{{Short description|Greek sheep-milk cheese}} {{distinguish|Kefalograviera}} {{Infobox cheese | name = Graviera | image = Graviera Kritis Kraounaki Rethymnou.jpg | othernames = | country = Greece | regiontown = | region = Amfilochia{{br}}Crete{{br}}Lesbos{{br}}Naxos | town = | source = cow{{br}}goat{{br}}sheep | pasteurized = Yes | texture = hard | fat = | protein = | dimensions = | weight = | aging = 5–12 months | certification = PDO }} '''Graviera''' ({{langx|el|γραβιέρα}} {{IPA|el|ɣraˈvʝera|}}) is a hard cheese produced in various parts of Greece, the main varieties of which are Crete, Lesbos, Naxos and Amfilochia. It resembles gruyère, a Swiss cheese from whose name "graviera" is derived.<ref>Papademas, P., and Bintsis, T. ''Global Cheesemaking Technology: Cheese Quality and Characteristics'', John Wiley & Sons, 2017. p.&nbsp;220.</ref>

Graviera is Greece's second most popular cheese after feta.{{Cn|date=April 2025}} Made in wheels, the cheese has its rind marked with the characteristic crisscross pattern of its draining cloth. There are various types of graviera produced in Greece. Graviera of Crete is made from sheep's milk and ripened for at least five months.<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Donnelly |editor1-first=Catherine |title=The Oxford Companion to Cheese |date=25 October 2016 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-933090-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pRrGDQAAQBAJ |language=en}}</ref> It is slightly sweet, with a burnt caramel flavor. The graviera of Naxos, in contrast, is mostly made of cow's milk (80–100%).

Graviera can be sliced and eaten, fried as saganaki and eaten as a snack, grated and served over pasta dishes, baked in a casserole<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://greekfood.about.com/od/greekcheeses/p/graviera.htm |title=''Graviera from Crete'' |access-date=2013-08-12 |archive-date=2017-01-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170117131650/http://greekfood.about.com/od/greekcheeses/p/graviera.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> or used in salads (in cubes or shavings). It is widely available outside Greece, sold at large grocery stores, Greek or ethnic markets, and specialty cheese shops, as well as online. Gruyère can be used as a substitute, but graviera is homier.<ref>Hoffman, Susanna. 2004. ''The Olive and the Caper; Adventures in Greek Cooking.'' Workman Publishing. {{ISBN|978-1563058486}}. p. 28.</ref>

==See also== * List of cheeses

==References== {{reflist}}

{{Greek cheeses}} {{Cuisine of Greece}} Category:Greek cheeses Category:Sheep's-milk cheeses Category:Mixed-milk cheeses Category:Greek products with protected designation of origin Category:Cheeses with designation of origin protected in the European Union

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