What traditional Greek soup is eaten after midnight on Easter?

The traditional Greek soup eaten after midnight on Easter is Magiritsa. It is associated with the Greek Orthodox Pascha celebration and is traditionally served immediately after the midnight Divine Liturgy on Holy Saturday.

Magiritsa is usually made with lamb offal, greens, herbs, onion, and rice, and it is often finished with avgolemono, the egg-and-lemon mixture used in many Greek soups and sauces. The dish’s ingredients are tied to the next day’s Easter lamb: the offal removed before roasting is cooked into a soup rather than discarded.

Its timing has religious and practical significance. Greek Orthodox Christians traditionally abstain from many foods during Great Lent, and Magiritsa provides a warm meal to break the fast after the Resurrection service. Recipes differ by region; in parts of Thessaly, magiritsa may be prepared as a fricassee rather than a soup. Kokoretsi, another lamb-offal dish, is commonly roasted and is not the same preparation.