Taking the classic Eton mess to new, Greek heights, this trifle-like dessert combines meringue and vanilla cream with orange blossom jelly and ouzo-spiked strawberry sauce. Serve this at your next dinner party for maximum effect.

Source: Earl Carter
Forget Korean fried chicken or the Southern American style, kotopoulo tiganito or Greek fried chicken is a flavour explosion like no other. Unlike its poultry peers, this recipe calls for the chicken to be marinated in a garlicky, zesty, ouzo-y marinade, and flavoured with fragrant herbs such coriander, juniper berries and bay leaves, before being fried. Serve with lemon wedges, fried oregano sprigs and, if you’re game, a shot or two of ouzo.
More than a slab of fried cheese, saganaki actually translates to “little frying pan” and refers to any number of Greek dishes cooked in such a vestibule. Here, mussels are bathed in a rich, ouzo-scented tomato sauce, then sprinkled with herbs and feta. It’s a more-ish meze that pairs wonderfully with a crusty loaf of bread.

At Sydney restaurant Apollo, chef Stefano Marano serves up caramelised pineapple cooked in our ol’ friend ouzo, alongside milk crumb, yoghurt parfait, white chocolate and mascarpone. Creamy, textural and with a fresh pineapple zing, this dessert is destined to impress.

Chargrilled seafood and fried saganaki are two quintessential dishes you’ll find at coastal tavernas across Greece. Here, the baby calamari is marinated in olive oil, garlic, Greek oregano (rigani) and lemon juice, before being grilled. The saganaki, meanwhile, is an ouzo-spiked flambé of kefalograviera, a hard, salty, Greek sheep’s-milk cheese. Serve with a classic Greek salad for major holiday vibes.
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Chargrilled baby calamari with fried saganaki.