Garum (garos, liquamen)
Garum, Greek garos and Latin liquamen, was the fish sauce of the ancient Mediterranean: fish and viscera salted and left in the sun, then drained off as a savoury liquid.
Taramosalata
Ταραμοσαλάτα (taramosalata) · Taramasalata · Tarama · Salată de icre
A meze of salted cured fish roe, most often cod, beaten with olive oil, lemon juice and a starchy base of bread or potato, from Greece and the eastern Mediterranean.
A spread named for its roe
Taramosalata, also written taramasalata, is a meze built on tarama, the salted and cured roe of fish. The roe is usually cod, although carp and grey mullet are also used, and the word itself comes from Turkish, where tarama means soft roe. In Greece the roe is beaten with olive oil, lemon juice and a starchy base of bread or potato, and the result is a pale spread that is served cold with bread.
The colour tells the reader something about the product. Traditional taramosalata is creamy beige, and the pink spreads sold commercially are usually dyed. Its texture depends on method: a pestle and mortar leaves a slightly grainy spread, while commercial versions are smooth.
Sources for this section
Where it came from
Istanbul tavern culture recorded tarama among its meze by the late nineteenth century. The writer Murat Doğan counts it among the classic tavern dishes that he treats as a Byzantine contribution to Istanbul cuisine, while the food writer Gil Marks argues from etymology for a Turkish origin. The two accounts are not reconciled in the sources read, and this page keeps both.
Fish roe changed in the Balkans. Gray mullet, cod and shad were the older roe; carp came to dominate after Sephardic Jewish merchants popularised carp in the Balkans in the sixteenth century. Carp roe gives the pinkish-orange colour that the modern dish is still associated with, although artificial colouring now produces much of that colour.
Sources for this section
Making it and eating it
The starchy base is what makes the spread hold. Bread or potato is soaked or mashed and then beaten into the roe, while the oil and lemon juice are added slowly. Almonds can replace the bread or potato. Garlic, spring onion or peppers are common additions, and vinegar can replace lemon juice.
Taramosalata is usually served as a meze, often with ouzo, and it is served on Clean Monday, the first day of Great Lent, with onion and lemon. Smoked cod roe is more available than cured roe in some places and is often used. Bottarga, the dried roe of grey mullet, is much more expensive than cod roe.
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Related spreads
Salată de icre, the roe salad of Romania, North Macedonia, Bulgaria and Israel, is a related spread. It is made with pike or carp roe and usually sunflower or vegetable oil rather than olive oil, often with a bread thickener and chopped onion. Its traditional production in Romania is standardised and registered as an EU Traditional Speciality Guaranteed product. Smörgåskaviar, the Scandinavian spread, is nearly identical in method, with tomato paste in some versions.
The sources read do not give a shelf life or a safe holding time for the finished spread. Cured roe is a raw animal product, and its storage is a separate research question from the mixed dip.
Sources for this section
History
Tarama, the salted roe, comes from Turkish. The dip is recorded in Istanbul tavern culture by the late nineteenth century. Writers differ on whether its origin is Byzantine or Turkish; carp roe came into use in the Balkans after Sephardic merchants popularised carp in the sixteenth century.
Ingredients
Cod roeSalted and cured roe of cod; carp or grey mullet roe is also used, and smoked roe is common outside Greece.
Amount not stated
Quantity not given in the source read.Amount not stated
Vinegar may be used instead.Amount not stated
Quantity not given in the source read.BreadCrumb, soaked or as crumbs.
Or potato, or almonds.
Potato (optional)Boiled and mashed; an alternative to bread.
Amount not stated
Almond (optional)Ground; sometimes used as the starchy base.
Amount not stated
Garlic (optional)
Amount not stated
Listed among common variants.Onion (optional)Grated or spring onion; served with onion and lemon on Clean Monday.
Amount not stated
Method
- Soak the bread crumb, or boil and mash the potato, and let it cool.
- Remove the skin of the cod roe and pound or blend it with the starchy base.
- Beat in the olive oil slowly, then the lemon juice or vinegar, until the mixture is a smooth or slightly grainy spread.
- Adjust the balance of acid and oil, and serve as a meze with bread, onion and lemon.
Places
Greece
Traditional use · Country evidenceServed as a meze, often with ouzo, and on Clean Monday; the source gives no locality.
Turkey
Historical attestation · Region evidenceRecorded as tarama among the meze of Istanbul meyhanes by the late 19th century.
Related
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Sources
WikipediaHistory · Method · Variations · Etymology
TaramasalataMeze made from salted cured roe of cod, carp or grey mullet, olive oil, lemon juice and bread, potato or almonds; pestle and mortar gives a grainy texture; colour from beige to pink, pink usually dyed; served with ouzo and on Clean Monday; word from Greek taramas, borrowed from Turkish tarama (soft roe); Istanbul meyhane record in the late 19th century; carp roe after Sephardic merchants in the 16th century; variants with garlic, spring onions, peppers or vinegar; salată de icre in Romania and neighbouring countries
Cited in: A spread named for its roe; Where it came from; Making it and eating it; Related spreads
Wikimedia CommonsImage
File:Taramosalata01.jpgImage of taramosalata on a plate; licence to confirm on the origin page