Do you believe that garlic can be much more than you imagine?
That's why today we're going to travel to the Balkan peninsula and discover a typical dish from southern Europe: Skordalia, a delicious Greek garlic-based puree!
And why garlic?
Garlic is a superfood that contains allicin, a sulfur compound that gives garlic its powerful flavor. Allicin provides a number of health benefits. Allicin is a pesticide, antibiotic, antifungal, and antiviral, meaning that garlic can suppress the growth of almost any microorganism. But its most reputed benefit is its effect on the circulatory system. This compound lowers blood pressure and prevents platelets from clotting, which means it thins the blood and destroys blood clots.
You can read more about the super powers of our garlic, its ancient history and its benefits here .
Greece, Ooh La La…
Greece is known for its alluring views, soothing music and fresh, nutritious food. In fact, the sea-dappled country is home to several blue zones — places where residents typically live to be well into their 100s and still be in good shape.
With this in mind, let’s take a look at a very local version of Skordalia. This dish makes an excellent garlicky side dish or mezze , great for livening up any dish, from boiled beetroot to salted cod.
Let's get to work!
This is our Skordalia recipe:
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Servings : 3-5 (depending on how much garlic you can eat!)
This side dish is completely vegan, so without further ado, let the bouzouki music carry you away and start cooking!
What will you need to make Skordalia?
- 5 cloves of garlic
- 1 shot white wine vinegar or fresh lemon juice
- 3 slices of dry bread or 1 cup of walnuts
- Oil
- Salt and pepper
And now?
Preparation Method:
- Soak 3 pieces of bread in a bowl of water.
- Peel 5 cloves of garlic and crush them with a mortar and pestle. If you don't have these utensils, a blender will be a great substitute.
- Add the soaked bread to the garlic and mix them together.
For a lighter version of the dish, you can use a cup full of walnuts instead of bread, and for a richer version, swap the bread for 1 boiled potato.
- Add half a cup of olive oil and season the puree with salt and pepper.
- Finally, add a dash of white wine vinegar or lemon juice and mix everything again until it reaches a porridge-like consistency.
- And voilà! You just made skordalia!
Just add a little olive oil on top and eat with the closest piece of food your hunger can grab.