Dips can be a party starter, part of a mezze or antipasto spread, or even an easy super with some salad and delicious bread. From Europe, through the Middle East to Asia, here are some of my favourite dip recipes.
Portuguese Sardine Pate Sardines abound in Portuguese waters and are one of the country’s most popular fish, with each person consuming an average of 5kg per year. Lisbon’s annual sardine festival sees the streets filled with parties, parades and makeshift charcoal grilling stations cooking so many sardines that about 13 are eaten every second of […]
Turkish Eggplant Salad Eggplant appears in so many dishes in Turkey that it should be named the country’s national vegetable! And why not – it’s a wonderfully versatile and delicious ingredient, especially when it’s exposed to a bit of intense heat. One of Turkey’s most ubiquitous dishes, patliçan salatası (Turkish eggplant salad) often automatically arrives […]
Aussie Solomon Gundy Get More Caribbean Inspiration Here! Solomon Gundy is a classic Jamaican spread (also called solomon-a-gundy) made from heavily salted herring so strongly smoked that the flesh turns a reddish brown (thus ‘red herrings’). The rather odd sounding name comes from the old-fashioned English term salmagundi, referring to a highly-seasoned dish made from […]
Hummus I was taught to make hummus by a Cypriot friend’s grandmother and her recipe produces the smoothest, creamiest hummus I’ve ever had. She insisted that you should remove the skin from the chickpeas to get a smoother texture. I find it quite therapeutic popping them out of their little casings, but you can leave […]
Tapenade Like this recipe? You’ll love my online French cooking class featuring the Food of Provence! I love salt, so a dish made of black olives, capers and anchovies is right up my alley. Tapenade hails from Provence in the sunny south of France and is generally regarded as an olive paste, however the name […]
Guacamole & Pico de Gallo Guacamole is one of the quickest snacks to toss together and serve with drinks. It seems lime juice is not traditional – but it’s the best way I know to stop the avocado from browning, and I like the tang it adds (storing it with the avocado seed in the […]
Artichoke & White Bean Dip This artichoke & white bean dip is a simple way to enjoy artichokes when you don’t want to go to all the fuss of trimming, removing leaves and scraping out chokes. Use good quality bottled artichokes, preferably stored in oil or acidulated water, not vinegar as that makes the taste […]
