Eating together, sharing, and enjoying: That's exactly what Meze is all about-the small dishes that traditionally come to the center of the table around the Mediterranean. Star chef Ali Güngörmüş dedicates his cookbook "Meze" (DK Verlag) to them and shows how diverse Mediterranean cuisine is. Whether it's refreshing watermelon with feta, aromatic cod, or sweet baklava: These three recipes bring vacation vibes to the plate and are perfect for convivial evenings with family and friends.
Feta with Pine Nut-Orange Crunch and Watermelon
Ingredients for 4 people: 1 piece watermelon (about 500 g peeled), 2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar, 50 ml olive oil, juice of 1/2 orange, 1 sprig each of mint and dill, 100 g yogurt (10% fat), 50 g mayonnaise, salt and pepper, 40 g pine nuts, 20 g butter, 2 tbsp panko (Japanese breadcrumbs), zest and segments of 1/2 organic orange, 1 slice feta (about 200 g)
Preparation: Peel the melon and cut into approximately 2 cm cubes. Marinate in a bowl with vinegar, olive oil, and orange juice.
Wash the herbs, pat dry, and pluck off the leaves or tips. Finely chop some leaves for garnish and set aside, puree the rest in a tall mixing cup with yogurt and mayonnaise using an immersion blender to make a green sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
Toast the pine nuts in a small pan with butter and panko, turning occasionally, remove from heat and refine with the orange zest. Pat the feta dry with paper towels and cut into pieces. Distribute the pine nut-panko crumbs on top and press down.
Spread the green sauce on a platter or small plates, arrange the marinated melon on top, and place the feta-crumb pieces alongside. Garnish with the orange segments and the reserved herbs.
Flaked Cod with Curry-Date Dip
Ingredients for 4 people: 1 cod loin (about 600 g, with skin), salt, sugar, sunflower oil for frying
For the dip: 2 very (!) fresh egg yolks, 1 tsp lemon juice, salt, 1 tsp medium-hot mustard, 1 tsp curry powder (e.g., Ali's curry blend), 200 ml sunflower oil, 1 tbsp finely chopped cilantro, 50 g yogurt (10% fat), 4 dried dates (finely diced)
Preparation: For the fish, the day before, wash the loin, pat dry, and season all around with salt and 1 pinch of sugar. Wrap the fish compactly in plastic wrap and let it marinate in the refrigerator; this makes the flesh firmer and translucent.
The next day, prepare a mayonnaise for the dip; the ingredients should be at room temperature. Put the egg yolks with lemon juice, salt, mustard, and curry powder in a tall mixing cup. Place the immersion blender on the bottom and gradually stir in the oil until a creamy mayonnaise forms. Finally, fold in cilantro, yogurt, and dates.
For the fish, preheat the oven to 120°C (convection). Unwrap the cod from the foil and sear it skin-side down in a little oil in an oven-safe pan. Then let it cook through in the oven on the middle rack for another 8-10 minutes until translucent. Remove, let cool slightly, and use a spoon to separate or flake it into individual segments.
Spread the dip on a platter or plates and arrange the cod on top. Serve with organic lemon wedges if desired.
Baked Baklava Sheets with Pear-Lime Marmalade
Ingredients for 4 people - for the marmalade: 2 ripe Williams pears, 2 organic limes, about 250 g gelling sugar 2:1 (weigh it!)
For the baklava: 6 yufka dough sheets, 100 g melted butter, about 6 tbsp powdered sugar
Also: 100 g labneh (Turkish supermarket or homemade), some mint leaves for garnish
Preparation: For the marmalade, peel the pears, quarter them, remove the core, and dice the flesh into small pieces. Wash the limes in hot water, dry them, finely grate the zest and add to the pears. Then peel the limes generously enough that the white pith is also removed. Cut out the segments between the individual membranes and also add to the pears. Catch the escaping juice and squeeze out the rest of the limes well, also adding the juice.
Weigh the fruit, add three-quarters of the weight in gelling sugar, and boil everything in a pot according to package directions for 3-4 minutes at a rolling boil to make marmalade. Pour into a bowl to cool and place in the refrigerator.
For the baklava, preheat the oven to 180°C (convection). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Brush the yufka dough sheets individually with the melted butter, dust with powdered sugar, and stack them. Cut about 9 squares (10-12 cm edge length) with a pizza cutter and fold each dough square into a triangle. Brush the top again with butter and dust with powdered sugar, place side by side on the sheet, and bake in the oven on the middle rack for about 15 minutes until golden brown.
Then remove the triangles from the oven and let cool on a cooling rack. Once they have cooled, carefully open them slightly on one of the two short sides and fill with a spoonful of 1 large dollop of pear-lime marmalade in the center.
Arrange the pockets on a platter and serve the labneh alongside. If desired, you can also put the labneh in a piping bag with a round tip and pipe some onto each pocket. Garnish with fresh mint leaves.
