- [Sarah] Sarah's Weeknight Meals is made possible by - [Narrator] Aboard Oceania Cruises, our guests embrace a passion for travel and our chefs are inspired by the flavors of the world and committed to providing fine dining at sea.

That's Oceania Cruises.

Oceania Cruises, your world, your way.

- [Narrator] Since 1921, season has brought you skinless and boneless sardine fillets.

Our sardines are wild caught and contain essential vitamins and minerals for everyday meals.

Seasoned sardines, rich in omega-3█s and protein.

♪ And it feels good - [Narrator] Sunsweet, amazing prunes and prune juice.

- [Announcer] And by Mutti Tomatoes of Parma, the Republic of Tea, and USA Rice.

(upbeat music) You might come to Athens for the antiquities like the Acropolis and the Parthenon, but if you're like me, you'll stay for its famous Mediterranean cuisine.

- Except olive oil, fish is limited in Italian.

- Maria Loi is known as the Julia Child of Greece, so she knows what she's talking about.

- And the lemon, because of the citruses, cooks the fish by itself.

- Near Athens, we made three amazing Greek dishes that shattered my world.

Oh, that is gorgeous.

I continue the fish theme at home with my 20-minute sardine tacos.

Mezze party, mezze party.

- Retsina party.

- Then Maria and I pick up some rocking retsina back in Athens for a rooftop mezze party with a pretty unbeatable view.

(group cheers) I can't believe we did that in front of the Parthenon.

It's all happening under the Acropolis today on Sarah's Weeknight Meals.

(upbeat music) - I am Maria Loi.

- [Sarah] It's hard to describe the tornado of energy that is my friend Maria Loi.

Known as the Julia Child of Greece, she's turned her passion for the Mediterranean diet into 36 cookbooks, a New York restaurant, and now this.

- This season on The Life of Loi.

- [Sarah] That's right, she's joined me on public TV with her new show, The Life of Loi.

- It's paradise.

- [Sarah] We bonded over it all in the beautiful Athens port of Piraeus to do our favorite thing, cook.

Maria, where are you taking me now?

- I'm going to take you to the best taverna here in Mikrolimano, Zephyrus, and we're going to cook with our back behind here to this beautiful harbor.

- Oh my goodness, just take me on the best adventures.

- Of course, it's you.

(upbeat music) - How lucky am I to be here with Maria and we're in this beautiful place.

And what are we making?

- Branzino, okay?

- Oh, excellent.

- We have green beans, beets with feta, and we'll do the lemon potatoes, patatas lemonata.

- Oh, my favorite, you knew I wanted to do those.

So where do we start here?

I'm patting the potatoes.

- That's exactly how you start.

They were just sitting there for almost an hour with lemon, so this way they don't get black, you know, here.

- They don't oxidize.

- They don't oxidize.

Then when you pat them dry, you put them here in the pan.

You put them there.

- All right.

- Yeah.

- And these are the baking potatoes, russet potatoes, high starch.

And I think we've got about four and we cut them into six.

- Now, how about a lemon?

- Okay.

- Here, see?

- Oh, oh, oh, oh, magic tricks.

I guess you're bruising it so we get more juice out.

- Yeah.

- Mm, oh, it smells so good, huh?

- Oh, wow, okay.

- So you can cut it and you can just put it on the top of the potatoes.

- Okay, juicy, right.

The thing about lemon potatoes is they're both potatoes.

- Yes.

- And then they have this wonderful lemon flavor, so they'll absorb this as they cook.

- Yes.

So olive oil, usually they say two spoons.

Now I say not.

- Not here.

- No, not here.

- We make the olive oil here.

We drink it straight up here.

- I do every morning, a shot of olive oil.

- Are you serious?

- I am serious.

- I was joking.

- You get all the vitamins that you need and also opens your arteries.

- My arteries could use some opening.

- Everyone's arteries.

- I know.

- So you go like this.

- I know you don't measure, but I think that's about 3/8 of a cup of olive oil.

- Then we'll put salt and pepper.

You go like this, okay.

What about pepper?

You like pepper?

- I love pepper.

- Particularly with potatoes.

- This is tomato paste.

It's very good for you.

I eat tomato paste every day.

But this one gives an umami taste.

Now we have... - Okay, I'm in.

- You're Greek now.

- I am Greek.

I'm so Greek.

- Well, you are Greek.

You're a Greek goddess.

- Oh, I am.

Oh, I'm such a goddess.

- So this one, was it easy?

- Yes, so easy.

I love it.

- So I'll take this into the oven.

350, about 40 minutes.

- Okay.

(upbeat music) Oh, my goodness.

So we're making a beet and green bean salad.

Tell me about it.

- Easy, tasty.

Healthy.

- We're making a dressing.

Okay, no measurements.

Don't worry, we will give you the measurements on the website.

These crazy Greeks, we just don't know what to do with them.

- You can say two parts of olive oil, one part of vinegar.

- Okay, two to one.

Got it.

Okay.

And we're using red wine vinegar?

- One.

Always.

- Mm-hmm.

- Two.

- Mm-hmm.

- Okay?

If you want measurements, all right?

- Okay.

- Three.

Oh, so this is tablespoons.

So then, olive oil.

One.

- Okay.

- Two.

- Mm-hmm.

- Three.

Four.

Five.

- Excellent.

- Six.

- I could do that.

- Salt.

- Mm-hmm.

- Just a pinch, okay?

- So pretty.

- Pepper, right?

- Oh, I love pepper.

I'm right in there with you with the pepper.

- We have many things in common.

- Yeah, we do.

We're both blondes.

- And smart.

- Yes.

- Oregano.

- Oh, okay.

Dried oregano.

- Now we'll put all the...

These are cooked, right?

- Yes.

- Look at the color.

- Oh, these are beautiful.

My husband says thank you right now.

He converted me to beets.

I didn't like them when I first met him, but he's a nice Jewish boy.

He grew up with borscht, and he convinces me that they're delicious.

- Your husband has a good taste.

Not only because he's married with you.

- Of course.

- But also for the eating habits.

- Oh, yeah.

No, he has great eating habits.

- So they will get the beans.

- How much do you want of this?

- As much as you want.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- Okay, this is the Greek way.

How does that look, or more?

- Mix it.

No, it's enough.

- Okay.

It's so beautiful.

So beautiful.

- I like the walnuts first.

You can use any other nuts.

- Okay.

So now what?

Is the feta?

- This one.

- Okay, crumbling?

- Yeah, they're over here.

- And this is- - Isn't she Greek now?

- I'm trying, I'm trying.

- More.

- Are we gonna put more olive oil on now?

- You said olive oil.

- Oh, dear, there we go.

- You said olive oil.

- Okay, I just said the word.

Okay, all right.

- So, you see?

That's it.

You mix it.

- Oh.

- And that's your salad.

- Done.

So now we get on to the branzino.

I can't wait.

You're gonna show me how to do a crispy skin.

(upbeat music) Oh, my goodness, that is beautiful fish.

- Isn't it?

- Is this our next course?

- Yes, we are making lavraki.

- What is that?

- It's branzino in Greek.

- Oh, okay, there you go.

- Can you par-dry those filet?

- I will do that.

And both sides, or just skin side?

- Both sides.

So, olive oil.

- Oh, really?

Ha, really?

Olive oil.

Okay, then.

- Makes life taste better and healthier.

- Got it.

- Hot saucepan.

- Hot, hot, hot.

That's where we get the crisp skin.

- Exactly.

And then put skin down, all right?

- Skin side down.

- Okay, that's it.

- Oh, and that sound we wanna hear.

I saw the swirl.

- And again.

- That's not gonna take very long at all.

- No.

- I'm gonna turn this over so we have a clean cutting board.

- Okay, so while that's cooking, what are we doing?

- We'll do the dressing sauce.

You wanna cut some slices of lemon?

- Oh, yes.

- I'll show you something.

- Okay, you want thin slices?

- Yeah, thin, please.

- Okay.

- See, smells the sea.

- Yes.

- This branzino was just- - In that water?

- Yes, this morning.

- Seriously?

- Seriously.

- I have one more.

- See?

You put them here.

- Oh.

- It's so tasty.

And the lemon, because of the citruses, cooks the fish by itself.

- So we're doing a double whammy cooking.

Heat from the bottom and acid from the top.

- So, salt.

- What are we making?

- This sauce.

- Mm-hmm, beautiful salt.

- Pepper.

- Mm-hmm.

- Oregano, of course.

- Mm-hmm.

- So now, what else?

- Well, olive oil, for sure.

- Excellent.

- Are we gonna add some salt?

- Can I add some acid?

- Lemon and olive oil goes together.

- Match made in heaven.

- Can you have some lemon juice here, please?

That's it.

- Okay, so you want both of these, right?

- Yeah, we love a lot of lemon.

- Yes.

- Okay, there's the lemons.

There's the lemons.

Then, you mix them.

- Okay.

- It's very easy.

You see this here?

- Don't tell me you beat egg whites with two forks.

- I can do that in a heartbeat.

- Oh, this is a throwdown.

- But yeah- - But not here, not here.

- Okay.

- Back to the branzino.

- Okay.

- So, are we ready to- - No, what about parsley?

So, here, like this.

The scissor.

- Scissor trick.

- Okay?

- Okay.

- And then, you put the parsley here, and now put this, all right?

- Oh, wow.

Now, see, in France, that would be all butter.

I know, I know.

I just said a bad word.

- Yes.

- A B-word.

I'm really sorry.

Now, do we cook it down with the sauce, or we're ready to- - A bit, just a touch.

- Because the skin is crispy.

You see how it is now?

It's not mushy.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- That guy's a little naked.

Is that okay?

- Mm-hmm.

Just a minute.

- Oh, gosh, that is gorgeous.

- Yep.

I need to put some- - Are you gonna put the sauce on, too?

- Yeah.

- Oh, that is gorgeous.

Okay.

- I think it's lunchtime.

Don't you?

- Of course I am.

I'm following your steps.

(upbeat music) - Oh, this is so beautiful.

Yes, yes, yes.

So moist-looking.

- Isn't it?

- Yeah, yeah.

It's a good fish that way.

Mm, mm.

Yikes.

Now, the potatoes.

So this is what you want them to look like when they come out of the oven.

Mm.

- Because we have potatoes, we didn't bring bread.

- No.

I like the tomato.

Oh, yum, yum.

- And the green beans.

- And the green beans.

Okay, and that's next.

Greek beets are very flavorful.

Okay, what are we drinking?

- Rose wine.

- Okay.

I love rose.

- From Macedonia.

- Okay.

- Yassou.

- Yassou.

- Yep.

Isn't it great?

- Oh, that's perfect with what we're eating, too.

So I just wanna say I'm so excited that you've introduced me to all these perfect weeknight dishes.

It's just wonderful.

Thank you.

- Excuse me, we're not done yet.

- We're not?

- Of course not.

I have so many surprises for you.

(upbeat music) - I'm making tacos tonight, but these are not authentic tacos.

Let's just be clear.

This is a pantry recipe.

These are the kind of ingredients I might have on hand.

And the star of the show are canned sardines.

So let's get started.

First, I'm gonna make the sauce for the coleslaw, 'cause I like crunch in my fish tacos.

And the sauce is very simple.

Ingredients I usually have on hand.

We're gonna start with a third of a cup of sour cream.

You could use yogurt if you want.

So we're gonna do half sour cream.

And then a third of a cup of mayonnaise.

If you wanna use no dairy or you hate mayonnaise, you could certainly do a vinaigrette.

And I'm gonna add a tablespoon of finely minced chipotles in adobo.

They're smoked jalapenos, and I love 'em because it combines heat and smoke and a little bit of lime.

So we use our trusty tool, which is, you know, a microplane.

I'm, like, obsessed with citrus, so I add citrus rind, orange, grapefruit, lemon, lime to everything.

I just can't help myself.

And it makes it so fresh.

And then a little bit of juice.

A couple of teaspoons.

We're just gonna squeeze it right in.

This is very scientific.

And then we're gonna add some salt.

So you can just do this all to taste, really.

And some salt.

Very simple sauce.

And as I said, most of these ingredients I do have in my cupboard, my freezer, my pantry.

If I didn't have chipotles in adobo, a great substitute would be hot-smoked paprika.

And this is gonna be what we're gonna toss the coleslaw with.

But I'm gonna hold some back 'cause it's very important, I feel, to have a little bit of drizzle on top of the fish.

And we'll talk about that when we get there.

Mmm.

Rather tasty, if I do say so.

Hmm.

And we're gonna take some of this, about a quarter, for our drizzle half.

And then we're gonna add just a little bit of water.

Another nice ingredient if you wanted to in here would be some garlic.

Garlic is always nice.

But some people aren't garlic fans.

We need this to be drizzly.

So that's just sort of a finisher, a little bit on the top afterwards.

Let's get in our coleslaw.

So this is mixed cabbage.

You can do all purple, all green, a mix of the two, which is what we've done here.

And a half a cup of shredded carrots.

And this is delicious all by itself.

You don't have to use it in the taco recipe.

You can just have it straight up in the summertime.

So you can see all the healthy ingredients that are in here.

On to the avocado.

So I'm gonna cut the avocado the safe way, which is on the counter, not in the air, cutting it into quarters and then removing it from the skin.

And just go around.

And then turn the avocado a quarter turn.

And do it again, keeping your fingers on top of the avocado.

There we go.

And then, ready?

Boink.

It all comes off.

There we go.

Isn't that a beautiful magic trick?

You will never cut yourself again.

I hope you haven't cut yourself yet.

So now I'm just gonna scoop these guys out 'cause I wanna have nice slices.

Okay.

And I'm just gonna slice 'em.

You could do chunks, you could do slices, you could do whatever you want.

But it's nice just to have different textures and flavors and every bite is exciting.

Okay, now... we're gonna pop the tortillas in the oven.

There's many ways to heat a tortilla.

This is an easy one if you have a whole bunch.

Actually, I'm only doing four.

You can do them in foil in the oven.

I've got a 300-degree oven.

And just wrap it up and pop it in the oven.

You can actually wrap them in a damp towel, put 'em in the microwave.

Or you can do 'em in a cast-iron skillet.

But, man, this is easy.

I don't have to think about it.

I pop it in here and they'll heat up quickly.

About five minutes.

So, let's talk about the star of the show.

And that is canned sardines.

These are packed in olive oil, they're skinned, they're boned, and they're ready to eat.

Anywhere you use tuna fish, you can use sardines.

The good news is they don't have the mercury of tuna fish.

Okay, I'm gonna get the garnish ready.

Starting with some cilantro.

I'm gonna chop about a half a cup.

You can use basil, you can use dill, you can use parsley.

You know, anything that makes you happy.

All right, and finally, we're gonna add a little queso fresco.

But really, any salty cheese would be nice.

If you don't wanna do the cheese thing, no cheese is fine.

But I like, again, all the contrast, I'm just gonna crumble it, of flavors and textures.

It's just so much fun when you take a bite.

Now, you may have noticed that every part of this recipe, except for the tortillas, is room temperature or cold.

Which is why this is a great recipe for the summertime.

Obviously, if it was the summertime, I wouldn't turn on the oven.

I'd just turn on an open flame and just do it quick on top of the stove.

Heat the tortillas that way.

And meanwhile, you haven't heated up the whole oven.

Oh, that's more cheese than I ever needed.

Get my corn tortillas out.

Time to assemble my tacos.

I'm gonna start with two tortillas.

See how they get nice and pliable.

Then I'm gonna mount some coleslaw into each one of these tortillas.

We're gonna build this nice and high.

Top it with one of the pieces of fish.

Isn't that beautiful?

These are so large, one per tortilla is good.

So, isn't that gorgeous?

You don't need to go grill fish or fry fish, when you can just take it out of the cupboard and open the can.

And it's delicious all by itself.

So, let's get some avocados in there to join the party.

(upbeat music) Then goes the drizzle.

Little bit of cheese.

And finally, oops, a little bit of cilantro.

And there you have it.

Isn't that fantastic?

I mean, how long did that take me to make?

Really, no time at all.

So, here you have it.

My 20-minute sardine tacos.

Next up, back in Athens for a rooftop retsina party.

(upbeat music) In the shadow of the Acropolis and its ancient temples, the La Plaka neighborhood feels like a swanky village in the middle of Athens.

It was there, at this fish cathedral, that I met Maria to prep for a party.

- So, where are we?

- We are in Varvakios Agora, the center of Athens here.

And this is a market that everyone comes to buy the best fish.

- [Sarah] I can see it's the best fish.

- And, see the noise?

- This.

- It's beautiful.

- This.

- Oh my God, that's gorgeous.

This is an important part of the Mediterranean diet, right?

- It's the Mediterranean diet.

- It is.

- Except olive oil, fish is the Mediterranean diet.

- That's what we had for lunch.

- [Maria] Lavraki.

- Wow, so, you know what I want to buy or taste while I'm here?

Retsina.

You laugh at me, I know you do.

- I know, it's old school, it's okay.

- Okay.

- Let's go, let's go.

A little note about retsina.

It's a Greek white wine flavored with pine resin.

Just the kind of thing served in this joint.

Epirus taverna, a cult favorite smack in the middle of the market, is where locals and celebrities go to slurp tripe soup.

We found it an excellent place to buy retsina.

Oh, how exciting.

(speaks in foreign language) - Okay, so, it's time.

- Mezze party, Mezze party.

- Mezze party, let's go.

(speaks in foreign language) - Our party was going strong in Monastiraki Square on top of the 360 Hotel, a place that lives up to its name.

Is that the Acropolis back there?

Of course, I've got my eye on the food.

- Okay.

- Blessing the forks.

- Yassou.

- Yassou.

- Okay.

All right, so, tell me something about this food.

Pick a few.

- Pick a few?

- Yeah.

- My favorite?

- Yes, your favorites.

Your favorite children on this table.

- Yes, so, beans, of course.

Okay, because I love beans.

Gigantes and all that.

- Oh, we call them gigantes, but they're... - No.

Gigantes, gigantes.

- Gigantes.

Okay, there we go, okay.

- That's it.

- Let's try one.

- Yeah.

- Ooh, yummy.

- Wow.

- Those are meaty beans.

Mmm, those are creamy beans.

Mmm, those are yummy beans.

Mmm.

- Mmm, those are Greek beans.

- Those are Greek beans, Greek creamy beans.

- Yep, so, you like your fish, right?

- I love fish, love fish.

- Yeah, so... - These are little fried guys.

- Yeah, so... - Ooh, okay, well, you don't like this, right?

- No.

- The whole thing.

- The whole thing, yeah.

- Okay, they're good for you.

- Yep.

- Yes, fish is good for you, but these are good.

- Yes, okay.

- Mmm, mmm, mmm, mmm.

So good.

I just eat the whole thing.

- Mm-hmm.

- Mmm, yummy.

- Yeah.

- Okay, so... - Okay.

- You want one?

- Oh, yes, yes, yes.

- Okay.

- And this is... - Cheese pies.

- Oh, cheese pies.

It's got cheese in it, and I'm happy right there.

You had me at cheese.

- So.

Cheese pies.

- Mmm, mmm, mmm, mmm.

- Nice, right?

- Mmm, so good.

I like the sesame seeds on the outside.

- Me too.

- Mmm, mmm.

I'll have to wash it down with a little retsina.

- Okay, me too.

- Mmm, mmm.

I have to do another toast.

Yassou!

- I have to ask you a personal question.

- Oh, dear.

- When we met, you said, "I love Greece, I love retsina."

And I said, "What, retsina?"

- I know, it's not, I think, most Greeks' first choice of wine.

- Can you tell me why?

- When I came to Greece the first time, I came with my mother and sister on spring break, and one day, my mom set up this lunch with all these artist types on Turkolimino Bay, and then we sat down, and we had retsina with lunch.

And I was 15, I'm sure I'd gotten drunk somewhere before, but we kept having more wine, and people were treating me like I was an adult.

It was truly a coming-of-age story.

And I was like, "This is the best thing that ever happened."

So to this day, I love Retsina.

For that moment.

- And I have to tell you something else.

You know where we're from today?

You were there.

- I was where we were?

- Exactly.

- Woo-boo-hoo.

- I can't believe that.

- But I took you to the same place.

- You took me to the same place, and we should- - Oh, wow.

- Anyway.

- Yassou.

- Yassou.

- Okay.

So, Sarah, let's have a toast.

Come on, guys.

- Okay, ready?

Ready?

(speaks in foreign language) - I can't believe we did that in front of the Parthenon.

Oh, my God.

Yikes.

- This is Greece.

- And you guys live here.

With that right there.

(upbeat music) For recipes, videos, and more, go to our website, sarahmoulton.com.

Sarah's Weeknight Meals is made possible by... - [Narrator] Aboard Oceania Cruises, our guests embrace a passion for travel and our chefs are inspired by the flavors of the world and committed to providing fine dining at sea.

That's Oceania Cruises.

Oceania Cruises, your world, your way.

- [Narrator] Since 1921, season has brought you skinless and boneless sardine fillets.

Our sardines are wild caught and contain essential vitamins and minerals for everyday meals.

Seasoned sardines, rich in omega-3█s and protein.

♪ And it feels good - [Narrator] Sunsweet amazing prunes and prune juice.

- And by Mutti Tomatoes of Parma, The Republic of Tea, and USA Rice.

(gentle music) (upbeat music) (soft music)