Leeks Simmered in Olive Oil

“The slower, the better, when you simmer the leeks,” my Turkish friend and fellow foodie Engin Akin advises me on the phone from Istanbul. Engin, who hosts a weekly food show on Turkish radio, adds: “It's all about creating silky texture and natural flavors and aromas.”

I call this method of slow cooking vegetables, which enhances their flavor by forcing them to reabsorb their own moisture, Mediterranean alchemy. It relies on self-basting, usually in a sturdy pot in which the vegeta