Nohutlu etli bamya (Okra with lamb meat and chickpeas)

My favourite okra dish. Recipe from hometown.
Recipe will post soon...

Çiğ Köfte

Patates Pureli Tandir

Patlıcanlı Köfte

Pide Ustu Doner

Mercimekli Köfte

Çiğ Köfte

Etli Lahana Sarması (rolled cabbage with ground beef)

Sarma means a wrapped thing in Turkish, from the verb sarmak 'to wrap or to roll. Minced meat (usually lamb or beef), rice, onions, garlic, long green pepper, parsley, fresh mint, tomato, pepper and tomato paste, sour pomegranate juice, extra virgin olive oil, black pepper and salt are mixed together and then rolled into large plant leaves, which may be cabbage, chard, sorrel and vine leaf (fresh or pickled). In Turkey sarma is eaten as an everyday, ordinary dish.

rolled cabbage with ground beef
3-4 lbs cabbage
1lb regular ground beef
1 cup calrose rice
2 medium onions finely chopped
5 cloves garlic finely chopped
3 long green peppers finely chopped
1 cup parsley finely chopped
½ cup fresh mint finely chopped
1 large tomato finely chopped
sour pomegranate juice (you decide)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon pepper paste
freshly ground black pepper
salt

In a large saucepan, bring to a boil enough salted water to cover the cabbage, add the cabbage, turn the heat to low and simmer 5-7 minutes. Remove the cabbage and let it drain while it cools enough to handle. Pull off large leaves and lay them on paper towels.

In a large mixing bowl, combine ground beef, rice, onions, garlic, peppers, tomatoes, parsley, mint, tomato and pepper paste, sour pomegranate juice, extra virgin olive oil, black pepper and salt. Mix well.
Place 2-3 tablespoons of the stuffing in the center of one of wilted cabbage leaves and, beginning with the thick end of the leaf, fold over the sides, then roll the whole leaf tightly. Repeat with more leaves until all the stuffing has been used.

Spread the thick leaves of cabbage on the bottom of a casserole and arrange the cabbage rolls on top of it. Add the water then cover the pan tightly and cook the stuffed cabbage over low heat for 1 hour. Transfer the rolls from the casserole to a plate. Enjoy

Iskender Kebab

2 lbs thinly sliced rib eye beef ( it doesn’t have to be paper thin)
1 onion finely chopped
¼ cup sunflower oil
¼ extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon paprika
½ Turkish pide bread or flat bread
2 large tomatoes grated
2 tablespoons tomato paste or tomato puree
2 cups plain yogurt (my prefer 3.25%)
4 cloves garlic minced
4 green long peppers
1 tomato
1 cup butter
Sea salt
First make the marinade for the thinly sliced rib eye beef , place onions in a cheese cloth and squeeze onions juice. Mix pepper, sunflower oil and onion juice in a bowl, add thinly sliced rib eye beef and marinade about 1 hour.
Meanwhile Put the tomatoes and peppers in the oven and grill slowly, as they will become too soft and soggy. Then combine the grated tomato, crushed garlic with olive oil and pepper in a large sauce pan and cook, stirring, over medium high heat until the tomatoes until water evaporates, and add the tomato paste reduce the heat to medium low and cook, stirring for 5 minutes and add the 1 glass water tomato mixture and stir and toss over medium until the iskender is well coated add the salt and remove from the heat.
In a 12 inch sauté pan, heat the butter over high heat until smoking. Add marinated thinly sliced rib eye beef to the pan and cook until golden brown about 8 minutes and add the salt and remove from the heat.
When everything is ready then slice the Turkish pide bread into square ½ x ½ inch, divide into 2 portions and place as a layer on each plate, adding hot beef onto the Turkish pide bread and drizzle over kebabs as it is the meat sauce. Garnish with the grilled tomatoes, long green peppers and yogurt. Enjoy

Kıymalı ve Ispanaklı Makarna (Penne with Ground Meat and Spinach)

1 pound penne

1 small onion chopped

2 garlic cloves chopped

1 pound spinach, trimmed and sliced 1/2 inch thick

1/2 pound ground beef

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup tomato paste

sea salt

ground fresh paper

Drop the pasta into the boiling water and cook until just tender, stirring occasionally, 12 to 14 minutes.  Drain the pasta, reserving about 1/2 cup of the pasta water. 

Heat the 1/4 cup olive oil in a large pot over medium heat, add the ground beef and cook, stirring until just tender and add onion, garlic cook stirring until golden brown and add tomato paste,1/2 cup of the hot pasta water and spinach. Stir to melt the create a sauce. Stir in the 4 to 5 minute then sea salt and pepper and remove from the heat. Gently fold in the pasta, transfer to a platter and serve immediately. Serve with additional parmesan and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Enjoy!

Mantı (Turkish ravioli)

Mantı, Turkish meat ravioli is very popular and delisicous dish. This dish is one of the most ancient dishes in Turkey. Small dumplings filled with meat mixture, similar to ravioli but smaller, are made one at a time by hand. this meal takes time to prepare but is well worth it.

 Mantı are made in five stages:

1-) Mantı Dough

1 pound wheat flour

1 teaspoons sea salt

1 eggs

1/4 cup water

2-) Filling of Mantı

1 medium onion, finely chopped.

1/2 pound ground meat

1/3 bunch italian parsley finely chopped

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

sea salt

3-) Yogurt Sauce

750 gr plain yogurt (3.25%M.F. better :) )

2 cloves garlic crush

4-) Oil sauce

6 tablespoons sunflower oil

1 tablespoon dry mint

1 tablespoon paprika

 

Let's start now:

 

Sift the flour into a large bowl, reserving aside 1/3 cup of the flour. Combine the rest flour,salt and egg mix well. Make a firm dough, gradually adding water, kneading for 10 to 12 minutes. Cut the dough into half. Round each dough into a ball and cover them with a towel. Let the pieces of dough rest for 15 minutes.

 

While, combine the onion, parsley, meat, paste, black pepper and salt in a bowl.

 

Invert to dough from the bowl to a floured work surface. Roll out the first piece of dough to a 1mm thickness. Then using a sharp knife, cut the dough into individual squares about 1"x1". After, place about a 1/2 teaspoon of filling in the center of each square. This part important, biring the four corners together over the filling and pinch to seal(make dumpling). Line up the making dumplings of each square next to one. Then preheat oven to 370F, put oven all mantı until the mantı turn golden in colour 4 to 6 minutes.

 

Finally, drop the Mantı into the boiling water and cook until just a tender 15 to 20 minutes. Drain the mantı.

 

Combine the yogurt, garlic and little salt in a medium pot. Mix well to make a smooth yogurt sauce.

 

Divide the mantı the serving bowls. Pour on the yogurt sauce. For garnish quickly sizzle the sunflower oil, paprika and dry mint in a small pan heat until foaming. Swirl the sipcy oil over the mantı. Enjoy

Kıymalı Pide (Ground Beef Pies)

1 lb ground lamb or beef little fatty (not too lean)

1 medium onion finely diced

3 tomatoes finely diced

1 long red chiles

1 tablespoon tomato paste

¼ cup italian parsley
1 teaspoon paprika
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt

2 eggs

4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 tablespoon dried yeast

1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 cups warm water

3 tablespoons milk

Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl and stir well to mix. In a separate bowl, whisk the yeast into the water and whisk in the oil and milk. Use your fingers to work in the flour and form a smooth ball. Transfer to a dough mixer fitted with a dough hook and knead on a low speed for 12-15 minutes until very smooth and shiny. Cover the mixer bowl with plastic wrap an allow the dough to rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, 1-2 hours, depending on the temperature of the room.

Place the ground lamb or beef on a large chopping board and put the onion, tomato, parsley, paprika, red chiles and extra virgin olive oil on top. Use a very large knife to chop and mix everything together until well combined. The topping should be the consistency of a smooth, fine paste. Season with salt, black pepper and tomato paste.

Roll each portion of dough on a lightly floured work surface to form a long rectangle, around 12x4 inches. Scatter a sixth of the topping down the pipe, leaving a ¾ inch border around edge. Then quickly fold up the two long sides of the dough, bringing them up and over the topping, but without meeting in the middle. Squeeze the sides together at each, twisting slighlty, so that the pide looks like a long canoe. Mix the egg yolk and milk to make an egg wash, them brush the dough with a little of this. Carefully transfer the pides to the cookie sheets or aliminium folyo and bake for 10 minutes. Serve piping hot.

Lahmacun

Turkish style traditional pizza topped with ground lamb or ground beef. Lahmacun is often served sprinkled with lemon juice and wrapped around parsley and chile flakes. Chilled ayran is the usual accompaniment for this snack in Turkey. And my favorite meal. Enjoy!

1 lb ground lamb or beef little fatty (not too lean)

1 medium onion finely diced

3 tomatoes finely diced

3 gloves garlic finely diced

1 long red chiles

1 tablespoon tomato paste

¼ cup italian parsley
1 teaspoon paprika
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt

4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons dried yeast
2 teaspoons sea salt
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 cups warm water

Combine the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl and stir well to mix. In a separate bowl, whisk the yeast into the water and whisk in the oil. Use your fingers to work in the flour and form a smooth ball. Transfer to a dough mixer fitted with a dough hook and knead on a low speed for 12-15 minutes until very smooth and shiny. Cover the mixer bowl with plastic wrap an allow the dough to rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, 1-2 hours, depending on the temperature of the room.

Place the ground lamb or beef on a large chopping board and put the onion, tomato, parsley, paprika, red chiles, garlic and extra virgin olive oil on top. Use a very large knife to chop and mix everything together until well combined. The topping should be the consistency of a smooth, fine paste. Season with salt, black pepper and tomato paste.

Preheat the oven to 425F (220C) knock back the dough, then put it onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into 10 portions. Roll each portion into a round, 6 inches in diameter. Bake for 8-10 minutes and serve piping hot. 

Midye Tava (Mussel saute)

25 mussels,
1 medium carrots finely sliced
1 medium potato finely sliced
1 small onion finely chopped
1 clove garlic finely chopped
1 tomato finely chopped
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
juice of half a lemon,
1/2 cup water
sea salt,
black pepper
1/2 tablespoon tomato paste,
1/4 bunch flat-leaf parsley.

Heat the olive oil in a pot and saute the onion and garlic until they begin to color. Add the carrots and saute 2-3 minutes longer. Add the chopped tomato and the tomato paste and the shelled and cleaned mussels. Saute 4-5 minutes and add the water. Add salt and pepper and let simmer. When the mixture is boiling, add the potatoes. When the carrots and mussels are done, beat the egg yolk with the lemon juice and add slowly to the simmering mixture. Bring back to the boil briefly, remove from the heat and let cool. Sprinkle with chopped parsley before serving. with a little olive oil and serve.

Beyaz Peynirli Poğaça (Feta Cheese Patty)

250gr feta cheese
400 gr flour
250 gr water
1 cup olive oil for sauteing
1/2 bunch parsley, finely chopped
25 gr dry yeast (dissolved in lukewarm water)
1 tbsp granulated sugar
1 egg
sea salt

Place the flour in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the middle and add the yeast which has been dissolved in lukewarm water. Add the salt, sugar and water and wait for the yeast to form bubbles. Then knead into a dough. Cover with a cloth and wait 30 minutes. Divide into small portions. Grate the unsalted feta and add the chopped parsley and the egg to make the filling. Fill the dough portions with the cheese mixture and roll into balls. Heat the olive oil red hot and fry until the fritters are golden brown. Serve piping hot. Enjoy

Narli Tavuk (Chicken with Pomegranate)

2 chicken breasts
2 pomegranates, cleaned
1 cup pomegranate juice
1 cup chicken stock
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 sticks of cinnamon
4 tablespoons walnut
sea salt
black pepper

Brown the chicken in oil or in the oven(if use oven don't use olive oil) for ten minutes and set aside. In a pot, combine the chicken stock and pomegranate juice and bring to a boil. Tie the seeds of the cleaned pomegranate up in a piece of cheesecloth and place in the boiling mixture together with stick cinnamon, walnut meats, salt and pepper, and boil 4-5 minutes. Add the browned chicken breasts to this mixture and cook over a low fire for 8-10 minutes. When the chicken is cooked, slice it and arrange the slices on top of a bed of plain rice pilaff on a serving platter. Remove the pomegranate seeds from the cheesecloth bag and sprinkle over the chicken and rice, and serve. Enjoy

Erikli Kuzu (Lamb Stew with Prunes)

500 gr lamb cut the large pieces
130 g prunes
25 shallots
5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tomatoes, finely diced
ground white pepper,
1 cup water
2 bay leaves
sea salt

Let the prunes stand in hot water until soft, then remove the pits. Put the olive oil in a pot and add the lamb. Cook until the juices have been absorbed. Add the shallots, prunes, tomatoes, bay leaves, salt and pepper and leave on a low fire for 20 minutes. When the meat is tender, serve. Enjoy

Adana Kebabs

Adana Kebab is very famous Turkish kebab, comes from the city of Adana in south Turkey.

500 gr ground lamb meat
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon cayenne
sea salt
turkish flat bread (flat pita, lavash or flour tortilla)
For garnish
1 red onion, sliced
1 tablespoon sumac
1 cup fresh italian parsley finely chopped
sea salt

Combine the ground lamb, paprika, cayenne and sea salt in a large bowl and knead for a 6 minutes, all the ingredients are mixed very well. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour to bring out the flavors. Then soak the flat wooden skewers for 20 minutes prior to cooking the Adana kebab. Make a long patty to put on the flat wooden skewers or ( divide the minced meat into four equal sized, rectangle shaped kebabs.)
Three ways the cook the meats,
1-) over a grill ( 6-8 minutes cooking times on the grill, turning meat over every 2-3 minutes)
2-) sautee in a pan ( bring large (12"-14") sautee pan to high heat and add a touch of cooking oil before placing meat. same cooking time the grill)
3-) in a broiler ( put into the metal pan and same cooking time the grill)

For garnish, red onion, sumac, parsley and salt put in the large bowl, mix it up nicely.

And serve them on the lavash or flat pita or flour tortilla . The idea is for everyone to garnish their own kebabs with an onion, sumac and parsley (soğanlı sumak salatası) salad.

Köfte with cumin (meatball)

500 gr minced meat
2 tablespoons brade crumps
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 tablespoon cumin
1/2 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
sea salt
black pepper
Combine the meat, crumps, garlic, onion, cumin, paprika, olive oil, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Knead well at least 5-6 minutes. Take pieces the size of a walnut. Roll between palms to round it off and press lightly. Grill over charcoal fire balls (or oven) If you want, you can serve with pasta.