Turkish recipes & Cuisine
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Turkish Manti
For the dough
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt
1 egg, lightly beaten
For the filling
1 small onion, grated
1 pound ground beef or veal
1/3 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
salt
freshly ground pepper
Yogurt and garlic sauce
2 cups yogurt, at room temperature
2-3 tsp minced garlic
salt, optional
Pepper topping
2 Tbs butter
1 tsp Aleppo pepper
pinch of sumac, optional
Prepare the dough by making a well in the flour, and adding the salt,
egg, and ¼ cup water in the centre. Using your fingers, work the
ingredients together until dough is formed. If needed, add more water a
spoonful at a time. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until
smooth and elastic. Gather into a ball, place in a bowl, cover, and let
rest for an hour.
Prepare the filling by mixing together in a bowl the grated onion,
meat, parsley, salt, and pepper to taste. Set aside.
In a small bowl combine the yogurt and garlic, with salt to taste, if
desired. Let sit at room temperature until ready to use.
Divide the dough into 2 balls. Roll out one ball of dough at a time on
a lightly floured surface until very thin (about 1/16 inch). The secret
of good dough is to roll it in different directions, not just in one
direction. Cut strips 1 inch wide, then cut into 1-inch squares. Place
about a ½ teaspoon of filling in the center of each square. Bring the
four corners together over the filling and pinch to seal. Continue
making manti until all the dough and filling are used. Place the manti
on a lightly floured surface to lightly coat them.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and in half the manti. As
soon as they are cooked they will rise to the surface. Remove them from
the pot with a slotted spoon and place in a serving bowl or individual
bowls with a tiny bit of the cooking liquid. Cover to keep warm while
cooking the remaining manti.
Pour most of the yogurt sauce over the manti saving the rest to pass in
a serving dish. Quickly heat the butter in a small skillet and when the
butter is sizzling hot, quickly add the pepper, mixing well. Remove
from the heat and drizzle over the yogurt sauce. Sprinkle with sumac if
desired. Serve manti at once with yogurt sauce. Manti can be frozen.
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Cigarette boereks with cheese (Peynirli sigara böregi)
1 pound white Turkish cheese, crumbled
2 eggs, separated
½ bunch fresh parsley, washed, dried, and finely chopped
½ bunch fresh dill, washed, dried, and finely chopped
2 (1-pound) packages yufka (a type of Turkish phyllo)
lemon wedges
vegetable oil for frying
Soak the white cheese in cold water to remove the excess salt, drain,
then mash with the egg yolks. Stir in the chopped parsley and dill
mixing well.
Cut the wedge-shaped yufka sheets in half, lengthwise.
In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg whites. Rub a little egg white
around the edges of the yufka except for the last 2-inches of the
pointed end. Place a little filling at the base of each triangle and
fold over the side edges of the bottom corners (triangle shaped pieces)
to cover some of the filling. Fold up the bottom edge to cover the
filling and carefully roll up the yufka sheet like a cigarette (from
the large end to the small point).
Wet the pointed end with a little water and press down to seal the
boerek closed. Place the boereks on a cookie sheet and freeze until
ready to cook. Remove from freezer and let sit at room temperature for
10 minutes.
In a large skillet place enough oil to measure 2 inches deep. Heat the
oil and before frying the boereks, hold one between your fingers
(vertically) and place it in ½ inch of the oil. If the oil is hot
enough to cook with, bubbles will immediately form around the bottom of
the boerek. Add as many boereks as the pan will hold in a single layer
and fry the boereks turning once or twice, until golden brown all over.
Place in a fine sieve to drain, then drain well on paper towels. Repeat
until all the boereks are cooked and drained.
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Red lentil soup
1 1/2 cup red lentils
8 cups meat stock
2 middle sized onions
2 Tbs butter
1/2 Tbs flour
1 cup milk
3 egg yolks
1 Tbs salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
6 slices of bread
2 Tbs oil
Wash the lentils. Put them in meat stock and 1 cup of water. Cook for
35-40 minutes until they are tender. Pass them through a sieve. 2- Melt
the butter in another saucepan. Add chopped onions and fry them lightly
for 7-8 minutes. Add flour.
Brown for 1 more minute. Add them to the meat stock with the lentil
puree. Add slat and pepper and let simmer. 3- Beat the egg yolks with
cold milk. Add to the boiling soup, mix well. Turn the heat off as soon
as it starts boiling.
Serve with bread cubes fried in oil.
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Turkish baklava
1 package fillo sheets
1 lb butter, melted
1 lb walnuts, chopped
3 cup sugar, white granulated
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground cinnamon or 1/4 tsp ground and 1 stick cinnamon
Chop walnuts to medium fine and mix with 1 cup sugar, 1/4 teaspoon
ground cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves. Melt the butter and cut
the fillo in half so that each sheet fits the bottom of the baking pan.
Generously butter the bottom and sides of the baking pan and place the
fillo, one sheet at a time, in the baking pan. Generously spread butter
on each sheet of fillo as it is placed in the pan. Every 6 to 8 sheets
of fillo spread a layer of walnut mix. Continue layering fillo sheets
and walnuts until fillo is complete. Pour any remaining butter over
top of the baklava. The secret to good flaky baklava is to have each
sheet of fillo well buttered so that the sheets do not stick together.
With a sharp knife, cut the baklava diagonally to form diamond shaped
pieces.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake the baklava for 40 to 45 minutes
or until golden brown on top. Remove from oven and allow to cool
completely.
For the syrup: Mix one cup water, two cups sugar, 1/4 teaspoon ground
cloves and either 3/4 teaspoons cinnamon or the cinnamon stick in a
sauce pan and bring to a boil. Simmer for 20 minutes. Pour the boiling
syrup over the cool baklava and allow to cool completely again. When
cool serve individual pieces with strong (Turkish) sweet coffee and
dried apricots for an exquisite dessert.
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Spicy turkish ground chicken kababs
1 pound ground chicken or turkey
2 large egg whites
3 Tbs onion finely chopped
3 Tbs red bell pepper finely chopped
2 Tbs olive oil divided
1/4 cup parsley finely chopped
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3/4 tsp coriander
3/4 tsp salt or to taste
1/4 tsp cayenne
thinly sliced grilled onions & red bell for garnish
fresh herbs & lemon wedges
Preheat broiler. In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, egg
whites, onion, bell pepper, 2 tablespoons olive oil & seasonings. Mix
gently until well blended.
Divide into even portions that are equal to double the number of
servings being made. For example, if you are making this recipe to
serve four, divide the seasoned meat into 8 portions. Form each
portion into a 2 1/2" - 3" long sausage. To prevent the meat from
sticking too much, wet hands with cold tap water when forming the
patties.
Insert a flat-bladed skewer lengthwise through the meat. Gently flatten
the meat & shape it into an oval (about 3" x 1 1/2") around each
skewer. Repeat, placing two kabobs on each skewer.
Arrange skewers on a foil-lined broiling tray. Brush lightly on both
sides with remaining olive oil. Broil about 4" from source of heat
until done (but not browned), about 1 1/2 - 2 minutes per side. Serve
immediately over rice pilaf.
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Cilbir (Eggs with yogurt)
6 eggs
½ kg yogurt
3 large garlic cloves
4 Tbs fresh butter
1 tsp red pepper, coarsely ground
2 middle-sized onions cut horizontally
plenty water
Boil water in a fairly big pot. Break one by one the eggs and pour them
in a plate, being careful not to break the yolk. To ensure a homogenous
cooking, let them "glide" from the plate into the boiling water.
Within three minutes the eggs are ready but if you prefer hard-boiled,
allow them to cook for another minute or so.
Meanwhile brown the butter in a skillet and add the garlic and onion.
In the last possible moment add the coarsely ground red pepper and turn
off the fire. Remove the eggs from the pot using a skimmer and place
them in a deep plate.
Cover the eggs with plenty of yogurt and pour the hot butter over them.
Serve immediately.
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Turkish salad
6 oz couscous
1 bunch spring onions
1/4 cucumber
3 ripe tomatoes
2 oz raisins
2 Tbs freshly chopped parsley
2 Tbs freshly chopped mint
salt and freshly ground black pepper
juice of 1 lemon
1 Tbs oil
Cover the couscous with cold water and leave to soak for 30 minutes.
Drain through a sieve, pressing out the excess water. Place in a bowl.
Trim the spring onions and chop finely. Peel the cucumber if preferred,
and cut into small cubes. Finely chop the tomatoes (peel and discard
the seeds first, if preferred).
Add the spring onions, cucumber, tomatoes and raisins to the couscous
with the chopped herbs and seasoning to taste. Pour over the lemon
juice and oil. Mix lightly together, if not eating immediately, cover
and chill until required.