Amazing Dishes at the Aegean: Mezes

The Aegean Sea borders between Greece and Turkey with countless islands, all filled with their unique histories and culture. If you have ever done a Turkey Tour along the Western coast or a Greek Islands tour, you have probably had the chance to taste the delicacies of this region. Even though positioned between two countries, the Aegean is a culture in its own, shared by both.

A few delicious Mezes to try
As the commonly known Turkish food lies somewhere far from the meze culture, it is more widely recognized as Greek food worldwide. Mezes are also common in different sorts, with less seafood, in the Middle-East. So, if you ever tried it anywhere, especially on a Greece or Turkey tour, the concept should not be brand new to you travelers.

What is referred to as meze is small dishes of all sorts of different food served as starters before your main meal. Sometimes, most of the time, enough to fill you up, but as dining takes more than an hour Aegean style, there is no rush. Mezes are heavily olive oil dishes of vegetables and seafood with varying sauces and tastes, which can be served hot or cold. There are more than 20 meze dishes which of all originate from separate parts of the area. For you, I will list a few that I enjoy the most during my Greek islands trips or Turkey tours. Thanks to the great guides I had on Travel Talk’s tours, I had the chance to taste every bit of this culture at the right places.

Babaghanoush
A very popular traditional meze, it is eggplant mashed and mixed with seasonings. Popular throughout Turkey and Greece as well as around Egypt and Middle-East, you can come across it anywhere, from a Greece islands trip to an Egypt tour.

Dolma / Dolmadaki
Dolma is a stuffed vegetable, that is, a vegetable that is hollowed out and filled with stuffing. This applies to zucchini, tomato, pepper, eggplant, and the like; stuffed mackerel, squid, and mussel are also called dolma. A form of Dolma is also Sarma, in which the stuffing is rolled within a leaf of grape vine, served with lemon.

Muhammara
This is a hot pepper dip with ground walnuts, breadcrumbs, garlic, salt, lemon juice, and olive oil, originating from the eastern Anatolia to gain recognition over time. It is great with meat, but sometimes can be spicy, so be careful! If you go on a Turkey tour moving inwards through Anatolia, or make an Egpyt or Jordan tour, you will come across this meze even more frequently.

Octopus
The popular octopus dishes are the octopus salad and grilled octopus. Octopus salad is nothing like it pops up to your head, it does not have any green, such as lettuce or sort, it is chopped octopus with olives and peppers served in olive oil, deliciously served cold. Served warm on the other hand, grilled octopus is as simple as its name, served plain after grill, nonetheless no less tasty.