Tasting Paprika From Around The World

The Secrets Behind the Making of Retsina


"The olive tree (Olea europaea), a classic tree crop of the Mediterranean area, produces olives as its fruit. The plant family, which also contains species like lilacs, jasmine, and forsythia, is named for the tree and its fruit. One of the first planted trees, it originated in Asia Minor and by ancient times had spread to much of Europe." The olives are plucked from trees spread over the Mediterranean region; thus, various regions yield various types with various flavours. Nowadays, purchasing pre-bottled oil is becoming more and more popular in place of manufacturing their own at home or pressing it at a nearby mill (which is still very popular). However, if you do have your own olive grove, you may manufacture your own oil by pressing the olives between two big stones or even using an ancient press! According to some, this results in an even better-tasting product... The Middle East and North Africa both provide couscous, which is a mainstay of the Mediterranean diet. Couscous is a sort of flour that has its origins in Morocco. It is prepared by moistening semolina flour with boiling water, letting it cool, and then steaming it over stew or vegetables. You can eat couscous by itself or with beef, fish, chicken, lamb, or even all four of those things! You've undoubtedly had saffron-seasoned couscous on your plate if you've ever eaten Moroccan cuisine. This dish's distinctive taste and golden colour are a result of the use of saffron; it is further enhanced by the addition of scallions (also known as green onions), lemon juice, or olive oil.

Halva's Unique Texture and Flavor —


Spanish food is an eclectic fusion of domestic and international influences. The nation boasts a large variety of seafood meals as a result of its closeness to the Mediterranean Sea, and its proximity to France and Portugal has impacted its usage of red wine and garlic. Arabic, North African, and Mediterranean cuisines have all had an impact on Spanish food. Spain was historically ruled by Muslims, which resulted in further Middle Eastern culinary influences. With place of butter or lard, fresh items are often cooked in olive oil in Spanish cuisine (although this varies by region). Popular foods include tortilla espanola (a potato omelette), jamon serrano (dry-cured ham), pan con tomate (bread rubbed with tomato), churros (fried dough sticks) dipped in hot chocolate for breakfast on weekends, gazpacho soup, tapas—small portions of food served as appetisers at bars or restaurants—and much more.

Lamb and mutton you will love to feast on


Using finely diced tomatoes, cucumber, mint, parsley, onion, and olive oil, tabbouleh is a Levantine salad. Lemon juice is often drizzled on top of it to enhance taste. The Mediterranean area is home to the green plant known as parsley. Since it is a member of the carrot family, its leaves are smaller and more delicate than those of most other herbs. Parsley has a number of nutritional advantages, including being high in vitamins A and C, iron, calcium, magnesium, and potassium; improving digestion due to its high fibre content; lowering blood pressure; cleansing the kidneys by removing toxins from them; and stimulating bile secretion, which helps prevent gallstones from forming. You may eat parsley fresh or cooked, but be sure to remove the stems first (they are not edible). The freshness of parsley pairs beautifully with other ingredients like tomatoes or lemon juice in stews, salads, and on top of soups (like our recipe for Greek Soup). Broad beans, usually referred to as faba beans, are a kind of legume that is frequently used in Mediterranean cooking. They are common in many nations around the Mediterranean Sea and have long been a staple cuisine. They are not only affordable and simple to raise, but they are also healthful. High levels of protein, dietary fibre, and B vitamins including folate and riboflavin are all found in faba beans (vitamin B9). They may be used in both soups and salads because to their adaptability; when fried into falafel, they provide a fantastic vegetarian protein source! Red chilies, garlic, and other spices are used to make the hot chilli paste known as harissa. It is typically used as a condiment with Mediterranean foods including couscous, grilled meats, and seafood. It is Tunisian in origin. Additionally, couscous, yoghurt, sauces, barbecue sauces, and meat glazes may all be made using harissa as an ingredient. By roasting dried chilies and then grinding them with garlic, cumin, coriander seed, caraway, and olive oil, one may make harissa at home. However, this approach may produce inconsistently high-quality harissa owing to irregularities in heat transmission during the roasting of the components.

Lamb and mutton you will love to feast on
Anise's Raw Food Delights

Anise's Raw Food Delights


Wheat that has been parboiled, dried, and crushed is known as bulgur. Bulgur may be served as a side dish or added to salads, pilafs, and soups. Although it is thought that bulgur originated in the Mediterranean area, it has subsequently spread all over the globe. It is also widely used in Middle Eastern cooking; bulgur is a component in the salad tabbouleh and the soup kibbeh nayyeh (made with lamb). The food of Naples, Italy, is known as neapolitan cuisine. Its history spans more than 2,000 years. The ingredients and customs that the Greeks and Romans introduced to southern Italy during their conquest are the foundation of Neapolitan cuisine. It then served as a model for several other Mediterranean dishes. One of the most widely consumed types of Italian cuisine nowadays is neapolitan. Pizza, spaghetti, fish and seafood dishes like swordfish or calamari, among other meals, are only a few examples of the various varieties of Neapolitan cuisine (squid). The ingredients for the classic Middle Eastern meal baba ghanoush are eggplant, garlic, and tahini. It's often served with pita bread or pita chips as an appetiser or side dish, but it also tastes great as a main meal. Baba ghanoush is smooth and creamy, but not too substantial like hummus (another popular dip). For various tastes, serve it either warm or cold! Spanish paella is a rice dish that is often cooked with chicken, fish, or rabbit. It is often consumed on special occasions and presented in a big pan. The Latin word for pan is where the term "paella" originates (patella). The ingredients of koshary, sometimes spelled kushari, include rice, macaroni, lentils, and fried onions. Its origins are in Egypt, where it is revered as the national food. Tomato sauce is frequently drizzled on top of koshary.

Custard Greek Style: The Best Greek Custard Recipe


This Egyptian delicacy has been present since the 19th century; Al-Ahram, an Egyptian daily, published the first mention of it. The dish itself was developed by street vendors who required inexpensive meals to sell to working-class people daily as they travelled to work or school. Koshary became so well-liked because it made it possible for consumers to enjoy this comfort dish without going over their spending limits! The food of Italy is well-liked all throughout the globe. Pizza, spaghetti, risotto, lasagna, bread, custard desserts, and lentil soup are all common ingredients in Italian cuisine. Italian food mostly consists of meat, such as chicken or beef, and vegetables, such as tomatoes and peppers. Italy is renowned for its sauces, such as alfredo sauce and tomato sauce, which may be used on a variety of dishes, including pizza and pasta. The cephalopod class, which also contains octopus and cuttlefish, includes squid. Squid is a widely used element in international cuisine, particularly in Mediterranean nations like Greece and Italy. Squid is often eaten whole, however it may also be cut into rings or strips or filleted. Squid is not only tasty but also a fantastic source of protein, with one dish (100 grammes) containing around 19 grammes. Despite the fact that this quantity may seem little in comparison to other meals, the high quantities of vitamin B12 make up for it (which helps with brain function). Squid could be just up your alley the next time you're feeling experimental when it comes to the food selections at your favourite Mediterranean restaurant or market—or even if you'd want to cook your own dish at home! Making sausages is both a craft and an age-old art. It is both a science and an art. You are simply prohibited from calling your sausage "art" because doing so would be dishonest. This is but a sample of the delectable cuisine available in Mediterranean nations. There is food for everyone, including spaghetti and falafel. While certain meals may seem to be comparable to those from other regions of the globe, they often have their own distinctive twist or taste profile that sets them apart from the competition. Check out our blog section if you want to learn more about Mediterranean cooking or need travel inspiration before you go to one of these nations.

Custard Greek Style: The Best Greek Custard Recipe
A Mediterranean Blogger's Guide To Grape Pallets

A Mediterranean Blogger's Guide To Grape Pallets


A diverse range of cuisines from the nations bordering the Mediterranean Sea make up Mediterranean cuisine. The use of olive oil, herbs, and spices in the cuisine is often used to identify them. A filo-based pastry called a borek may be filled with cheese, spinach, feta, or meat. It has become a staple of Turkish cuisine and a favourite dish across the Mediterranean area. Depending on where you are from, the Borek is sometimes referred to as börek or boereg. A deep-fried ball or patty called falafel is produced with ground fava beans, chickpeas, or both. They are a well-liked street snack throughout the Mediterranean and Middle East. Frequently, tahini sauce, pickled veggies, and falafel are served in wraps (which is made from ground sesame seeds). Pita bread may be used to create falafel sandwiches. Did you realise? It's uncertain whether this was done on purpose, but the name "falafel" may have been derived from the Arabic word for "spheres" The ancient Egyptian meal fava bean soup, also known as ful medames, has a long history. In Egypt and the rest of the Middle East, it is consumed for breakfast, lunch, and supper as well as sometimes as a late-night snack. It is a rich and healthful dish made with dried fava beans that have been soaked overnight and cooked with olive oil, garlic, and cumin. Pita bread is often provided with the beans so that it may be dipped into the soup. The ingredients for moussaka include minced beef, potatoes, tomatoes, and eggplant. It was developed in the Ottoman Empire and is a staple of Turkish, Greek, and Cypriot cooking. It is unknown where the term moussaka came from; it might have been taken from Turkish musakka, which is a phrase derived from Arabic musakhkha (northern pronunciation), which means "to feed," or from the Arabic word musaqqa, which means "a meal containing meat." Fish stew known as bouillabaisse has its origins in Marseille. It is often served with a piece of bread and is cooked with fish, shellfish, and vegetables. It may be paired with either rouille or a saffron, garlic, and olive oil mayonnaise. A spread or dip known as hummus, often written houmous or humus, is created by blending cooked, mashed chickpeas with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and garlic. Garbanzo beans are another name for chickpeas. The Middle East is where the dish first appeared, and it then migrated to North Africa, Europe, and finally the United States.

Vegetable: An Idea Is Born


Hummus comes in a variety of flavours. For instance, some recipes substitute puréed red bell pepper for the garlic; others add ground cumin seed or coriander seed to the mixture; still other recipes combine cumin seed or coriander seed with paprika powder to create an orange-colored dip that resembles what Americans envision when they hear the word "hummus," but it's not hummus because it lacks tahini! Although hummus is sold in grocery stores throughout the country, many people are unaware of how easy it is to create it at home using dried chickpeas that can be purchased on Amazon (or any other place that sells legumes). These are simply boiled till soft after being soaked in water overnight, then all other ingredients are blended together to form a thick paste that can be kept in a glass jar and kept in the refrigerator for many weeks! In Egypt, food plays a significant role in culture. African, Indian, and Ottoman cuisine, as well as Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and Western cuisine, have all affected local cuisine. In the streets of Cairo or Alexandria, one may discover a variety of Egyptian specialties including falafel and fuul (fava beans). Typical dishes include: Mokh bel Zeit, often spelled mukhbil, is a meal made of a variety of vegetables, such as spinach or lettuce leaves, that have been packed with rice, pork, or fish, and then baked. Tahini sauce is frequently drizzled on top. Mukhalalatiyya are fried chickpeas that have been filled with ground beef and are often served with tahini sauce on top. sometimes referred to as mutabal or muhamara Spanish-made chorizo is a hot sausage that is also popular in Portugal and Latin America. It may be served either fried or fresh and is made with pork, garlic, and paprika. The inclusion of paprika powder during the sausage's manufacturing process gives the product its unique red colour. For breakfast or lunch, chorizo is often eaten with eggs. It is also frequently served with toast as part of an appetiser platter or tapas spread. A paste produced from mashed sesame seeds is called tahini. It is a staple ingredient in hummus, baba ghanoush, and halva and is used in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cooking. By pulverising hulled sesame seeds (also known as unhulled white sesame seeds) on a dry setting in a food processor or blender until creamy and smooth, you may manufacture your own tahini at home. If you don't have time to make it yourself, it's also available in jars at most grocery shops! The food of the Ottoman Empire and its descendants—Turkey, Greece, Albania, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, and the Republic of Cyprus—is known as Ottoman cuisine. It is a fusion of Balkan Slavic and Mughal Persian cuisine from Central Asia. In reality, Mediterranean cuisine and Asian cuisine have a lot of similarities (see below). In addition to bringing back various new fruits like oranges from their conquests in Italy and Spain around this time, the Ottomans also introduced coffee to Europe. The fruit tree known as the olive is indigenous to the Mediterranean area. Despite being found as far north as southern France and southeast England, the olive tree is most prevalent in hot, dry desert regions like those found in Morocco and Algeria (source).

Vegetable: An Idea Is Born

Frequently Asked Questions

Bouillabaisse (pronounced boo-yee-la-ba-zay) is a spicy French fish stew originating in Marseille, France. It typically includes three types of fish (such as grouper, redfish, and red mullet) along with saffron-flavored broth and saffron-infused olive oil. Tomatoes (""pomme de terre"" in French) are a common addition. The dish typically contains garlic and onions but may also include leeks and fennel. The fish is simmered in a stew base flavored with Saffron and orange zest.

Parsley is a kind of vegetable. Parsley is often used as a garnish, condiment, meal, and flavouring in a variety of dishes and drinks. Parsley seed oil is used in the production of soaps, cosmetics, and fragrances as a scent. Medicine is made from the leaf, seed, and root.