Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--Various Mediterranean Dishes

     This week's post will be a little different.  For the first time in ages, I won't be talking about some edible or drinkable bought from my local Shop Rite supermarket.  Instead, I'll be discussing various items I got from a single restaurant, Family Mediterranean Cuisine, located in Pitman, NJ.  I tried a sampling of their fare.  Some of these, admittedly, are now pretty common in the U.S., but I think that most of these dishes are still a bit exotic to most folks, except those with a Mediterranean or Middle Eastern heritage, obviously.  Also, most of these dishes are mezes, or appetizers, eaten before the main meal.

     Let's start with the most common one, hummus.  As is the case with pretty much all of the foods I'll be covering today, hummus has many alternate spellings.  Hummus is a dip or spread made from ground chick peas, tahini (which is made from sesame seeds), lemon juice, and garlic.  It's unknown exactly when and where it was invented, but the earliest definite reference to it can be found in a 13th century Egyptian cookbook.

    Babagannush is made from baked and mashed eggplant, sesame seeds, lemon, garlic, olive oil, and various seasonings.  It's a staple in the Levantine area, which is comprised of Syria, Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, and Palestine.  (Neighboring countries have also clearly adapted some of their foods.) Its specific area of origin is believed to be Lebanon.

     Lebni is also enjoyed in the Levantine area, as well as other parts of the Middle East, Eastern Mediterranean, and Central and South Asia.  Lebni is strained yogurt, which has had its whey removed.  This results in a thicker texture, but retains the sour flavor.  It's sometimes called "Greek yogurt" in the U.S., and is also similar to Icelandic skyr (See December 7th, 2016 post).  Lebni is usually a dip, or sometimes a spread put on sandwiches.

     Tabule is yet another Levantine treat, which is a vegetable salad.  The ingredients are usually parsley, tomato, mint, onions, wheat, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and sweet pepper.  Its exact birthplace is thought to be Syria and Lebanon.

     Cacik is often known as tzatziki, and is another dip or spread.  This one is made throughout the Middle East and Southeast Europe.  It's strained yogurt mixed with cucumbers, salt, olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, thyme, parsley, dill and mint.  Its origin is believed to be within the Ottoman Empire.  A Turkish variant adds radishes, red pepper, and carrots, sometimes in lieu of the cucumber.

     Stuffed grape leaves are also fairly well known by now, and are typically grape vine leaves wrapped around spiced rice, and sometimes meat, as well as olive oil.  Some folks add fruit, such as raisins, black currants, and figs.  These can be either an appetizer or a main course.  Alternate names include dolma and sarma.

     Acili ezme is a combination of various minced vegetables and spices.  Tomato, onion, walnuts, and green herbs are typical.  The spiciness is fairly acute.

     Arnavut cigeri has a somewhat misleading title.  It literally means "Albanian liver" in modern Turkish.  However, its area of origin is actually what is now Turkey, in the 15th century.  This is because Albanian immigrants to this country developed the meal.  It is fried liver cubes seasoned with hot peppers, onions, and parsley.

     And here's what I thought:

Babagannush:  This was a greenish-brown mush, and I tried it plain, and as a dip for the bread.  It was basically like an eggplant salad, an odd taste.  I didn't like it much at first, but it kind of grew on me.  Solid, but not great.

Lebni:  This was a whitish mush, which I also tried plain, and then with the bread.  It was slightly spicy, and tasted like a savory yogurt.  Really good, liked it a lot.

Tabule:  Green chopped veggies, mostly eggplant.  A bit slimy.  But okay.  Not spicy.

Cacik:  A white sauce with visible cucumber pieces.  Loved this--really vinegary and savory.  A bit of a spice bite.

Stuffed grape leaves:  Green leaves wrapped around rice, soaked in olive oil.  Excellent, really tasty.  nice vinegar tinge.

Hummus:  A thick yellowish paste with red spices on top.  Rich and tasty.  Like pretty much all hummus, I guess.

Acili ezme:  This looked like a reddish, lumpy dip.  Good, but very spicy.  I had trouble finishing it by itself.  Therefore, I tried putting this on bread combined with lebni sauce, and this was a great combination--still spicy, but not overpoweringly so.

Arnavut cigeri:  Breaded brownish chunks of meat.  The type of liver was beef.  A bit plain.  I had some ketchup on hand, and that made a nice addition, even if it wasn't traditional.  But since I really like liver in general, this was pretty good overall.  Also better when I mixed in the lettuce, onion, and tomato pieces with every bite.  

     All in all, then, I was impressed with this culinary experience.  Some dishes were better than others, but none were unpleasant or anything.  And the better ones were quite tasty.  Perhaps a tad pricey, but not ridiculous.  I would certainly recommend Family Mediterranean Cuisine in particular, and the cuisine itself in general.  For anyone in the South Jersey area, the restaurant's website is:  www.familyturkishcuisine.net