8 traditional Wintery dishes from the Med 

Winter is not knocking at our doors but is rather barging in and frankly without invitation. In this instance, my mind escapes to the Mediterranean and images of sand-strewn beaches, balmy piazzas, and crystalline waters. However, like the rest of us, most of southern Europe is also wrapping up for the cooler season ahead. With this change of weather comes a change of menu. The philosophy of eating seasonally and intuitively is passionately adhered to in this part of the world, and the dishes which are prepared are reflective of that. But what comfort food do Mediterranean countries turn to for those blustering and chilly nights? From the Alpine mountains if Italy to the Christmas markets of France, here are 8 traditional winter dishes enjoyed across the Med.

Pizzoccheri (Italy)

When all the chic Milanese escape the city and head to the slopes, they have just one dish on their mind: Pizzoccheri. Originally from the Valtellina in the Italian Alps, pizzoccheri is a buckwheat pasta shape amalgamated with potatoes and cabbage through unholy quantities of melted cheese and butter. The buckwheat gives the dish a rich, nutty flavour and earthy colour while the vegetables add texture and kid you into thinking this could be a nutritious meal. The cheese is typically the slightly soft alpine Valtellina Casera which melts perfectly to form molten threads. The butter is infused with sage and garlic and tossed into the laden mixture for the highest levels of comfort in the highest altitudes. 

Brasata al Barolo (Italy) 

If Barolo is one of the main ingredients in this dish, then we can’t be anywhere other than the region of Piemonte where this wine is produced. Brasata al Barolo is decadent, braised beef cooked low and slow in a full-bodied Barolo. If prepared right, the meat should melt in your mouth and the reduced wine-based sauce concentrates the flavours of Piemonte on your tongue. There is something deeply luxurious about this dish which ought to be the piece de resistance of any cosy dinner party. Served with caramelised vegetables, polenta or mashed potato, you’ll sleep well after such an indulgence.

Sopa de Ajo (Spain)

Translated as ‘garlic soup,’ this tastes much better than its name suggests. It is a classic, rustic winter soup that comes from Castile in the heart of Spain. Considered as a classic ‘cocina pobre’ dish (peasant cuisine), ingredients are simple, cheap and easy to access. True to its humble origins, it is made with stale bread preventing any form of waste when, historically, supplies would be scarce. The soup is spiced with paprika, deepened with fried garlic, enriched with olive oil, nourished with broth and enhanced with jamòn. It is also traditional to top it with a perfectly runny poached egg which melts into the mixture adding a further flavour profile. Sopa de Ajo is modest yet powerful, a reminder that just a few basic ingredients can create the heartiest of meals.

Choux Farci (France)

A visual delight as much as a culinary one, you can trust the French to also create a feast for the eyes. Choux Farci is a robust combination of ground meat, rice and herbs delicately wrapped in an exquisite, emerald green cabbage leaf. Upon enclosing the goods in the greenery, they are baked or braised with a light sauce so as to add flavour but not disturb the intense colour or neat composition of the dish. Once cooked, the experience of delving into the wraps feels indulgent and immersive. While Choux Farci is in theory a very simple dish, more daring chefs will play around with its presentation often making an entire cabbage-wrapped cake rather than individual parcels. Never has a vegetable looked so elegant.

Aligot (France)

The first time I saw Aligot was at a Christmas Market in Toulouse and safe to say, it utterly bewitched me. To the naked eye, it may appear like standard mashed potato but Aligot is so much more elaborate (and calorific) than that. Woven into silken pureed potatoes are lashings of butter, cream, garlic, and tome fraîche (a hard pressed curd cheese from the Aubrac region). The result is an oozing texture which stretches from your fork in elastic strands with a seeming life of its own. When you’re finally able to swirl it into your mouth, the taste of France erupts on your tongue: creamy, cheesy, garlicky, buttery, what more could you want?

Caldo Verde (Portugal)

One of Portugal’s most beloved winter dishes, Caldo Verde (literally meaning ‘Hot Green’) is a light yet hearty soup from the Minho region in the north. The heartiness comes from golden potatoes and the lightness from nutritious greens. The perfect combatant to the cold and wet climate of this area in Portugal, the silky base of the blended potatoes is textured with the couve galena (a dark green Portuguese kale) which wilts within the hot mixture. For additional substance, the soup is topped with hunks of chouriço, an aromatic pork sausage spiced with paprika and garlic. For the ultimate comfort meal, Caldo Verde is best served with broa, a traditional cornbread.

Soutzoukakia Stin Satsa (Greece)

Nothing feels more soothing on a cold winter’s night than a plate of steaming meatballs in an aromatic tomato sauce and laid on a bed of perfectly cooked pillowy rice. Soutzoukakia Stin Satsa is just that. The soutzoukakia are cigar-shaped meatballs usually comprised of beef or a lamb-beef mix intensely spiced with cumin, cinnamon and allspice. The stin salsa is a tomato sauce, amplified with fresh garlic and olive oil recalling the flavours of summer. Though rice is the most common accompaniment, the dish also pairs wonderfully with smooth mashed potatoes and sprinklings of parsley on top.

Manestra (Greece)

The perfect middle ground between a soup, a pasta dish and a risotto, Manestra is a Greek stew where orzo and tomato are the hero ingredients. Made in a flash yet its comforting effects linger long after the plate is wiped clean, it is the perfect weeknight winter meal. The orzo (known locally as kritharaki) is cooked within a tomato broth preserved from the summer’s bountiful harvest. As it simmers, the manestra is seasoned with olive oil, salt, pepper, and occasionally also garlic and onion. It can be served as is with a healthy drizzle of olive oil on top or with a snowfall of grated cheese which melts instantly into the stew. Its as simple and splendid as that.