Meze: Small Plates to Savor and Share from the Mediterranean Table (Hardcover)

by Diane Kochilas (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
To confuse meze with antipasto or tapas is to miss the point. These small plates of Greek deliciousness come to us from a Mediterranean world of mid-afternoon snacking, drinking, and talking. The pace is leisurely, the content simple, the effect extraordinary. Early on in Meze Diane Kochilas, award-winning author of The Glorious Foods of Greece, sets the prototypic meze stage: two village codgers holding down either side of a small table; two glasses and a carafe of raki between them; a plate with some bread, olives, air-dried anchovies, cucumber sticks, and cheese. They do not sit at the table so much as beside the table, the better to take in the world.

And thus it is with meze. It's not about sitting down to eat as much as being present to exchange ideas, enjoy a glass of wine or spirits, and snack on taste treats that enliven the palate and pull all the threads of the whole into one. Kochilas divides Meze into "Dips, Spreads, and Relishes"; "Savory Salads"; "Small Egg Dishes"; "Phyllo Pies"; "Finger Foods and Fried Treats"; "Vegetable and Bean Mezethes"; "A Sea's Bounty"; "From Meatballs to Kebabs"; and, the "Meze Pantry." She provides sources for ingredients. And she includes enlightening notes on Greek wine and spirits, perfect for serving with these small dishes. She is truly a master of it all and a delight to read. When was the last time you mixed garlicky yogurt with dried apricots, or baked figs with oregano? Put your hand in Kochilas's oven mitt. She'll take you to a new, delicious, life-invigorating territory. --Schuyler Ingle

From Publishers Weekly
Mezethes (plural of meze, which means middle) are little Mediterranean dishes designed to complement a beverage, tease the tastebuds and encourage diners to linger around a table for good conversation, says Kochilas (The Glorious Foods of Greece), and "variety, playfulness, and surprise" are key to their preparation. Her nicely illustrated cookbook offers 80 meze recipes to pair with ouzo or Greek wines, and shows American home cooks how a varied gathering of Greek, Turkish and Lebanese flavors-olives, anchovies, cured beef, cheese, good bread-can make for a perfect brunch or buffet spread (though, Kochilas is careful to note, a "meze spread is not meant to be a meal, but a nosh"). Her chapters cover culinary themes such as Dips, Spreads and Relishes, Small Egg Dishes, Finger Foods and Fried Treats, and A Sea's Bounty of Mezethes; dishes range from Fluffy Fish-Roe Dip with Ground Almonds (a variant of the classic taramosalata), to Three-Cheese Phyllo Triangles with Onions and Yogurt, to Marinated Panfried Shrimp in the Shell, to Grilled Greek Meat Patties with Chopped Tomatoes, Spicy Yogurt, and Lemon. (Don't let the long names fool you-these dishes are never difficult to prepare.) These piquant, lively foods are "a savory flirtation," and an array of them on a table is a delightful thing.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks; 1 edition (June 3, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688175112
• ISBN-13: 978-0688175115
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #620,958 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simple Pleasures, November 18, 2003

By	B. Marold "Bruce W. Marold" (Bethlehem, PA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Cooking from this book was a great joy after having spent several days with books dealing with French haute cuisine. I heartily recommend this book to just about anyone as a source of tasty, easy, traditional dishes. The only reservations would be to people who may not have the time or inclination to search out some of the speciality ingredients.

Almost all recipes in this book use fewer than 12 ingredients and the technique rarely takes more than four (4) steps, taking no more than a half page of text. This is not exactly quick cooking, although there are a fair number of quick recipes herein. Some recipes do require long marinades, but very few require long cooking. Most heat is from either a quick saute or a grill.

The issues with ingredients, especially for those who like to stay authentic, is probably solved if you live in a large city and there is a Greek or middle eastern grocery available. It is also probably not a big issue if you live near a `megamart' which carries a generous supply of Greek and Turkish staples. Needless to say, even if you live in the sticks, there are internet sources for everything. The most important speciality ingredients are:

Greek feta - There is barrel cured and tin cured. Some recipes recommend one type. Some the other.
Other Greek Cheeses - Popular Italian cheeses like ricotta will substitute for most requirements.
Greek Oregano - Dried
Greek / Eastern Mediterranian yogurt - Fortunately, there is an easy way to make plain yogurt work.
Dried Mint - Yes, dried. Fresh mint is also commonly used.
Greek Extra Virgin Olive Oil - `What is grown together goes together'. But Italian or Spanish will work.
Phyllo - Supermarket Phyllo is fine.
Octopus - The national seafood of Greece.
Pastourma - Cured Beef

Once you locate a source, I believe most ingredients such as the Greek olive oil will actually be less expensive than Italian substitutes. Almost all other ingredients such as eggplant, pita, and ouzo are very common everywhere in the country.

Meze, short for mezethes, denotes small dishes served typically at small eateries like `mezethopoleion'; ouzeri, similar to the Italian wine shop; and the tsipouradiko, serving Greek eau-de-vie. The object of these establishments and their meze fare is to offers its patrons a place to eat, drink, and have conversation in the hours between large meals. The author points out that although there is a strong similarity in portion size and preparation similarity to Spanish tapas, the dishes were specifically developed to be eaten only as an accompanyment to drink in the middle of the day, not as a `before the meal' bite to get you started on the main meal of the day. It is much more comparable to bar nuts, pretzels, and pickled eggs on American bars.

All portions are small and most are designed to be eaten with the fingers, bread, or skewer. Chapters in the book cover:

Dips, Spreads, and Relishes; Savory Salads; Small Egg Dishes; Phyllo Pies; Fried Finger Foods; Vegetables and Beans; Seafood; and Meatballs and Kebabs

The author is a recognized authority on Greek food and has a written a widely praised book on general Greek cuisine. The color pictures are decorative, but few. While I found all instructions very simple, the author did occasionally seem a bit opaque. I still don't totally understand her instructions for peeling a roasted eggplant. As Martha Stewart said in one of her book introductions, this book made me want to immediately try many of the dishes. This is a sure symptom that there is good food to be had here.

27 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What Rain?, September 1, 2003

By A Customer

Busy with bowls of savory Bread Salad with Watermelon, Feta, and Red Onion and Little Meatballs Stuffed with Olives, thunderstorms couldn't stop us from enjoying the last weekend of Summer. I found numerous recipes in Meze's index calling for different combinations of the just-picked vegetables from my mom's lovingly tended garden. Baby Eggplants with Herbs & Bulgur was the visual star of our Meze-covered table: luxurious eggplants with savory herb-flecked stuffing baked over a rich tomato "sauce" was amazingly simple to make. Author Kochilas demystifies favorite ingredients like thick, creamy Greek-style Tangy Yogurt [with Sauteed Carrots and Mint] by sprinkling Notes on technique throughout her book. It was a spectacular summer feast. And I can't wait til Fall to try the Pumpkin-Cheese Triangles.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, September 25, 2006

By	Joyce A. Christian "seajoyce" (Santa Barbara, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Lovely book, lovely photos...BUT I am disappointed in the recipes. Admittedly, I have only tried five of them, but was disappointed in all five. I am a good cook,lived in Greece for 2 years, and have been cooking Greek food for some 30 years with great success. Some of the MEZE recipes were O.K., but not REALLY good, and one was a disaster. Sorry.