Recipes and stories from kitchens around the world: dips, dressings, spice blends and the histories simmering beneath them.https://www.figandginger.com/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/tunisian-sunshine-a-lively-mechouia-dip-recipe/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/tunisian-sunshine-a-lively-mechouia-dip-recipe/A pepper laid on a grill does not ask to be admired. It blisters, it blackens, and an hour later it is the best thing on the table.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 17:49:27 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/mystic-melange-iraqi-eggplant-and-tomato-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/mystic-melange-iraqi-eggplant-and-tomato-dip/On an Iraqi kitchen counter, a plump eggplant and a cocky tomato once argued over who mattered most. Umm Jameel settled it with a wooden spoon.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 17:43:21 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/date-night-dip-iraqi-tamarind-and-date-delight/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/date-night-dip-iraqi-tamarind-and-date-delight/A tamarind pod is brittle in the hand and sour at the heart. A date is soft, dark, and sweet enough to stop a conversation.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 17:34:22 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/garnet-eggplant-iraqi-baba-ganoush-with-pomegranate/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/garnet-eggplant-iraqi-baba-ganoush-with-pomegranate/An eggplant on an open flame, its skin going black and its heart going soft. In Iraq the smoke meets pomegranate, and the bowl turns the color of garnets.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 17:27:29 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/meat-me-in-the-middle-a-hearty-iraqi-hummus-variation/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/meat-me-in-the-middle-a-hearty-iraqi-hummus-variation/A spoon draws a well through a plate of hummus, and into the well goes lamb still hissing from the pan. In Iraq this is hummus bil lahme, and it turns a spread into a supper.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 17:23:28 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/amba-ambition-the-ultimate-iraqi-mango-pickle-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/amba-ambition-the-ultimate-iraqi-mango-pickle-dip/A jar on a shelf in an Iraqi kitchen, mustard-yellow, smelling of fenugreek and vinegar from across the room. This is amba.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 17:16:18 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/tomato-tango-spicing-it-up-with-galayet-bandora/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/tomato-tango-spicing-it-up-with-galayet-bandora/Tomatoes hiss when they hit the oil. In a Jordanian kitchen that sound is the start of galayet bandora, a plain pan of tomatoes that tastes of sun and earth.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 17:11:34 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/jordanian-hummus/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/jordanian-hummus/A bowl of chickpeas left soaking overnight, swelling slowly in the dark. In Jordan that patience becomes hummus, the first thing a guest is offered.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 16:59:31 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/moutabbal-mastery-the-art-of-jordanian-eggplant-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/moutabbal-mastery-the-art-of-jordanian-eggplant-dip/An eggplant laid on an open flame blisters, blackens, and slumps. In a Jordanian kitchen that is not ruin. It is the start of moutabbal.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 16:54:12 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/a-carrot-kick-how-to-make-a-zesty-spicy-carrot-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/a-carrot-kick-how-to-make-a-zesty-spicy-carrot-dip/A carrot in the market light is about as plain as a vegetable gets. Give it heat and spice and it turns into something else.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 16:46:44 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/garlic-alchemy-creating-a-flavorful-garlic-and-almond-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/garlic-alchemy-creating-a-flavorful-garlic-and-almond-dip/A mortar on a kitchen table, a fist of almonds, two cloves of garlic. Across the Mediterranean, that is where this dip begins, with a pestle and a little patience.Sun, 10 Mar 2024 16:42:51 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/a-mediterranean-mingle-mint-and-walnut-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/a-mediterranean-mingle-mint-and-walnut-dip/A walnut cracked open on a wooden board, and beside it a fistful of mint so fresh it squeaks. This dip sets the two against each other.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:39:28 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/babas-best-a-creamy-eggplant-and-yogurt-dip-recipe/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/babas-best-a-creamy-eggplant-and-yogurt-dip-recipe/An eggplant laid in the embers goes soft and collapses, its skin black and blistered, its flesh full of smoke. Stir in yogurt and you have this dip.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:34:48 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/the-herbal-whisperer-crafting-a-homemade-zaatar-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/the-herbal-whisperer-crafting-a-homemade-zaatar-dip/A spoonful of dried thyme, sesame, sumac, and salt, and olive oil poured slowly over it until it glistens. That is za'atar dip, and the bread is already torn.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:28:50 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/tahini-sauce-unleashing-the-sesame-power/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/tahini-sauce-unleashing-the-sesame-power/A handful of sesame seeds in a stone mill, turning slowly into something smooth and pale. That is where tahini sauce begins.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:23:28 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/labneh-middle-eastern-creamy-yogurt-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/labneh-middle-eastern-creamy-yogurt-dip/A cloth bundle of yogurt hanging from a branch, whey dripping slowly into the dust. That is how labneh is made, and how, the story goes, it was first found.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:20:02 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/icelandic-bearnaise-sauce-a-twist-on-the-french-classic/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/icelandic-bearnaise-sauce-a-twist-on-the-french-classic/Steam rising off a geyser, ice grinding down a valley, and in a small kitchen a pan of butter going gold. This is how Iceland came to its own béarnaise.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:15:44 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/the-bold-taste-of-norway-brunost-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/the-bold-taste-of-norway-brunost-dip/A block of brown cheese left too close to a Norwegian stove, going soft at the corners. That small mistake is where brunost dip begins.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:11:39 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/finnish-mustard-herring-dip-a-baltic-treasure/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/finnish-mustard-herring-dip-a-baltic-treasure/A jar of herring on a cold windowsill, a pot of mustard beside it. In a Finnish village, a man named Eero wondered why the two had never been properly introduced.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:07:20 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/richness-redefined-danish-liver-pate-leverpostej/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/richness-redefined-danish-liver-pate-leverpostej/In Denmark the candles are lit early, the bicycles outnumber the people, and one autumn a cook named Jens decided to turn leverpostej into a dip.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:02:13 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/traditional-swedish-pickled-herring-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/traditional-swedish-pickled-herring-dip/In Sweden the summer sun barely sets and nobody has heard of too much coffee. Out of those long bright nights came a herring dip that changed the midsummer table.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:00:22 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/icelandic-hakarls-surprise-an-acquired-taste-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/icelandic-hakarls-surprise-an-acquired-taste-dip/A strip of dried fish torn from the bag, salty and hard as bark. In Iceland that is harðfiskur, and one fisherman named Einar wanted more for it.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 22:56:34 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/creamy-indulgence-norwegian-rommegrot-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/creamy-indulgence-norwegian-rommegrot-dip/Sour cream and flour thickening in a pot, cinnamon and sugar waiting on the side. In a Norwegian village, a farmer named Olav dared to turn porridge into a dip.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 18:26:36 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/danish-skagen-sauce-a-shrimp-lovers-dream/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/danish-skagen-sauce-a-shrimp-lovers-dream/Pink shrimp peeled by hand, a bowl of cream and dill, the North Sea and the Baltic meeting off the point. In Skagen, a cook named Frederik made the sauce they deserved.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 18:16:16 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/savoring-sweden-the-delightful-dillkott-sauce/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/savoring-sweden-the-delightful-dillkott-sauce/A bunch of dill on a cold board, a pot of broth at the simmer. In Sweden that is where dillkött begins, and where one chef named Gustav began his argument.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 18:11:51 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/refreshing-bites-icelandic-cucumber-and-dill-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/refreshing-bites-icelandic-cucumber-and-dill-dip/A basket on her arm and the summer sun refusing to set, Sigrid went out to find what an Icelandic breeze would taste like in a bowl.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 18:08:45 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/summer-berries-transformed-finnish-mustikkalade/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/summer-berries-transformed-finnish-mustikkalade/A bucket of wild blueberries on a Helsinki counter, fingers stained purple to the knuckle. One summer evening, Eeva turned them into mustikkakastike.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 18:04:58 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/creamy-danish-remoulade-the-dip-that-doubles-as-a-condiment/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/creamy-danish-remoulade-the-dip-that-doubles-as-a-condiment/A spoon of pale yellow sauce on a hot dog at Nyhavn, flecked with pickle and caper. In Copenhagen, a cook named Anders set out to remake the remoulade.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 18:00:23 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/dipping-into-scandinavia-sweet-and-savory-swedish-gravlaxsas/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/dipping-into-scandinavia-sweet-and-savory-swedish-gravlaxsas/A side of salmon lies under salt, sugar, and dill, pressed and waiting. In Sweden the fish gets the patience, but the sauce gets the argument.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 17:53:03 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/czech-garlic-dip-cesnekova-pomazanka-your-new-go-to-spread/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/czech-garlic-dip-cesnekova-pomazanka-your-new-go-to-spread/A head of garlic crushed into soft cheese until the whole kitchen smells of it. In a Prague tavern, a young cook named Karel went too far, and the city laughed with him.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 17:43:15 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/pub-style-pleasure-belgian-beer-cheese-dip-at-home/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/pub-style-pleasure-belgian-beer-cheese-dip-at-home/A glass of Belgian ale, a wedge of cheese beside it, and two old rivals on a festival bench who decided to stop arguing and start stirring.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 17:35:17 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/nordic-elegance-a-guide-to-norwegian-smoked-salmon-dip/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/nordic-elegance-a-guide-to-norwegian-smoked-salmon-dip/A side of salmon hangs in the smoke above a Norwegian fjord, turning slowly gold. The fisherman Erik wanted the whole country to taste it.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 17:32:45 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/a-hungarian-classic-liptauer-dip-with-a-twist/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/a-hungarian-classic-liptauer-dip-with-a-twist/In Hungary, where the Danube rolls slow past old towns and paprika hangs in the air, a cheese maker named Miklós gambled on what was left on his shelf.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 17:29:48 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/baba-ghanoushs-cousin-russian-eggplant-caviar-baklazhannaya-ikra/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/baba-ghanoushs-cousin-russian-eggplant-caviar-baklazhannaya-ikra/An eggplant on an open flame, its skin cracking, the kitchen filling with smoke. This is how Russian eggplant caviar, baklazhannaya ikra, begins.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 01:25:15 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/swedish-secrets-how-to-make-authentic-skagenroraswedish-skagenrora/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/swedish-secrets-how-to-make-authentic-skagenroraswedish-skagenrora/A bucket of shrimp on a wet dock, still cold from the water. On the Swedish coast, under the midnight sun, that is where this salad begins.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 01:06:08 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/farmhouse-fresh-polish-cottage-cheese-dip-serek-wiejski/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/farmhouse-fresh-polish-cottage-cheese-dip-serek-wiejski/A pail of warm milk, a field of rye, and a farmer with one quiet ambition. Janek wanted all of Poland in a single spoonful of cottage cheese.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 00:53:31 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/a-taste-of-the-sea-traditional-dutch-herring-dip-recipe/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/a-taste-of-the-sea-traditional-dutch-herring-dip-recipe/Wind off the North Sea, nets drying on the rail, a herring silver as a spoon. One cold evening a fisherman named Pieter turned it into a dip.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 00:47:21 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/beer-meets-cheese-crafting-the-ultimate-german-obatzda/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/beer-meets-cheese-crafting-the-ultimate-german-obatzda/A wedge of Camembert going soft on a beer garden counter, a fork, a splash of lager. In a Bavarian beer hall that was enough to start a legend.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 00:39:11 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/fresh-and-fragrant-british-pea-and-mint-dip-for-summer-snacking/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/fresh-and-fragrant-british-pea-and-mint-dip-for-summer-snacking/A pod split under a thumb, a row of sweet green peas inside. In a British manor garden before the war, a gardener and a cook made something new for tea.Sat, 09 Mar 2024 00:33:46 GMThttps://www.figandginger.com/recipes/romesco-revelations-a-spanish-dip-odyssey/https://www.figandginger.com/recipes/romesco-revelations-a-spanish-dip-odyssey/In a village among the rolling hills of Spain, an almond named Alfonso hung on his branch and dreamed of adventure and spice.Wed, 06 Mar 2024 00:59:11 GMT