Potato Salad (Patates Salatası)

Makes 5-6 servings

5 medium sized potatoes * 50 g parsley * 1 carrot * 1/2 lemon juice * black pepper * salt

Boil the potatoes and the carrot. Filter and mash them with a fork or in the mixer. Mince the parsley. Mix the mashed potatoes and carrot with the minced parsley, lemon juice and a bit of black pepper and salt. Let it cool down a little. Make small balls and serve cold or warm with pickles.

Rice Pilaf with Eggplant and Lemon (Patlıcanlı Pilav)

Makes 2-3 servings

1 cup rice * 1 1/2 cup water * 1 eggplant * 4 tbsp olive oil * salt * 1 tbsp lemon zest

Peel the eggplant and cut into small cubes. Soak in water with salt for 10 minutes. Wash the rice and soak it in hot water for 15 minutes. Pour two tablespoons of olive oil in a cooking pot and sauté the rice for about two minutes. Add the water and salt and cook until all the water evaporates. Place the eggplant cubes over a kitchen towel to release the excess of water. Saute the eggplant with two tablespoons of olive oil until they become lightly golden. Cover the rice with the eggplant and the lemon zest. Stir gently and serve.

Rice Pilaf with Chestnuts and Blackcurrants (Kestaneli Pilav)

Makes 4 servings

1 cup baked and peeled chestnuts * 1 cup rice * 4 tbsp olive oil * 1 tbsp dried blackcurrants * 1 1/2 cup water * salt * black pepper

Wash the rice and bring it to fire with the olive oil. Sauté it for about two minutes on medium heat. Add the chestnuts, the dried blackcurrants and the seasonings and mix. Add the water and cover the cooking pot. Cook on low heat until all the water evaporates.

Sautéed Potato Puree (Patates Kavurması)

Makes 2-3 servings

6 medium potatoes * 1 large onion * 1 tbsp pepper paste or 1 small tomato * 4-5 tbsp olive oil * red pepper * dry mint * black pepper * salt

Boil the potatoes. Mince the onion and sauté slightly in the olive oil. Add the pepper paste or a peeled tomato cut in small pieces. Add the mashed potatoes. Season with salt and spices. Stir for about one minute over medium heat. Take from the fire and serve.

This dish is usually served as an appetizer, but it is also delicious as a side dish.

Bulgur Pilaf (Sade Bulgur Pilavı)

Makes 4 servings

1 cup bulgur * 1 1/2 cup water * 2 tbsp butter (or olive oil) * salt * black pepper

Place the olive oil in a pot or melt the butter. Wash the bulgur and sauté it slightly in the olive oil or butter for about two minutes. Add the water and seasonings and cook over low fire until the water evaporate completely. Turn off the fire, gently stir the bulgur and serve hot.

Note: This recipe is usually made with butter but you can also do it with olive oil.

Beetroot and Yogurt Dip (Yoğurtlu Pancar Mezesi)

Makes 2 servings

4 tbsp plain yogurt * 1 beetroot * 2 garlic cloves * 1 tbsp dried thyme * salt

Place the beetroot in a cooking pan, cover with water and cook until it gets soft. Filter and let it cool down. Cut into small and thin pieces. Reserve. Place the yogurt in a small bowl. Add the beetroot pieces, the minced garlic, the salt and the thyme and mix.

This dipping sauce can be served as an appetizer combined with other mezes, or as a complement of a main dish.

Turkish Rice Pilaf (Pirinç Pilavı)

Makes 4 servings

1 cup rice * 1 1/2 cup water * 1 tbsp butter * salt * black pepper

Wash the rice and place it in hot water for 15 minutes. Melt the butter and add the rice. Fry the rice for 2-3 minutes, stirring continuously. Add the water, salt and pepper. Close the lid and cook until all the water evaporates. Turn off the fire. Put a kitchen towel between the rice and the lid for 10 minutes. Remove the towel and serve hot.

Rice Pilaf with Lamb, Mushrooms and Walnuts (Mantarlı Pilav)

Makes 10-12 servings

2 cups rice * 5 tbsp butter * 3 onions *100 g walnuts * 8 cups water * 500 g lamb meat * 2 tsp thyme * 200 g mushrooms * 3 tomatoes * 100 g fresh dill * 2 tsp sugar * 1 tsp black pepper * salt

Wash the rice and place it inside a bowl with warm water and salt for one hour. Then rinse it with cold water, filter and drain very well. Bring the onions and the meat, finely chopped, to fire with half of the butter. Sauté on low heat until the meat looses all the juice. Add the mushrooms and the tomatoes finely chopped and go on sautéing for some minutes. Add the water and let it cook for 30 minutes on low heat. When the meat is almost cooked add the rice, the salt, the black pepper and the sugar. First let it boil and then cook for 15 minutes on low fire. Melt the rest of the butter and add it to the rice. Close the pan and turn off the fire. Garnish with the dill and the thyme finely minced and the walnuts.

Bulgur Salad with Vegetables (Karışık Kısır)

Makes 6 servings

2 cups thin bulgur * 2 cups hot water * 3 tbsp olive oil * juice of 1 lemon * 1 tbsp pomegranate sauce (nar ekşisi) * 2 tbsp tomato paste * 2 tbsp pepper paste * 2 tomatoes * 2 cucumbers * 4 lettuce leaves * 3-4 green onions * 100 g parsley * salt * black pepper * red pepper

Place the bulgur in a bowl with hot water. Cover the bowl and wait until the bulgur absorbs all the water and cool down. Add the olive oil, the lemon juice, the pomegranate sauce, the tomato and pepper pastes, the salt, the black pepper and the red pepper. Peel the tomatoes and the cucumbers, cut them in small cubes and add them to the bulgur. Slice finelly the the lettuce, the green onions and the parsley. Add to the bulgur and mix well. Place on a serving plate over lettuce leaves.

This is a very common dish in the Turkish houses during the summer.

Rice with Chicken and Dried Fruits Covered with Phyllo Pastry (Perde Pilavı)

1 sheet phyllo pastry * 2 cups rice * 2 medium sized onions * 25-30 g butter or 4-5 tbsp olive oil * 1 tbsp dried currants * 1/2 cup sultana raisins * 200 g chicken chest (boiled and cut in small pieces) * 2 tbsp pine-nuts * 1 tsp allspice * salt * 4 cups hot water * 2 tbsp olive oil

Place the rice in a bowl with hot water and salt for 50-60 minutes. Place the dried currants and the sultana raisins in hot water for 30 minutes. Mince the onion and sauté with the olive oil or butter for 3-4 minutes. Filter the rice, add it to the onion and fry for 5-6 minutes stirring with a wood spoon. Add the chicken, boiled and cut in pieces, the sultana raisins and the dried currants (after filtering the water), the pine-nuts, the allspice, the salt and four cups of hot water. Cook covered over low heat until all the water is absorbed.
Meanwhile, grease a round cake tray, with 20-25 centimeters diameter, with two tea spoons of margarine. Cover the tray with the phyllo sheet. As the phyllo sheet is big (about 60 centimeters diameter), part of it will be out of the tray. When the rice is cooked, let it cool down a little and stir it carefully with a fork. Place the rice on the phyllo pastry sheet. Then cover it with the parts of the phyllo pastry sheet that were out of the tray and brush with two table spoons of olive oil. Bake on a 175º pre-heated oven for 30-35 minutes. During this time both resistances of the oven (up and down) must be connected. Place the rice on a serving plate and serve hot.

Veal Stew with Couscous (Kuskuslu Sebzeli Et Yahnisi)

Makes 1 serving

2 tbsp olive oil * 150 g veal * 1 carrot * 1/2 onion * 1 tsp red pepper * 1 garlic clove * 1 tsp cumin * 1 tsp cinnamon * 1 tsp powder saffron * 50 g boiled chickpeas * salt * black pepper

For the sauce:

50 ml olive oil * 1 garlic clove * 3 red chili peppers * 50 g nuts

For the couscous:

1 cup couscous * 2 cups water * salt

Pour the olive oil on a pan. Add the chopped onion, the minced garlic and the meat cut into small cubes. Sauté for some minutes on low heat. Add the carrot cut into small cubes, the salt and all the spices. Continue sautéing for 2 minutes more. Then, add 2 cups of water and cook on low fire until the meat is soft. Add the boiled chickpeas, mix well and turn the fire off. Prepare the sauce. Place all the ingredients in the mixer. Cook the couscous with water and salt until all the water evaporates. Serve the couscous covered with the meat and the sauce.

Istanbul Pilaf (İstanbul Pilavı)

Makes 4 servings 

2 cups rice * 3 tbsp olive oil * 25 g peeled almonds * 1 chicken chest (250 g aprox.) * 4 cups water * 1/2 tsp saffron powder * 3/4 cup peas * salt * black pepper * 25 g pistachios 

Saute the chicken chest, cut into small cubes, and the almonds in the olive oil. Add the rice and continue sauteing on low heat for a while. Add the water and the peas. Season with salt, pepper and saffron. Cook on low heat. When the rice is cooked, add the pistachios. Stir and serve hot.