Take that recipe to perfection of your diet!
Looking for real, traditional Mediterranean food? Here is a collection of authentic Mediterranean food recipes. These are from a variety of different Mediterranean countries. Some of these are our own recipes, but many of them have been given to us by friends and colleagues who live in the Mediterranean, or have spent considerable time living and eating there. Even though these recipes are from different Mediterranean countries, they all have one thing in common, they all use extra virgin olive oil. Most of the vegetable and bean dishes included are dripping in liquid gold. This is one of the reasons why they taste so good. Another thing in common is that these recipes aren’t difficult to make. Many of them are one-pot meals which makes them great for feeding your whole family. You can create an entire Mediterranean feast using a few recipes from this list. You can have a lot of variety because some recipes use quite a bit more spices than the others, like the tagine recipe for example. There is also recipes for everyone in here because there are vegan, gluten-free, vegetarian, and anti-inflammatory options. The first recipe you see below is a traditional Greek salad recipe, because what’s more authentic in Mediterranean cuisine than that? I hope you enjoy the rest of the recipes and share them with your friends and family! Kali Orexi! (Bon Appetit in Greek)
Authentic Greek Salad (Horiátiki Salata)
Mediterranean Diet Recipes: Authentic Greek Salad
In 2014, I visited Greece for the first time. I had waited my entire life to eat real Greek food seeing that I’m half Greek. I was also hoping to collect some authentic Mediterranean Diet recipes.
I arrived in Athens and was set to go on a study tour throughout the country. I got to my hotel and the study group was waiting for me to go to dinner together. I put my luggage in my room and we walked through the busy streets to a traditional Greek taverna. The waiter brought us bread with extra virgin olive oil to dip. The oil was so good. Then he brought the greek salad. This was a moment I will never forget. I took one bite of a red, juicy tomato slice and I thought to myself “What have I been eating my whole life?!” This was the sweetest, most flavorful, deep red, and beefy tomato I had ever sunk my teeth into.
Then I tasted the feta…. I literally asked the other students if we ordered the salad with goat cheese instead of feta. They laughed at me and said no, this is what the feta is like in Greece. I was in heaven already one hour into my trip. I began to question again what feta had I been eating all these years that I thought was so good? There’s something that happens with a real Greek salad. The tomatoes have so much juice, that by the time the salad is mostly eaten, the oil, tomato juice, feta, onion, and oregano have made this amazing dipping mixture.
Anyone who has eaten a real Horiatiki Salata knows that this is the absolute best and healthiest juice to dip your bread in. I could eat this salad twice a day everyday, and we did on this study tour. The salads got even tastier the farther out of the city and into the countryside we got. To me this is the best salad in the world. A summer meal without this salad just isn’t happening.
Ingredients
3 medium tomatoes, quartered
1 large cucumber, peeled and sliced
1/4 red onion, cut into thin strips
1/4 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
10 kalamata olives
6 oz feta cheese
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil buy now
Splash of red wine vinegar or lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon oregano
salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
Add all veggies and olives to a bowl.
Top with feta cheese, olive oil, lemon juice (or vinegar), and oregano. Salt and pepper, to taste.
Servings : 2
Ready in : 10 Minutes
Course : Salads, Sides
Recipe Type : 30 Minute Meals, Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Weight Loss
Ingredient : Cucumber, Feta, Lemon Juice, Olive Oil, Olives, Peppers, Tomatoes
Armenian Losh Kebab (Lamb and Beef Burgers)
Losh Kebab Lamb and Beef Burgers
Armenian picnic/bazaar at St. Gregory’s Armenian Orthodox church in Indian Orchard, MA. It’s nice to see my Armenian family and meet distant cousins, but since I’m so obsessed with food, you can guess why I’m really there. This is a much smaller church and community than a lot of the huge Greek picnics held in New England, and for this reason, they focus on making all the food fresh and traditional without having to worry about feeding massive crowds. As soon as you step out of your car, you can smell the charcoal and meat aromas wafting through the air. It’s always funny to see the men grilling, arguing about which meat needs to be flipped and/or taken off the grill. They grill on a large rectangular grill with charcoal, which I think gives the best flavor when grilling. These lamb burgers are one of my favorites.
There are two main options, shish kebab, and losh kebab. The shish kebab is delicious, but the losh kebab is much harder to find outside of these picnics. The losh kebab is a large burger made with fifty percent lamb, fifty percent beef. It is mixed with amazing herbs, spices, and chopped white onion. It’s an absolute flavor bomb. There is lots of fresh parsley and onion chopped up and mixed into the beef and lamb burgers. I also notice a slight tomatoey flavor which is from the tomato paste. For spices, the main note I taste is cumin, which is so delicious in grilled meat recipes. The losh kebab is cooked to your liking. I personally like mine a little pink in the middle because it stays juicy that way. If you like it cooked well done that obviously works great too.
Losh kebab can be served in a couple of different ways. At the Armenian picnic that I go to, it is served with buttery Armenian rice pilaf, salad with olive oil and vinegar, pita bread, and a mixture of chopped onions and fresh parsley.
These beef and lamb burgers are a beautiful and filling plate to serve your guests. Armenian pilaf is loved by everyone, not just Armenians, because of its buttery and comforting nature. Everyone always asks for my mom Lucine’s recipe and I hope to share it with you in the near future. Besides the losh kebab plate, you can get it in a sandwich also. I take a piece of fresh pita bread and open it. Then I cut the losh kebab in half and spoon in a lot of onion/fresh parsley mixture, the more the better! I don’t usually put any sauce in this sandwich because I want the losh kebab to rule, but yogurt would be an amazing condiment. A fresh squeeze of lemon can’t hurt either! I hope you enjoy this recipe and please comment on how your losh kebabs came out, and if there’s anything you would change.
Ingredients
1 lb ground lamb
1 lb ground beef
1 egg
3/4 cup chopped parsley
1/2 white onion, chopped
1 Tablespoon cumin
1/4 cup tomato sauce or 1 Tablespoon tomato paste
Juice of 1/4 lemon
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil buy now
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 white onion, chopped
1 cup fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
In a bowl, combine the ground beef, lamb, egg, 1/2 onion, 3/4 cup parsley, egg, cumin, tomato sauce/paste, lemon, olive oil, and salt and pepper. Form into burger patties and set aside.
Heat the grill to medium high heat.
Grill the losh kebab burgers, flipping only once. You can grill these medium rare, or well, depending on your preference. Set aside to rest.
Chop the other onion and parsley. Combine well in a bowl.
Place a burger in a pita wrap, top with onion/parsley mixture, wrap it up, and enjoy!
Servings : 8
Ready in : 30 Minutes
Course : Dinner, Lunch, Main Dish
Recipe Type : 30 Minute Meals, Gluten Free, Grilling, Paleo Mediterranean, Weight Loss
Ingredient : Beef, Cumin, lamb, Onions, Parsley
Black Eyed Peas with Fresh Dill, Olive Oil and Orange Slices
Black eyed peas with Fresh Dill, Olive Oil and Orange Slices is one of my all-time favorite Mediterranean Diet recipes. How can you go wrong with fresh dill, fresh parsley, green onions, orange slices, and 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil. As you prepare this amazing dish, I would highly recommend resisting the urge to cut back on the olive oil. As you simmer the ingredients, the oil cooks into the beans and herbs and what is left thickens to make a flavorful gravy. This is a traditional vegan dish from the island of Crete and works great with a vegan salad.
Ingredients
2 large or 4 small cans black eyed beans
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup fresh parsley, stems removed, chopped
1 cup fresh dill, stems removed, chopped
4 green onions, thinly sliced
2 carrots, peeled and grated
2 bay leaves
2 slices orange with peel and flesh
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
Drain beans, reserving liquid.
Heat oil in a deep pot. Sauté beans, parsley, dill, onions, and carrots for 3 minutes.
Add bay leaves, orange peel, tomato paste, 2 cups reserved liquid from beans and 2 cups water.
Stir and cook for 30 minutes.
Salt and pepper, to taste
Servings : 6
Ready in : 55 Minutes
Course : Dinner, Sides
Recipe Type : Cheap Eats, Vegan, Vegetarian
Ingredient : Black Eyed Beans, Dill, Olive Oil, Onions
Egyptian Lentils with Rice and Pasta (Koshari)
Mediterranean Diet Recipes: Egyptian Lentils with Rice and Pasta
Koshari, also spelled Kushari, is the national dish of Egypt. It is one of the best Mediterranean diet recipes for using up things in your pantry. You can find Koshari in food carts and restaurants all over Egypt (and now you can make it in your own home!). This dish requires cooking everything separately and assembling it all at the end. Koshari is great because it’s cheap to make, very filling, and equally flavorful. The crispy, fried onion topping is optional, but traditional and gives this recipe a nice crunch!
Ingredients
1 cup dry lentils
1 cup dry basmati rice
1 cup spaghetti, broken into small pieces
2 small onions, grated
4 cloves garlic, pressed
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil buy now
1 lb tomatoes, grated
1/4 tsp red chili pepper flakes (optional)
salt and pepper, to taste
For Crispy Onion Topping:
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil for frying
1 large onion cut into rings
1/4 cup all purpose flour
Instructions
Boil lentils and a dash of salt in water for 30 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Cook rice in a pot with a dash of salt in 2 cups water for approximately 15 minutes. Once rice is cooked, cover the pot with a tea towel.
Boil spaghetti with a dash of salt according to package directions. Mix with a Tablespoon of oil and cover the pot.
In another pot, add olive oil, onions and garlic, saute 2 minutes, add chopped tomatoes, pepper flakes, salt and pepper and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste and simmer for 15 minutes.
Gently mix together lentils, rice and spaghetti. Serve with a dollop of the tomato sauce.
For Crispy Onion Topping:
Heat the olive oil to medium high heat.
Toss onion rings in flour and shake off excess.
Fry until crispy, about 15 to 20 minutes. Drain on paper towels, salt lightly (if desired) and then top lentil dish with crispy onions.
Servings : 6
Ready in : 85 Minutes
Course : Lunch, Main Dish, Sides
Recipe Type : Mediterranean Street Foods, Vegan, Vegetarian
Ingredient : Lentils, Pasta, Rice