Taramasalata

"Tarama" redirects here. For the village in Okinawa, see Tarama, Okinawa. For the song by Eggstone, see Vive La Différence!
Taramasalata
A plate of taramasalata garnished with cucumber, olives and tomato
TypeSpread
CourseMeze
Place of originGreece
Main ingredientsTarama (salted and cured roe of cod or carp), bread crumbs or mashed potatoes, lemon juice or vinegar, olive oil

Taramasalata or taramosalata (Greek: ταραμοσαλάτα; from taramás 'fish roe' < Turkish: tarama[1] + Greek: saláta 'salad' < Italian: insalata[2]) is a meze made from tarama, the salted and cured roe (colloquially referred to as caviar) of the cod, carp, or grey mullet (bottarga) mixed with olive oil, lemon juice, and a starchy base of bread or potatoes, or sometimes almonds. Variants may include garlic, spring onions, or peppers, or vinegar instead of lemon juice.[3][4] While not traditionally Greek, smoked rather than cured cod's roe is more widely available in some places, and often used. Bottarga is usually much more expensive than cod's roe.[5]

Traditionally the dish is made with a pestle and mortar, giving a slightly grainy texture, but commercial taramasalata is commonly blended to a very smooth paste.[5]

Taramasalata is usually served as a meze, often with ouzo, as a spread on bread.[6] The colour can vary from creamy beige to pink, depending on the type of roe and colourings used. Most taramasalata sold commercially is dyed pink, but high-quality taramasalata is always beige in colour.[3]

In Greece, taramasalata is often served on Clean Monday (Καθαρά Δευτέρα, Kathará Deftéra), the first day of Great Lent, with onions and lemon.[6]

  1. ^ Ayverdi, İlhan (2005). "tarama". Misalli Büyük Türkçe Sözlük [Misalli Great Turkish Dictionary]. Vol. 3 (O–Z). Kubbealtı. p. 3069. ISBN 975-6444-24-X.
  2. ^ "taramasalata". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. Houghton Mifflin Company.
  3. ^ a b Kochilas, Diane (February 28, 2012). "Tarama, Greek cod roe, explained". DianeKochilas.com. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
  4. ^ Basan, Ghillie; Basan, Jonathan (15 April 1997). Classic Turkish Cooking. p. 68. ISBN 0312156170.
  5. ^ a b Felicity Cloake (13 May 2015). "How to make the perfect taramasalata". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  6. ^ a b Susanna Hoffman, Victoria Wise, The Olive and the Caper: Adventures in Greek Cooking, 2004, ISBN 1563058480, p. 43