Tartar Sauce (Tartar Sosu)

½ cup light mayonnaise
¼ cup dill pickle, chopped finely
½ cup onion, minced
1-2 tbsp lemon juice (optional)
A pinch of salt and pepper

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and leave in the fridge for 1-2 hours.
Serve Tartar Sauce with any kind of fried or roasted recipes.
ENJOY

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TURKCE
½ su bardagi light mayonez
½ cay bardagi salatalik tursusu, kucuk kucuk dogranmis
1 cay bardagi sogan, ezilmis/rendelenmis
1-2 yemek kasigi limon suyu (istege bagli)
Bir tutam tuz ve karabiber

Butun malzemeleri bir kasede karistirin ve 1-2 saat buzdolabinda bekletin.
Tartar Sosunu her turlu kizartmanin yaninda servis yapabilirsiniz.
AFIYET OLSUN

Ana Sayfaya Don

The Imam Fainted-Turkish Ratatouille (Imam Bayildi)

This French dish called byaldi, a version of Ratatouille, has actually its origin in a Turkish dish: Imam Bayıldı, “the imam fainted”. It is a traditional Ottoman Dish with olive oil.

2 lb eggplant
1 big onion, sliced round/chopped
2-3 tomatoes, diced/grated or 1 ½ cup crushed tomato
2-3 green peppers/bell peppers
4-5 cloves of garlic, sliced
1/3 bunch of parsley, chopped
1-2 cup canola oil for frying
2 tbsp olive oil
1tsp+1 tsp salt to taste

1/2 tsp sugar
½ tsp black pepper
1/3 cup hot water
1 lemon’s juice

Wash eggplants and peel them striped. Take the green parts without damaging the tops. If eggplants are small and thin; fry them over high heat (Frying whole eggplants over high heat, prevents them to absorb much oil). Place them over a paper towel and then arrange over an oven tray. With a spoon cut them lengthwise and open. Sprinkle 1 tsp of salt all over.
If eggplants are large (like the ones in USA); cut them in 2 or 3 pieces lengthwise. Then fry both sides over high heat. And then place over a paper towel. Arrange them over an oven tray and sprinkle 1 tsp salt all over.
Chop half of the peppers. In a skillet, sauté onions with olive oil. Then stir in garlic and chopped pepper. Saute for 2-3 minutes and add tomatoes, sugar and salt. Cook over low-medium heat till the mixture gets thick. Stir in parsley and black pepper and turn the heat off.
Fill eggplants with the mixture evenly. Slice the remaining peppers in strips and arrange over the eggplants.
Preheat the oven 400 F (200 C) and pour 1/3 cup hot water in tray. Drizzle lemon juice over eggplants and cook for 10-15 minutes.
Serve Turkish Ratatouille warm or cold as you like.
ENJOY
***This is a vegetarian dish.

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TURKCE
Byaldi olarak gecen Fransiz yemegi, Ratatouille’nin bir cesidi olup, aslinda klasik bir Turk yemegidir: Imam Bayildi, “the imam fainted”. Geleneksel bir zeytinyagli Osmanli Lezzeti.

1 kg patlican
1 buyuk boy sogan, yuvarlak/normal dogranmis
2-3 domates, dogranmis/rendelenmis ya da 1 ½ su bardagi ezilmis domates
2-3 yesil sivri biber/dolmalik biber
4-5 dis sarimsak, dilimlenmis
1/3 demet maydanoz, dogranmis
1-2 su bardagi sivi yag (tercihen kanola), kizartmak icin
2 yemek kasigi zeytinyagi
1 tatli kasigi+1 tatli kasigi tuz

1 cay kasigi seker
1 cay kasigi karabiber
1/3 su bardagi sicak su
1 limon suyu

Patlicanlari yikayin ve alaca olarak soyun. Koklerini ayirmadan yesil kisimlarini koparin. Patlicanlar kucuk ve ince ise; butun olarak kizgin yagda her tarafini kizartin (Patlicanlar butun olursa ve ates yuksek olursa fazla yag cekmezler). Kizaran patlicanlari kagit havlu uzerine alin ve sonra firin tepsisine dizin. Ortasini kasik yardimiyla cizgi seklinde yarin ve acin. Uzerlerine 1 tatli kasigi tuz serpin.
Eger patlicanlar buyuk ve tombul ise (ABD’dekiler genelde oyle oluyor); soyduktan sonra boyuna 2 ya da uce kesin. Sonra kizgin yagda her tarafini kizartip, kagit havlu uzerine alin. Firin tepsisine dizin. Uzerlerine 1 tatli kasigi tuz serpin.
Yesil biberlerin yarisini dograyin. Bir tavada soganlari zeytinyaginda kavurun. Sonra sarimsaklari ve dogranmis biberleri ilave edin. Bir kac dakika cevirin. Sonra domatesi, sekeri ve 1 tatli kasigi tuzu ilave edin. Karisim koyulasana dek kisik ateste pisirin. Karabiber ve maydanozu ilave edip atesi kapatin.
Hazirladiginiz ic malzemeyi patlicanlarin icine doldurun. Geri kalan biberleri ince seritler halinde kesip patlicanlarin uzerine yerlestirebilirsiniz. Sivri biber kullaniyorsaniz butun ya da yarim olarak da koyabilirsiniz.
Firini 200 C (400F) ye isitin. 1/3 su bardagi sicak suyu tepsinin dibine dokun. Limon suyunu patlicanlarin uzerinde gezdirin. Yaklasik 10-15 dakika pisirin.
Dilediginiz gibi ister sicak ister soguk servis yapin.
AFIYET OLSUN
***Bu bir vejeteryan yemegidir.

Ana Sayfaya Don

Shrimp Alfredo (Karidesli Alfredo Sosu)

½ lb shrimp, cooked, peeled and deveined
¾ cup parmesan cheese, shredded
8 oz Cream Cheese, cut into cubes
1 cup milk
1 tsp starch
½ cup butter/margarine
5-6 cloves of garlic, minced
¼ tsp dried basil
¼ tsp salt to taste

In a skillet, melt the butter/margarine and cook garlic over low heat for 2 minutes. And then stir in cooked shrimp and sauté for about 5 minutes till shrimp get pink.
In a small bowl, mix milk and starch. Add this mixture to the skillet and bring to a boil. Add the salt and simmer over low heat for 5-7 minutes. Then, stir in the Parmesan and Cream Cheese. Let them melt and turn the heat off after 2-3 minutes.
Sprinkle basil and serve Shrimp Alfredo Over cooked pasta (any kind you like).
ENJOY

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TURKCE
250 gr karides, pismis, soyulmus ve temizlenmis
¾ su bardagi Parmesan peyniri, rendelenmis
200 gr krem peynir, kup seklinde kesilmis
1 su bardagi sut
1 tatli kasigi nisasta
½ su bardagi tereyagi/margarin
5-6 dis sarimsak,ezilmis/rendelenmis
½ cay kasigi kuru feslegen
½ cay kasigi tuz

Bir tavada tereyagi/margarini eritin ve sarimsaklari kisik ateste 2 dakika cevirin. Sonra pismis karidesleri ilave edin ve yaklasik 5 dakika, pembelesene dek pisirin.
Nisastayi sutun icinde cozundurun ve karideslere ilave edin. Kaynamaya baslayinca tuzu ilave edin ve kisik ateste 5-7 dakika pisirin. Sonra, Parmesan ve Krem peynirini ilave edin. Peynirler eridikten sonra 2-3 dakika pisirin ve ocaktan alin. Uzerine kuru feslegen serpin.
Karidesli Alfredo Sosu’nu istediginiz cesit makarnanin uzerine dokerek servis yapin.
AFIYET OLSUN

Ana Sayfaya Don

Chicken Pilaf (Tavuklu Pilav)

2 chicken thighs/1 breast
2 cup whole grain rice, washed and drained
4 cups chicken stock
1 tbsp salt to taste
2-3 tbsp butter
Black pepper

In a pot, boil chicken with the half of the salt. Leave aside 4 cups of the boiling water for using later. Let the chicken cool for a while. And then, remove the skin and bones. Cut the chicken into small pieces and set aside.
In another pot, melt the butter and stir in rice. Cook rice stirring occasionally for 2-3 minutes. Then add 4 cups of boiling water of the chicken. Add the remaining salt and bring to a boil. Close the lid and cook over low heat till the rice absorbs all the water. Then leave for a rest for 10 minutes. Add the chicken and mix them all. Another serving suggestion is: put some chicken into a bowl and fill the rest with pilaf. Gently press the surface and turn upside down to a serving plate.
Sprinkle black pepper on top and serve Chicken Pilaf warm with ayran.
ENJOY

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TURKCE
2 tavuk incik,1 tane gogus
2 su bardagi baldo pirinc, yikanmis ve suzulmus
4 su bardagi sicak tavuk suyu
1 yemek kasigi tuz
2-3 yemek kasigi tereyag
Karabiber

Tuzun yarisini kullanarak tavugu haslayin. Haslama suyundan 4 su bardagi sonra kullanmak uzere ayirin. Tavuk biraz soguyunca derisini ve kemiklerini ayirip atin. Etlerini kucuk kucuk dograyin ve bir kenara ayirin.
Bir tencerede tereyagini eritin ve pirinci ilave ederek bir kac dakika kavurun. Pirinclerin rengi degismeye baslayinca ayridiginiz 4 su bardagi tavuk suyunu ilave edin. Geri kalan tuzu da ilave edin ve kaynayana dek bekleyin. Kaynayinca dusuk ateste kapagi kapali olarak pirincler suyu cekene dek pisirin. Pistikten sonra 10 dakika kadar dinlendirin. Etleri ilave edip hepsini karistirip servis yapin. Degisik bir sunum icin, bir kasenin dibine bir miktar tavuk eti koyun uzerini pilav ile doldurup haifce bastirin ve servis tabagina ters olarak yerlestirin.
Tavuklu Pilavi uzerine karabiber serperek ayran ile servis yapin.
AFIYET OLSUN

Ana Sayfaya Don

Leeks with Beef (Etli Pirasa)

2-3 pieces of leek, washed and cut in chunks
1-2 carrots, sliced round
150 gr beef, cut in cubes
2 tbsp canola/olive oil
1 cup water
1 tbsp flour
1 tsp salt to taste
Pepper

Sauce:
1egg
2 tbsp lemon juice

Cook the meat cubes in a pot with their own juice, till they get soft over low-medium heat. Then stir in oil and flour, cook for 1-2 minutes stirring occasionally. Add leek chunks, carrots and salt, cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Then stir in water and bring to a boil. Then close the lid and simmer over low heat till the leeks and carrots get soft (16-20 minutes).
In a small bowl, whisk egg and lemon juice and pour a few spoons of juice of the leek dish into the bowl and mix with the sauce. Then slowly pour the sauce into the pot stirring continuously. Simmer for 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle some black pepper if desired and serve Leeks with Beef warm.
ENJOY

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TURKCE
2-3 tane pirasa, yikanmis ve 1 ½ cm kalinliginda dogranmis
1-2 tane havuc, yuvarlak kesilmis
150 gr dana eti, kusbasi dogranmis
2 yemek kasigi kanola/zeytinyagi
1 su bardagi su
1 yemek kasigi un
1 tatli kasigi tuz
Karabiber

Sos:
1 yumurta
2 yemek kasigi limon suyu

Bir tencerede once eti kendi suyu ile kisik ateste pisirin. Et yumusayinca kanola/zeytinyagini ve unu ilave edip karistirarak 1-2 dakika cevirin. Sonra pirasa, havuc ve tuzu ilave edin. Orta ateste 2-3 dakika kavurun. Suyu ilave edin ve kaynamaya baslayinca kisik atese alip kapagini kapatin. Havuc ve pirasalar pisene dek yaklasik 16-20 dakika pisirin.
Kucuk bir kasede yumurta ve limon suyunu iyice cirpin. Yemegin suyundan bir kac kasik alip sosun icine karistirin. Sonra yavasca sosu yemege karistirarak dokun. Bir kac dakika daha pisirin.
Arzu ederseniz uzerine karabiber serpin ve Etli Pirasa’yi sicak olarak servis yapin.
Afiyet Olsun

Ana Sayfaya Don

Puff Borek (Milfoy Puf Borek)

½ lb puff pastry sheets
2/3 cup feta/crumbling cheese, crumbled
1 tbsp fresh dill/parsley, finely chopped (optional)
2 tbsp yogurt for top
Nigella seeds

Thaw the puff pastry sheets according to the instructions on the package. Then cut it into 3-4 cm pieces according to shape of the borek (see the picture). I’ve made both square and triangle shapes (see the picture). Then place 1 tsp of filling in one side. You can mix cheese and dill/parsley or just use cheese. Then fold the other side over filling and stick the ends by pressing gently with your finger tips (see the picture).
Then place the puff boreks over a greased tray. Preheat the oven 400 F (200 C). Whisk 2 tbsp of yogurt and brush the surface of the boreks. Sprinkle nigella seeds and bake till they get fluffy and golden brown (about 20 minutes).
ENJOY

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TURKCE
250 gr milfoy hamuru
2/3 su bardagi beyaz peynir/lor, ufalanmis
1 yemek kasigi dereotu/maydanoz, ince dogranmis (istege bagli)
2 yemek kasigi yogurt
Corek otu

Donmus milfoy hamurunu paketin uzerindeki talimatlara gore cozundurun. Sonra yapacaginiz borek sekline gore yaklasik 3-4 cm genisliginde parcalara kesin (resime bakiniz). Ben hem kare hemde ucgen seklinde yaptim (resime bakiniz). Bir tarafina ic malzemeden bir tatli kasigi kadar koyun. Maydanoz/dereotu kullaniyorsaniz bunlari peynri ile karistirin. Kullanmiyorsaniz sadece peyniri koyun. Hamurun karsi kenarini ic malzemenin uzerine dogru kapatin ve parmak uclarinizla hafifce bastirarak kenarlarini yapistirin (resime bakiniz).
Firini 200 C (400 F)’ye isitin. Yaglanmis firin tepsisine borekleri dizin ve uzerlerine cirptiginiz yogurdu surun. Uzerlerine corek otu serpin. Borekler kabarip uzerleri kizarana dek yaklasik 20 dakika pisirin.
AFIYET OLSUN

Ana Sayfaya Don

Turkish Dumpling (Manti)

Manti is one of my favorite Turkish traditional dishes. Manti is very popular and common in Turkey. It takes time to prepare, but it’s really worth of your time! You should try it to taste a real Turkish flavor. Preparing manti is very fun and easy if you make it a team work.

3-3 ½ cups flour
1 egg
2/3 cup lukewarm water
1 tsp salt to taste

Filling:
 ½ lb ground beef
1 onion, finely chopped/shredded
½ tsp salt to taste
½ tsp black pepper

For cooking:
8 cups water
1 tsp salt

Sauce:
2 cups yogurt
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
¼ tsp salt to taste
3-4 tbsp butter/oil
1 tbsp tomato paste/2/3 tsp paprika
2-3 tbsp water
Dried mint
Sumac

In a bowl place the flour, crack the egg and add the salt and water. Then knead till you get a firm and smooth dough. Knead for about 8-10 minutes. Make sure to make it firm to flatten easily later. Cover it with a damp towel or cloth and leave for a rest (15-30 minutes).
Meanwhile in a plate mix all the filling ingredients and set aside.
Divide the dough into 2-3 pieces, take one piece and place on the floured counter. Cover the rest of the dough. Then with a rolling pin flatten the dough as thin as you can (as thick as the ridge of a knife). Then, cut it with a knife or roulette into ¾ inch (1 ½-2 cm) square pieces (see the picture). Then place ¼ tsp filling over each square (see the picture). Then stick the both traverse edges diagonally, by pressing with your finger tips (see the picture). Do the same procedure for the remaining dough.
For cooking, boil the water in a big pot and add salt. Then add all the manti into the boiling water. Stir occasionally with a wooden spoon to prevent them sticking to each other. Make sure not to close the lid. Cook over medium heat till manti gets soft (for about 10-15 minutes).
Meanwhile prepare the sauce. In a bowl mix yogurt, salt and garlic. In a small pan; melt the butter/oil and stir in tomato paste and water. Cook for 2 minutes over low heat. If you prefer using paprika, just add paprika into melted butter/oil and turn the heat off after one minute. Do not add water while using paprika.
Drain the cooked manti and transfer it into serving plates. Let it cool for a while and pour the yogurt sauce over. Finally pour about one tbsp of butter/oil mixture all over (adjust the amount as you like). And if desired sprinkle some dried mint and sumac over the Turkish Dumplings.
This recipe makes 6-7 servings.
ENJOY

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TURKCE
Manti, Turkiye’de cok sevilen ve yaygin olan ve benim de cok sevdigim geleneksel bir lezzettir. Hazirlamasi her ne kadar zahmetli ve zaman alici olsa dahi, manti icin deger! Eger gercek bir Turk Lezzeti denemek istiyorsaniz, mantiyi denemenizi tavsiye ederim. Manti toplu olarak yapilirsa, hem kolay olur hem de eglenceli hale gelebilir.

3-3 ½ su bardagi un
1 yumurta
2/3 su bardagi ilik su
1 tatli kasigi tuz

Ic Malzeme:
250 gr kiyma
1 sogan, ince dogranmis/rendelenmis
1 cay kasigi tuz
1 cay kasigi karabiber

Pisirmek icin:
8 su bardagi su
1 tatli kasigi tuz

Sos icin:
2 su bardagi yogurt
3-4 dis sarimsak, dovulmus/rendelenmis
½ cay kasigi tuz
3-4 yemek kasigi tereyag/sivi yag
1 yemek kasigi domates salcasi YA DA 2/3 tatli kasigi kirmizi toz biber
2-3 yemek kasigi su
Kuru nane
Sumak

Buyuk bir kaseye unu koyun ve uzerine yumurtayi kirin, ilik su ve tuzu ilave edip yogurun. Sert ve puruzsuz bir hamur elde edene dek yaklasik 8-10 dakika yogurun. Hamur yumusak olursa sonra acmaniz zor olur. Hamuru nemli bir havlu ya da bez ile ortun ve 15-30 dakika dinlenmeye birakin.
Bu sirada ic malzemelerinin hepsini karistin ve bir kenara ayirin.
Hamuru 2-3 parcaya ayirin, bir parcasini alin ve geri kalanin uzerini tekrar ortun. Unladiginiz yuzey uzerinde oklava ile hamuru acabildiginiz kadar ince acin (bicak sirti kalinligi kadar). Sonra actiginiz yufkayi 1.5-2 cm kalinliginda esit kare parcalara bolun (resime bakiniz). Sonra hepsinin uzerine yaklasik bir cay kasigi ic malzeme koyun (resime bakiniz). Her parcanin karsilikli capraz koselerini ortada birlestirerek parmak uclarinizla yapistirin (resime bakiniz). Bu islemi geri kalan hamur bitene kadar uygulayin.
Mantiyi pisirmek icin buyuk bir tencerede suyu kaynatin, tuzu ilave edip mantilari icine atin. Arada tahta bir kasik ile karistirarak mantilarin birbirine yapismani onleyin. Kapagini kapatmadan orta ateste mantilar pisene dek yaklasik 10-15 dakika pisirin.
Bu sirada sosunu hazirlayin. Bir kasede yogurt, tuz ve sarimsagi karistirin. Kucuk bir tavada tereyagini/sivi yag eritin. Domates salcasi ile suyu ilave edip yaklasik 2-3 dakika kisik ateste pisirin. Eger kirmizi biber kullanamayi tercih ederseniz tereyagi/siviyagina direk kirmizi toz biberi ilave edin, karistirin ve yaklasik bir dakika sonra atesten alin. Kirmizi biber kullanirken su ilave etmeyin.
Pismis mantiyi suzun ve servis tabaklarina alin. Biraz sogumasini bekleyin. Uzerine yogurt sosundan dokun ve son olarak tereyag/siviyag karisimindan bir kasik kadar dokun (miktari isteginize gore ayarlayin). Arzu ederseniz uzerine kuru nane ve sumak serpin.
Bu tariften yaklasik 6-7 porsiyon manti cikiyor.
AFIYET OLSUN

Ana Sayfaya Don