Ben Tish profile picture credit: Kris Kirkham
Mediterra is a collection of my favourite recipes gathered over many years of travelling through the Mediterranean, from shore to shore and beyond to its islands – holidays, work or research, I’m there!
While the countries of the Mediterranean are varied and diverse, food and its culture are a common thread: the way of eating, sharing and revelling in the daily meal is an almost sacrosanct act; a passion and love for the produce and a focus on flavour, seasonality and simplicity.
This is a cuisine of the sun. A cuisine of fragrance and flavour: olive oil, fresh herbs, ripe seasonal tomatoes, juicy stone fruits and oozy figs, sizzling garlic, crushed spices aromatic from roasting, the perfumed zest of orange, lemon and bergamot, smoky grilled meats served with flatbreads to mop up the juices, and the freshest fish grilled over hot coals. This is the food that I love.
Sea bream crudo
Not just a summer dish, this beautiful, vibrant crudo will also brighten up the winter months when blood oranges are at their best. The bittersweet, ruby-red juices lightly cure the fish, and the cumin-infused dressing adds an earthy, aromatic punch. Always choose the freshest possible fish for crudo, so the just-caught sweetness and texture of the flesh stand out among the accompanying flavours. I like to serve a platter of this in the centre of the table to share, accompanied by really good bread to mop up the citrussy,
