Greek · Authentic-ish Greek
Taramosalata
154 kcal a serving, against 609 for the traditional version. That is 455 kcal off, or 75%, with 20.8g of protein. Serves 6. 20 minutes.
What the traditional version is
A ferocious amount of olive oil slowly whisked into soaked white bread and cured fish roe until it forms a thick, pale pink emulsion. It requires an incredible volume of fat to suspend the starch and protein into that classic fluffy dip.
What changed, and what each change costs
300g of olive oil down to 20g, bringing in 0% Greek yoghurt
The original is an oil emulsion. You are eating pure fat held together by bread. Swapping the oil for thick fat-free yoghurt keeps the creamy volume and gives a huge boost to the structural protein. The tiny bit of olive oil left is just there to carry the flavour.
What it costs you. You completely lose that airy, whipped mayonnaise texture. Yoghurt is wet and heavy, so the resulting dip is much denser. It also brings a dairy tang that the original simply doesn't have.
200g of white bread down to 50g
Bread acts as the sponge to hold the oil in the traditional version. Since I stripped out the oil, you don't need a massive loaf of bread to absorb it. That small amount of bread is enough to thicken the yoghurt and give it that slightly grainy, authentic mouthfeel.
What it costs you. The dip loses some of its starchy, comforting sweetness. Bread rounds off the sharp edges of the fish and lemon. With less bread, the dip is much more aggressive.
Relying on salt cod as a stand-in for the roe
Cured cod roe is brilliant, but salt cod delivers the exact same intense, briny, oceanic punch. It brings dense muscle fibre to the bowl, firming up the yoghurt base perfectly.
What it costs you. What you've got is slightly fibrous. Smooth is a different dish and you know where to find it. Roe pops and blends perfectly into a paste. Salt cod needs aggressive blending to get anywhere near that smooth finish, and even then, you'll have tiny shreds of fish in the bowl.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 609 | 154 |
| Protein | 18.6g | 20.8g |
| Fat | 51.8g | 4.4g |
| Saturated fat | 7.3g | 0.7g |
| Carbohydrate | 18g | 6.8g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 3g | 13.5g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Greek prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. fish, gluten, milk.
The method is in the book
This was a massive headache to fix. When you strip the fat out of an emulsion, you usually end up with split water. The yoghurt rescues it beautifully. You get a sharp, incredibly savoury dip that works brilliantly on cucumber or flatbread. It lacks the whipped lightness of the original, but you can eat a huge bowl of it without feeling terrible.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Greek, along with 56 more. Buy the paperback