Transfer the mixture to a heatproof bowl and season with salt.
5. To set up for the filo wrapping, fill a small bowl with oil and pop a pastry brush in it. Brush a little oil over the base of a circular or oval baking dish. Place 1 filo sheet in front of you on a clean, dry benchtop so that the longest edge is running horizontally (left to right). Drizzle a little oil over the sheet and gently brush it to cover the surface. Place a second filo sheet on top and press down to seal together. About two thumbs’ width from the bottom of the sheet, add a line of beef filling.
6. Brush a line of oil at the top of the sheet (to help seal). Starting at the bottom of the sheet, fold the edge of the filo over the line of beef filling, then roll up all the way to the top to form a long log. Leave about a thumb’s width free of filling at both the left and right ends to prevent the beef from falling out.
7. Tightly swirl the log into a spiral, being careful not to break the filo. Place it in the middle of the prepared dish. Repeat with the remaining filo and filling, wrapping each new log around the central spiral to expand it outwards.
8. Drizzle the pie with oil, then brush it all over the top. (This is important to get a golden crunch.) Scatter with sesame seeds, then bake for 50 minutes, or until golden and crunchy. Take it out of the oven and give it a moment to cool.
9. Serve with yoghurt to spoon onto each wedge of pie.

Serves 6-8

Note: I recommend using a chilled filo, like Antoniou Fillo Pastry, rather than frozen. If only frozen filo is available, remember to thaw so it’s just chilled before you begin cooking.

This is an edited extract from Eat More Greek by Conor Curran. Photography by Armelle Habib. To be published by Murdoch Books on September 29, 2026. RRP $45.