Mediterranean
Sun-drenched ingredients, olive oil and the freshest seasonal produce.
About Mediterranean cuisine
The Mediterranean isn’t a country, it’s a sea — and the cooking that sits around it has more in common than the politics on its shores suggest. Greek, southern Italian, Provençal, Catalan, Lebanese, Moroccan and Turkish cooking all draw on the same handful of ingredients: olive oil, lemons, vegetables, fish, herbs, lamb, grains. Each country pulls them in its own direction, but the underlying language is the same.
The defining flavours are bright and clean. Good olive oil, lemon juice, fresh oregano and parsley, garlic, ripe tomatoes, plenty of fresh fish, lamb cooked slowly, grains like bulgur and farro, beans and pulses for warmth. The technique that matters most is restraint — a piece of fish needs salt, oil and a squeeze of lemon, not seven other things. Trust the ingredients and step back.
It’s some of the most forgiving food you can cook at home, and some of the healthiest. A bowl of beans dressed with good oil, a tray of roasted vegetables with feta, a piece of grilled fish with herbs and lemon — none of it is hard, and all of it tastes better than the effort suggests.
My Mediterranean is hard to slim down — over the years it has meant Egypt, Greece, Italy, Southern France and, of course, Spain. Work gave me the chance to see Athens straight after my Bahrain years, but the place we return to is Halkidiki, in northern Greece. These days we like an all-inclusive stay, and I make no apology for it: where else can you wander from Greek to Spanish to Italian in a single evening, tasting the differences and enjoying every one? That, really, is the Mediterranean — many kitchens, one shared table.
Key ingredients
Stock these and you can cook Mediterranean almost any night of the week.
Extra virgin olive oilUsed by the bottleful — for cooking, dressing and finishing.
LemonsJuice for dressings, zest for fish, preserved for stews.
Oregano & parsleyDried oregano on grilled meats, fresh parsley scattered everywhere.
GarlicCrushed into dressings, slow-roasted whole, rubbed onto warm bread.
Fresh fishWhole, grilled simply or baked in the oven with lemon and herbs.
Beans & pulsesChickpeas, white beans and lentils — protein, body and warmth.
Recipes from my kitchen
A handful of Mediterranean recipes I cook on rotation. All tested in a real kitchen.
Seared Scallops with Cannellini Beans and Chorizo
This recipe for Seared Scallops with Cannellini Beans and Spinach turns out a healthy dinner that looks impressive (and tastes great).
Steak Kebabs
Nothing quite like rainbow veggie Kebabs dotted with succulent cubes of marinated Fillet Steak, charred to perfection over the grill.
Spiced Fillet of Lamb with Cannellini Beans
Try this succulent fillet of lamb, served with cannellini beans. You will not be disappointed.
