Greek meze: Fried cauliflower

Today I’m starting a new series of recipes titled ‘Greek meze’, and it’s a selection of Greek appetizers. Meze is traditionally enjoyed with a glass of ouzo in Greece, but don’t let that put you off if you don’t stock up on ouzo in your part of the world. The delicacies I’ll be sharing also work well as side dishes with your favorite meals, such as meat roasts, omelettes, or vegetable casseroles.

I chose for today one of my Gran Antigoni’s recipes. Like all Greek Orthodox housewives, Granny never threw away leftover food, including cauliflower florets. The next day, she’d always fry them for ouzo time with Granddad. For those unfamiliar with my writing, I’ll explain here that I’m referring to my Gran Antigoni from Moraitika Corfu who, along with my Granddad Spyros, have been the inspiration behind my partly autobiographical book, The Ebb, set in Moraitika in the 80s.

Gran Antigoni and I in her tiny kitchen in Moraitika, Corfu, a few years back

And now, without further ado, here’s how Gran prepared this delight in the frying pan! Either use leftover boiled cauliflower or boil a few florets just for this recipe. Either way, make sure they are not too soft! A couple of minutes in the pan, boiling in salted water, are more than enough.

Ingredients (serves 2-3)

About 12-15 cauliflower florets

All purpose flour

1 large egg

Milk

Salt

Sunflower oil

 

Preparation

If you boil cauliflower for this recipe, drain it well and let it cool a little, otherwise take your leftover cauliflower out of the fridge and leave it for a while in room temperature.

Cut in half any florets that are too large. Put a little flour in a small dish. Beat the egg in a bowl with a sprinkle of salt and a splash of milk.

Put oil in a large frying pan. While you wait for the oil to heat up, coat a floret in the flour, then dip it in the egg, then place on a dinner plate. Continue with more florets, enough to fry the first batch.

When the oil heats up, place the florets in, and shallow fry in medium heat. In the meantime, prepare the remaining florets and have them on the dinner plate ready for the second batch.

Fry the florets on all sides and place them on a platter lined with kitchen paper. They should have a golden colour. Squeeze a little lemon juice over them and enjoy!

 

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