Ines Zahraoui

Ines Zahraoui is a Tunisian home cook and the co-founder of The Mediterranean Recipe, which she runs with her friend Rachel Mazza in the United States. She was born and raised in Mahdia, a coastal town in Tunisia, where everyday cooking was built on olive oil, seafood, semolina and whatever the market had that morning. She later lived in France, where she studied literature and picked up the French side of her cooking, and her kitchen took on a Moroccan accent after marrying her husband, Abdel Ali, whose family taught her the spice work — ras el hanout, preserved lemon, slow-cooked tagines — that runs through much of the site.She has been cooking and developing recipes since 2020. She is not a professionally trained chef: she teaches French for a living and cooks for her family, which is why the recipes here are written for home kitchens and ordinary home equipment rather than restaurant ones.Ines writes and tests the recipes published under her byline in her own kitchen in Tunisia. Nutrition figures on the site are calculated with the WP Recipe Maker nutrition calculator and are estimates rather than lab-verified values.

October 10, 2026March 22, 2026 by Ines Zahraoui

pasta alla norma (Sicilian eggplant) Mediterranean dish

I need to confess something: I ruined six eggplants in a single afternoon in August 2023 trying to nail this Pasta alla Norma (Sicilian Eggplant). Six. My neighbor Carol thought I was composting, which—honestly—I basically was. The eggplant kept coming out either soggy and grey (gross) or burnt to these sad little charcoal bricks that … Read more

October 10, 2026March 22, 2026 by Ines Zahraoui

Plate of Greek briam roasted vegetables with feta, fresh herbs and crusty bread

The first — and I do mean the very first — time I made a Greek Briam (Roasted Vegetable Bake), I produced something my sister-in-law Dimitra (who grew up in Thessaloniki and has exactly zero patience for bad Greek food) politely called ‘vegetable soup.’ It was May 2022, I’d used way too much water, sliced … Read more

October 10, 2026March 22, 2026 by Ines Zahraoui

Mediterranean shrimp avocado salad with grilled shrimp, tomatoes, cucumber, feta and lemon dressing

This salad pairs just-cooked shrimp with avocado, cucumber and tomato in a lemon and olive oil dressing. Shrimp firm up at around 120°F and turn rubbery quickly after that, so they come off the heat as soon as they curve into a loose C rather than a tight O. Twenty-five minutes. The Story Behind This … Read more

October 10, 2026March 20, 2026 by Ines Zahraoui

Sheet pan Mediterranean Shrimp & Asparagus tomatoes and feta overhead view

Extreme close-up macro photograph of a perfectly roasted Mediterranean shrimp with visible seasoning alongside charred asparagus and blistered tomato

October 10, 2026March 18, 2026 by Ines Zahraoui

Roasted cauliflower steaks with caramelized edges topped with green chimichurri and pomegranate

That memory is the reason these roasted cauliflower steaks with chimichurri exist on this blog. The technique is simple — high heat, good olive oil, patience — but the result is something that stops people mid-conversation at the dinner table. Golden. Crispy. Deeply caramelized. And then you spoon that bright, herbaceous chimichurri sauce over the top, and suddenly this humble vegetable becomes the centerpiece of your entire meal.

October 10, 2026March 17, 2026 by Ines Zahraoui

Mediterranean breakfast quesadilla wedges with melted cheese, egg, spinach, feta and peppers

I need to confess something: the first time I tried making a Mediterranean breakfast quesadilla, in March 2021, the whole thing exploded open in the pan and deposited a small mountain of spinach and feta directly onto my stovetop. My roommate Priya watched from the couch and said — I’m quoting her exactly — “that’s … Read more

October 10, 2026March 17, 2026 by Ines Zahraoui

Fork lifting creamy cacio e pepe pasta with spring peas and black pepper from a bowl

With only five core ingredients, there’s nowhere to hide. Every single one matters. The Pecorino Romano: buy a proper Italian wedge — look for “DOP” on the label, which guarantees it’s made from sheep’s milk in the Lazio region of Italy. (I once used pre-grated Pecorino from a bag and the sauce turned into rubber. Never again.) Grate it yourself on a microplane for the finest possible texture — the finer the cheese, the smoother the emulsion.

October 10, 2026March 17, 2026 by Ines Zahraoui

Here’s what nobody tells you about basil pesto: those gorgeous green leaves contain polyphenol oxidase enzymes that go absolutely haywire when exposed to air and heat. It’s basically the same reason your avocados turn brown, but like, on steroids. The traditional Ligurian method of using a marble mortar and wooden pestle? That wasn’t just Italian grandmas being stubborn about tradition—marble stays naturally cool and the grinding (not chopping!) motion releases the basil oils without generating the heat that activates oxidation.

October 10, 2026March 16, 2026 by Ines Zahraoui

I served sardine toast with lemon & herbs at a dinner party in April 2024 and watched my neighbor Petra — a person who had, on multiple previous occasions, described sardines as “aquarium smell in a can” — eat four pieces and then quietly ask for the recipe. This was peak vindication. Not because I’m … Read more

October 10, 2026March 16, 2026 by Ines Zahraoui

Golden brown moussaka with perfectly visible layers of roasted eggplant, spiced meat sauce, and creamy béchamel sauce in white baking dish

Here’s the thing most recipes won’t tell you: moussaka is basically applied physics. (Stay with me here.) The reason so many homemade versions turn into a soggy, collapsed mess isn’t about talent—it’s about understanding moisture. Eggplant is roughly 92% water, and if you don’t deal with that water before it goes in the oven, your beautiful layered dish becomes eggplant soup with ambitions. The salting process does two crucial things: it draws out that excess moisture through osmosis, and it starts to break down the cell walls so your eggplant actually absorbs flavor instead of just sitting there being bland. If you love working with eggplant, you’ll also appreciate our stuffed eggplant recipe which uses similar techniques.