Exploring the Mediterranean diet
Assistant Copywriter
Florence Head
Looking for some exciting, flavour-packed meal ideas to lighten up your lunch and dinners? Be inspired by the flavours and ingredients of the sun-soaked Mediterranean. The Mediterranean diet is a way of eating that focuses on plant-based foods and healthy fats.
Why the Mediterranean? Research has found that people living in countries around the Mediterranean Sea, including Greek, Italian and Spanish, tend to have a lower risk of chronic conditions. Discover which foods to incorporate into your diet, plus healthy recipes that are just as wholesome as they are delicious.
Key ingredients and food groups
Ready to embrace healthy eating the Mediterranean way? It's all about incorporating plant foods like fruits and vegetables with every meal, as well as more legumes, nuts and seeds, and heart-healthy fats. This diet is low in animal products and meat, encouraging fish and seafood high in omega-3 at least twice a week.
Includes these in your diet:
Vegetables: Spinach, kale, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, courgettes, Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes
Fruit: Apples, bananas, strawberries, grapes, oranges, melon, pears, dates, figs
Whole grains: Brown rice, oats, quinoa, couscous, barley, rye, whole wheat bread and pasta
Legumes: Beans, chickpeas, lentils, peas, pulses
Nuts and seeds: Almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, cashews, chia seeds, flaxseeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds
Fish and seafood: Salmon, prawns, sardines, mackerel, squid, mussels
Poultry: Chicken, duck, turkey
Sun-soaked recipes to try
Inspired to give the Mediterranean diet a go? Try our light and fresh recipes packed full of fruit and veggies, gut-loving grains, and flaky fish, from easy midweek meals to vegetarian wonders. Put a pouch of our handy Microwave Spiced Chickpea, Rice and Grain Mix to work or crack open a tin of Collection Sardine Fillets in olive oil with a fiery chilli kick.
Published 12/08/2026
