Greek dishes Archives - Good Food St. Louis

Greek-Style Braised Chickpeas

Cuisine Mediterranean

Ingredients

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil plus more to serve
2 Tbs. tomato paste
2 Tbs. honey divided, or grape molasses or honey
3 15-1/2 oz. each cans chickpeas, drained, 1/4 cup liquid reserved
28 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 medium red onion halved and thinly sliced
3 medium garlic cloves thinly sliced
5 bay leaves
1 spring fresh rosemary
1 tsp. grated orange zest plus 1/4 cup orange juice
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
1 Tbs. chopped fresh oregano
1/2 cup lightly packed fresh flat-leaf parsley chopped

Instructions

In a large Dutch oven over medium combine the oil, tomato paste and 1 Tbs. of the honey. Cook stirring often, until the tomato paste begins to brown, 6-7 minutes. Stir in chickpeas, then tomatoes with their juices. Bring to a simmer over medium-high and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has evaporated, 10-12 minutes.
Stir in onion, garlic, bay leaves, rosemary, orange juice, 1 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper and the reserved chickpea liquid. Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook over medium low, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened, 12-15 minutes.
Remove from heat, then taste and season with salt and pepper. Stir in oregano and orange zest. Transfer to a serving bowl. Sprinkle with the parsley, then drizzle with remaining honey and additional oil.

Greek Shrimp Sanganaki

February 1, 2019

Greek Shrimp Sanganaki

I love it when my kids invite me to dinner. It’s always an adventure. This week Lisa and Tom were making Sanganaki and asked me to join them.

“Sanga—what?” I asked.

“San-ga-na-ki,” she replied slowly.

“Hmm. . . sounds Japanese,” I said, showing my unawareness of the classic Mediterranean dish.

“No, it’s Greek,” she said. “The version I’m doing is from Bon Appetit and has shrimp, tomatoes and cheese. It’s usually served over toast as either an appetizer or main dish. But we like it better over noodles.”

Google Search

Before I showed up, I did an online search to learn more. I found this is a super-easy, but fabulous, one-pan meal! It’s named after the two-handled dish in which it’s prepared and served. In some Greeks restaurants, such as Parthenon in Chicago, a Greek cheese is sliced, coated with flour, and flambéed table side. It’s sometimes followed by a shout of “Opa!” Then the flame is extinguished with lemon juice.

The cooking takes place in a sanganaki pan or any heavy skillet. Lisa used a block of sheep’s milk feta cheese, which is easier to find than the traditional Greek cheeses.

Lisa’s seafood version included not only the sauteed cheese, but shrimp, tomatoes, wine, and broth. She included the ouzo (anise-flavored liqueur), but skipped the pyrotechnic display—that would definitely enlivens the dish at a dinner party—and plated the concoction directly onto noodles.

Garnished with parsley and dill and you have a dish fit for Zeus himself. “Opa!” Recipe here.

Greek Shrimp Sanganaki