Appetizer

Loubia is a traditional North African dish consisting of stewed white beans. This dish is very popular in Moroccan, Tunisian, Algerian, and Libyan homes, where the beans that have been simmered in a zesty tomato-based sauce are typically scooped up with homemade flatbread. It is comfort food that can be served both as an appetizer, garnished with some coriander or parsley, and as a side dish - especially when used as an accompaniment to fried fish. Simple, quick, and delicious - it is unsurprising that loubia is commonly found in homes throughout Maghreb region.

Loubia

The most famous cured meat product in Bulgaria is known as lukanka, a traditional, aromatic sausage made with a mixture of minced pork and veal. The sausage is usually heavily spiced with salt, black pepper, hot and sweet peppers, cumin, nutmeg, and coriander. The choice and amount of added spices is highly variable and usually depends on the region. The casing for lukanka is usually made from cows' or pigs' intestines, and once completed, it is usually pressed on both sides to develop its traditional, flat shape. Subsequently, it is hung in a dry and ventilated area, where it is dried for at least one month. If it is not completely dried, the sausage can be grilled or fried, while the dried version is usually sliced and served as a cold starter. Lukanka is consumed throughout the country, but the two most prominent varieties are known as Karlovska lukanka and lukanka panagyurska.

Lukanka

India

Lukhmi is a traditional appetizer or snack originating from Hyderabad. It's similar to a samosa, but it's made with meat and shaped into a flat and square patty. The pastry is usually made with a combination of flour, ghee, and yogurt, while the filling usually consists of ground lamb, cumin, ginger, chili powder, garlic, oil, coriander, hot peppers, lemon juice, and salt. Once assembled, the lukhmi is deep-fried in hot oil until golden brown, and it's then served hot. This snack is especially popular at weddings and similar festive events in the region.

Lukhmi

Italy

Lumache alla Romana is an Italian dish originating from Rome. It's made with snails that are braised in a tomato sauce. The sauce is traditionally flavored with spicy chili, pungent anchovies, and mint. The snails should be wild or farmed, but high-quality canned snails can also be used if there are no other options. As soon as the sauce thickens, the snails are added and the dish is cooked slowly for at least one hour. This dish is traditionally eaten for the Feast of Saint John the Baptist in late June, and it's served as an appetizer.

Lumache alla Romana

Croatia

Lunice, rupice, or gunjci is a traditional fish dish originating from the Kvarner area. The dish is usually made with a combination of sardines or anchovies, eggs, breadcrumbs, cornflour, garlic, parsley, salt, and oil. There are many variations, but the only important thing is the fish and cornflour, while other ingredients may vary. The fish is cleaned and stuffed with a mixture of breadcrumbs, salt, garlic, parsley, eggs, and olive oil. It is then dipped in beaten eggs, rolled in breadcrumbs, and fried in hot oil until golden brown and the dish is then ready to be enjoyed. The dish is called rupice in Crikvenica, lunice in Novi Vinodolski, and gunjci in Dramalj.

Lunice

Maakouda are traditional potato fritters that are popular throughout the Maghreb, especially in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. The fritters are usually prepared plain, but they can also be stuffed with meat, tuna, or cheese, although not that often. They're made with potatoes, parsley, garlic, flour, salt, and pepper. The potatoes are boiled, mashed, and mixed with other ingredients into small disks which are then deep-fried in hot oil until golden brown. Maakouda is traditionally served as an appetizer, a side dish, or an ingredient in a long sandwich roll that's usually sold as street food and served with harissa, coriander, and lemon juice. The fritters are especially popular during the month of Ramadan.

Maakouda

Machas a la parmesana is a typical Chilean dish consisting of razor clams that are topped with salt, white wine, butter, and parmesan cheese. The clams are then broiled until the cheese melts, and it is recommended to serve them immediately, preferably with a glass of white wine on the side. This Chilean classic is typically served as an appetizer and it was invented by an Italian immigrant named Edoardo Melotti Ferrari in Vi&ntilde;a del Mar in the 1950s.

Machas a la parmesana

Makalo is a very traditional North Macedonian dish based on garlic. The most basic type of makalo is made with garlic, warm oil or butter, wine vinegar, lukewarm water, and salt, which are added to a wooden bowl and mixed thoroughly. Dried red peppers, chopped parsley, hot pepper flakes, walnuts, milk, or yogurt are often added to this dish. There is a variety of makalo dishes that can include roasted hot peppers, eggplants, green tomatoes, fresh or roasted red tomatoes, or boiled potatoes. Makalo can be served as a meze dip or an appetizer, depending on the ingredients used in it, and it is typically eaten with lots of bread and white brine cheese. It also makes for a great accompaniment to barbecued meat.

Makalo

Oil-cured eggplants are a staple throughout Levantine and Middle Eastern cuisine. The dish is traditionally prepared with small-sized baby eggplants that are shortly boiled and stuffed with a flavorful mixture of roasted red peppers, walnuts, garlic, and salt. The eggplants are then cured in olive oil and are traditionally enjoyed for breakfast, usually accompanied by labneh, vegetables, and flatbread, but they also work as a standard meze dish or a snack. Though their origin is vague, preserved eggplants are strongly associated with Syria.

Makdous

Malai broccoli is a traditional dish originating from Malaysia. The dish is usually made with a combination of broccoli florets, cream cheese, sliced cheese, heavy cream, yogurt, ginger, garlic, garam masala spices, cardamom powder, salt, sugar, and black and white pepper. The cheese slices and heavy cream are melted in a pan, then mixed with the rest of the ingredients. The broccoli florets are tossed in a bowl with all of the ingredients, and they are then baked in the oven until slightly charred and crispy. Once done, malai broccoli is typically served as an appetizer, often with chutney on the side.

Malai Broccoli

Greece

Malathropita is a traditional savory pie from the Greek island of Chios, made with wild fennel called malathro in Greek. Fresh fennel leaves are combined with a batter of flour, water, olive oil, and salt, and the resulting pie is then fried until crispy and nicely colored. Other common ingredients used in the batter include chopped onions, various types of greens and herbs, garlic, eggs, and vinegar. This pie is also commonly prepared in other parts of Greece, but what makes the Chian version different from other versions of the pie is the addition of fish roe. With a pleasant, aniseed-like aroma, the fennel pies are typically enjoyed while still warm either for breakfast or lunch, although they also make for an excellent meze dish, accompanied by a glass of Chian mastic-flavored ouzo on the side.

Malathropita

This African snack is very popular in countries such as Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya. The dough is made with sugar, flour, water, yeast, and milk or coconut milk. It can be additionally enriched with ingredients such as ground peanuts or almonds. After the dough has been shaped into triangles, circles, or ovals, it is fried in hot oil. Mandazi can be served for breakfast with tea, as a tasty appetizer before lunch, or even as a late-night snack. It is often served with fruit-flavored dips, but when served as a dessert, mandazi is typically dusted with powdered sugar or cinnamon in order to add some sweetness to it.

Mandazi

Mane&scaron;tra od koromača i svinjskog jezika is a traditional dish originating from Istria. This type of Istrian mane&scaron;tra (soup-like stew) is made with a combination of beans, potatoes, fennel, pork tongue, bacon, garlic, parsley, salt, and pepper. The beans are cooked, covered with water, and mixed with pork tongue, salt, pepper, bacon, and garlic. The mixture is simmered until the tongue and beans are slightly tender. The potatoes are peeled, cut into cubes, then added to the pot with the fennel. Once the beans and potatoes become fully cooked and the mane&scaron;tra develops a thick consistency, the tongue is taken out of the pot, cleaned, and cut into slices. The slices are then arranged on a plate that's filled with mane&scaron;tra, and the dish is enjoyed while still hot.

Maneštra od koromača i svinjskog jezika

Maquereaux au vin blanc is a traditional fish dish originating from France. The dish is usually made with a combination of mackerel, white wine, onions, garlic, bay leaves, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, salt, peppercorns, lemon rind, lemon juice, and parsley. The fish is boned, skinned, filleted, and suspended in a tangy aspic based on white wine, garlic, onions, bay leaves, coriander seeds, lemon juice, and lemon rind. The aromatics subdue the mackerel's oily overtones, while the lemon and wine are used for firming and pickling. The dish is typically served as an appetizer or a light lunch when served with bread and fresh salads. It's recommended to serve the mackerel with hot toast or warm baguette slices. The dish is especially popular in hot weather.

Maquereaux au vin blanc

This simple Greek dish consists of small-sized whitebait fish that are lightly dusted with flour, then fried until golden and crispy. Because of its small size, the fish is typically fried, served, and eaten whole. Marides is a staple meze dish that is usually accompanied by other Greek starters, but it can also be enjoyed as a meal on its own. It is best dressed up with a squeeze of lemon juice and a drizzle of olive oil.

Marides tiganites

Marinert Edamerost is a traditional dish that's commonly served as an appetizer. It consists of Edam cheese that's marinated in a combination of olive oil, strips of red peppers, white wine vinegar, thyme, oregano, green peppercorns, and garlic cloves. The cheese is diced into the size of sugar cubes and pricked with a fork so that the marinade can be absorbed more easily. The marinade ingredients are mixed in a pot and brought to a boil, then left to cool. The cubes of cheese and strips of red pepper are layered in a jar, then covered with the marinade, chilled, and left for a few weeks in the fridge. Marinert Edamerost is served at room temperature, usually with crackers or dark bread.

Marinert Edamerost

Masala papad is a traditional snack and a version of papadum flatbread that&rsquo;s topped with a mix of tangy and spicy ingredients. The flatbread is roasted or fried and it&rsquo;s usually made with lentil, chickpea, or rice flour. After it&rsquo;s been roasted or fried until crunchy, it&rsquo;s topped with a mixture of onions, tomatoes, coriander, hot chili powder, lemon juice, chaat masala, and salt. It&rsquo;s important to add the topping after the flatbread has been fried or roasted, otherwise it will get soggy. If desired, additional ingredients can be added to the topping, such as cucumbers, mint leaves, carrots, or raw mango. Masala papad is traditionally served as a snack or an appetizer, but it can also be served as an accompaniment to various Indian meals.

Masala papad

Mast o khiar is a simple and refreshing Iranian dip made with yogurt and diced cucumbers. In its original form, it is generously seasoned with mint, but it can be easily adapted with other ingredients such as garlic, walnuts, raisins, and various herbs and spices. Served chilled, mast o khiar is a staple side dish of every Iranian meal but also a quick and nutritious snack when accompanied by crispy flatbreads.

Mast o khiar

Matambre relleno or matambre arrolado is the Argentinian rolled and stuffed rose meat. The beef is butterflied, filled with diced vegetables and hard-boiled eggs, then rolled and grilled. It is a traditional dish of Argentinian gauchos, cattle ranchers who represent an irreplaceable part of Argentinian culture. Their cuisine is primarily based on roasting large portions of meat served in churrascarias &ndash; the traditional Argentinian steakhouses. However, matambre relleno has become a dish that is also commonly prepared in Argentinian households. It can be served hot or cold, as an appetizer, or as the main meal. The steak is usually cut before serving to showcase the colorful and decorative fillings, while the traditional Argentinian chimichurri sauce is usually served on the side. Occasionally, sliced matambre relleno is served in a bun, and the most extraordinary variety of this classic is a matambre pizza, made with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese.

Matambre relleno

Though its origins presumably lie in Morocco, matbucha is also a favorite in Israel, where it was brought by Jewish immigrants. The dish consists of roasted bell peppers and tomatoes seasoned with garlic and ground paprika. In Morocco, it is typically enjoyed as meze&mdash;assorted small dishes&mdash;while Israelis typically think of it as an appetizer. Matbucha should always be served drizzled with a generous amount of olive oil, accompanied by a warm flatbread on the side.