A little salty, a little sweet and a whole lotta crispy, Vegan Feta Me Meli (Fried Phyllo-Wrapped Feta) is the ultimate gourmet appetizer. Whip this up for your next dinner party, and we guarantee your guests won’t stop raving about it!
Feta me meli combines some of Greece’s most iconic ingredients—phyllo, feta and honey— into an irresistibly crispy and addictive appetizer. We came across a non-vegan version of this dish while mindlessly scrolling through Instagram one day. The recipe looked so damn enticing and easy, we just knew we had to veganize it. And veganize it we did!
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🇬🇷 WHAT IS FETA ME MELI?
Feta me meli is a block of feta, wrapped in phyllo and shallow fried in olive oil until crispy and golden. The phyllo-wrapped package is then topped with a drizzle of honey and a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds. Our veganized version trades traditional feta with vegan feta and swaps honey for agave nectar. And we zhoozh things up with a scattering of fresh thyme over our phyllo, as well an infusion of thyme in our frying oil.
Europe has a long history of fried and baked cheeses. In fact, one of the first accounts of frying cheese in a batter dates back to at least 1393 in Medieval France. You have your baked halloumi, your fried mozzarella, your battered saganaki, and our new favorite, your pan-fried feta me meli. There is something so magical about how the sweet agave balances the salty feta. We believe the corporate-types would call it synergy. And, if we’re being honest, there are few things in this life as satisfying as the way the crisp, golden phyllo shatters in your mouth.
🧀 FETA ME MELI vs. SANAGAKI
Speaking of saganaki, there is a fair amount of confusion on the Internet regarding the differences between feta me meli and saganaki. Both are Greek, yes, and both are made with feta, but the two are not the same.
The confusion likely stems from the fact that saganaki has three separate definitions: It’s at once a type of dish, a cooking utensil and a popular appetizer. Saganaki are a variety of Greek dishes prepared in a small frying pan—aptly called a saganaki. The best known of these dishes—and the one that most people think of when you say the word saganaki— is an egg-and-flour dredged block of cheese, shallow fried and topped with a squeeze of lemon.
It’s simple, elegant and most certainly not feta me meli. There is no satisfying phyllo texture, and sweet-and-salty synergy.
📝 INGREDIENTS
- Vegan feta: Makes up the heart of the dish. The cheese should not be too crumbly, with a decent amount of brine and creaminess. We use Violife’s feta for this recipe.
- Phyllo: Our crunch-tastic edible “wrapping papper”, if you will.
- Thyme: An woody, aromatic herb we sprinkle over the phyllo and use to infuse our frying oil with woodsy, slightly floral notes.
- Agave nectar: A great honey substitute. We prefer agave nectar over maple syrup as a honey substitute in this recipe.
- Sesame seeds: Lends a nice touch of nuttiness and texture.
- Extra virgin olive oil: The fat used for sealing our edible phyllo-wrapped package and frying the feta me meli.
🔪 STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
***Check out the recipe video we made below!***
- 24 hours in advance, defrost phyllo according to package instructions.
- Cut the block of feta in half.
- Lay out a sheet of phyllo with a short side facing you, drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and brush to distribute oil evenly. Sprinkle the top half of the phyllo sheet with ¼ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves and fold the sheet in half widthwise. Turn the phyllo sheet 180 degrees, so that a short side is again facing you. Drizzle 1 teaspoon of olive oil over the sheet and brush to distribute oil evenly. Position a half block of feta two inches from the bottom of the phyllo sheet, with the long side of the feta block facing you.
- Loosely fold the left and right sides of the phyllo sheet over the feta. Then fold the bottom end of the phyllo over the feta. Loosely roll the feta block toward the top end of the phyllo sheet, stopping two inches before reaching the top top. Brush the exposed two inches of phyllo with ¼ teaspoon olive oil, then roll the feta block over it to seal.
- Fry phyllo-wrapped feta for 1-2 minutes on each side, frying only the long sides.
- Remove from pan, drizzle with agave nectar and top with sesame seeds and fresh thyme. Serve with salad greens (optional) and enjoy!
❤️ WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS RECIPE
- Gourmet
- Sweet
- Crispy
- Savory
- Easy to Make
💡 RECIPE TIPS
- Defrost phyllo in advance: When defrosting your phyllo, make sure you follow the package instructions. It can take up to 24 hours to properly defrost phyllo. Do it too quickly and the condensation will result in gummy phyllo. So plan ahead and defrost your phyllo the night before!
- Infuse frying oil with thyme: Level up the elegance of this dish by infusing your frying olive oil with a few sprigs of fresh thyme. Fry the thyme for two minutes, then remove before frying the phyllo-wrapped feta. This step reinforces the thyme flavor in this recipe.
- Use white and black sesame seeds for color: We used a combination of toasted white and black sesame seeds for color, but you can use one or the other, depending on what you have on hand.
- Drizzle agave nectar first: Drizzle your agave nectar first before topping with the sesame seeds and fresh thyme. The agave nectar will act as a glue binding the seeds and fresh thyme to the feta me meli.
DID YOU MAKE OUR VEGAN FETA ME MELI?
Did you make this recipe? We’d love to hear about it! Please comment and leave a 5-star🌟 rating below. Share your dish with us on Instagram and tag us @plantbased.passport. We would love to seeing your delicious creations! Still hungry? Follow us on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and Pinterest for more global vegan recipes and travel tips!🍴✈️
💕 MORE VEGAN RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
👩🏽🍳 RECIPE
VEGAN FETA ME MELI (FRIED PHYLLO-WRAPPED FETA)
Ingredients
- 1 block of vegan feta cheese cut in half (we used the Violife brand)
- 2 sheets of phyllo
- 8 ½ teaspoon extra virgin olive oil divided, plus more for frying (around ¼ cup for frying)
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme divided, plus more for garnish
- 4 sprigs of fresh thyme
- Agave nectar for drizzling
- ½ teaspoon each of toasted black and white sesame seeds
To serve:
- Salad greens optional
Instructions
- 24 hours in advance, defrost the phyllo according to package instructions. We recommend defrosting in refrigerator for best results.
- Lay out a sheet of phyllo with a short side facing you, drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and brush to distribute oil evenly. Sprinkle the top half of the phyllo sheet with ¼ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves and fold the sheet in half widthwise. Turn the phyllo sheet 180 degrees, so that a short side is again facing you. Drizzle 1 teaspoon of olive oil over the sheet and brush to distribute oil evenly. Position a half block of feta two inches from the bottom of the phyllo sheet, with the long side of the feta block facing you.
- Loosely fold the left and right sides of the phyllo sheet over the feta. Then fold the bottom end of the phyllo over the feta. Loosely roll the feta block toward the top end of the phyllo sheet, stopping two inches before reaching the top top. Brush the exposed two inches of phyllo with ¼ teaspoon olive oil, then roll the feta block over it to seal.
- Over medium heat, heat enough olive oil in a pan for a shallow fry (around ¼ cup). Fry 4 sprigs of thyme in the oil for 2 minutes to infuse the oil, then remove the thyme sprigs. Fry phyllo-wrapped feta for 1-2 minutes on each side, or until golden brown, frying only the long sides. Remove from pan and onto a baking rack (to maintain maximum crispiness. Repeat with remaining half block of feta. Drizzle feta me meli with agave nectar and top with sesame seeds and additional thyme. Serve with salad greens (optional). Enjoy!
Notes
- Defrost phyllo in advance: When defrosting your phyllo, make sure you follow the package instructions. It can take up to 24 hours to properly defrost phyllo. Do it too quickly and the condensation will result in gummy phyllo. So plan ahead and defrost your phyllo the night before!
- Infuse frying oil with thyme: Level up the elegance of this dish by infusing your frying olive oil with a few sprigs of fresh thyme. Fry the thyme for two minutes, then remove before frying the phyllo-wrapped feta. This step reinforces the thyme flavor in this recipe.
- Use white and black sesame seeds for color: We used a combination of toasted white and black sesame seeds for color, but you can use one or the other, depending on what you have on hand.
- Drizzle agave nectar first: Drizzle your agave nectar first before topping with the sesame seeds and fresh thyme. The agave nectar will act as a glue binding the seeds and fresh thyme to the feta me meli.
Made this last night, and it was so easy and delicious!
Man, this was a great appetizer at a dinner party last weekend.
This recipe was seriously next level and was simple to make.
Tasted like something from an upscale restaurant.
A big hit at my last potluck!!!