by Selin Kiazim
LIME MAYONNAISE
We serve lime mayonnaise alongside our chilli-garlic chicken; the subtle zing is a real winner. If you’re short on time, you could just buy a good-quality lime pickle instead of making your own.
MAKES 500ML (18FL OZ)
2 large egg yolks
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
25ml (¾fl oz) white wine vinegar
freshly squeezed juice of ½ lime
300ml (10fl oz) sunflower oil
fine salt
FOR THE LIME PICKLE
10 limes, cut into quarters
30g (1oz) fine salt
150g (5½oz) caster sugar
20g (¾oz) black mustard seeds
20g (¾oz) coriander seeds, lightly crushed
100ml (3½fl oz) red wine vinegar
First make the lime pickle: you will need a pressure cooker. Mix the limes with the salt in a non-reactive container and put in the refrigerator for 5 days, stirring once a day. Rinse the limes with cold water and set aside.
Put the sugar in the pressure cooker and heat, uncovered, until it forms a dark brown caramel. Remove the pan from the heat and add the mustard and coriander seeds. As they start to pop, carefully add the limes, as the mixture will spit. Cook over a medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until you see the juice coming out of the limes.
Put the lid on and gently bring the pan up to pressure. When you hear it hissing, reduce the heat to its lowest setting and cook for 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the pressure to drop completely before opening the lid. Add the vinegar and continue to cook, uncovered, until it is the consistency of chutney. Allow it to cool, then roughly blitz in a food processor before transferring it to a sterilized jar. Store in the refrigerator.
To make the mayonnaise, whisk the egg yolks with the mustard, vinegar and lime juice until well incorporated. (You can do this with hand-held electric beaters or by hand with a balloon whisk.) While continuing to whisk, slowly drizzle in the oil. Finish by adding the lime pickle and season with salt.
URFA CHILLI MAYONNAISE
This mayonnaise totally surprised me when we first made it, because the urfa chilli gives it an almost coffee-like flavour in the background. Serve with any meats or poultry, or even to dress a potato salad.
MAKES 1KG (2LB 4OZ)
150g (5½oz) egg yolks
80ml (2¾fl oz) moscatel vinegar
½–1 garlic clove
4 tablespoons urfa chilli flakes (isot biber)
800ml (28fl oz) sunflower oil
fine salt
Put the egg yolks, vinegar, garlic and urfa chilli in a food processor and blend together well. With the motor still running, slowly drizzle in the oil until a mayonnaise is formed. Season with salt.
BLACK OLIVE & PEPPER TAPENADE
Black olive paste is available in Turkish supermarkets. It’s great as part of a breakfast spread – I love it on hot toast.
SERVES 4 – 6
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon thyme, leaves only
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
4 heaped tablespoons black olive paste
2 heaped tablespoons Turkish hot pepper paste (açi biber salçasi)
fine salt
Heat the oil and garlic gently in a small saucepan. When the garlic starts to turn a little brown around the edges, take the pan off the heat and add the thyme and vinegar. Combine with the two pastes, then season with salt. This will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.
TOMATO RELISH
This is essentially glorified ketchup, and it goes really well with anything meaty or fishy.
MAKES 300G (10½OZ)
1 banana shallot, finely diced
small bunch of chives, thinly sliced
2 sprigs of tarragon, leaves only, finely chopped
1 teaspoon urfa chilli flakes (isot biber)
200g (7oz) tomato ketchup
1 teaspoon caster sugar
2 tablespoons moscatel vinegar
80ml (2¾oz) sunflower oil
fine salt
Whisk together all the ingredients and season with salt. The relish will keep for up to 3 weeks in a clean, well-sealed jar.
MUHAMMARA
My recipe is slightly different from most in that I don’t use roasted peppers, but add plenty of pepper paste instead. I love Turkish pepper paste – it’s so versatile. Serve muhammara as a dip, on toast or any way you like.
MAKES 1 KG (2LB 4OZ)
250g (9oz) walnuts, toasted
50g (1¾oz) fresh breadcrumbs
75g (2¾oz) Turkish sweet pepper paste (tatli biber salçasi)
1½ garlic cloves
1 tablespoon Turkish chilli flakes (pul biber)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon
50g (1¾oz) pomegranate molasses
15g (½oz) caster sugar
375ml (12½fl oz) extra-virgin olive oil
fine salt
Put all the ingredients except the olive oil and salt in a food processor and blend to a coarse purée. With the motor still running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Season with salt.
The muhammara will keep up for up to a month in a clean, well-sealed jar.
WHIPPED FETA
This is great as part of a meze platter or, as we serve it, on some crostini topped with a slice of candied pumpkin and sprinkled with Turkish chilli flakes (pul biber) and shredded mint. Finish the crostini with flaky sea salt and a drizzle of olive oil.
MAKES 500G (1LB 2OZ)
400g (14oz) Turkish white cheese or feta, crumbled
200ml (7fl oz) double cream
Blend the cheese and double cream to a smooth consistency in a food processor. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Muhammara (top left) served as a dip with flatbread, and Whipped Feta, topped with candied pumpkin, Turkish chilli flakes (pul biber) and shredded mint.
BAHARAT
Baharat is often sold as ‘mixed spice’ in Turkish supermarkets. This recipe is based on my grandma’s, and is what she uses in her bread. I started off using it just in bread too, although I have now found other great ways to use it. It goes particularly well with fish.
This recipe features some unusual ingredients. Mahlep are dried cherry seeds, which have a bitter flavour but are great when used in the right proportion. Mastic is the resin from the mastic tree. It has a very unusual taste – almost like pine – and works very well in bread, as it gives it great elasticity. It’s quite expensive, but you don’t need a lot. You can leave out these ingredients if you can’t find them.
MAKES ABOUT 90G (3¼OZ)
30g (1oz) allspice berries
30g (1oz) cloves
15g (½oz) mahlep (dried cherry seeds, available at Turkish supermarkets)
1 x 10g (¼oz) piece of nutmeg
1 x 5g (⅛oz) piece of mastic
Blend together all the spices in a spice grinder until fine. Alternatively, if you don’t have a spice grinder, buy what you can find in ground form, and grind what you can’t using a pestle and mortar. Stored in an airtight container, this will keep for up to 4 weeks.
SUMAC DRESSING
This is the dressing we use for our chilli-roasted cauliflower, but it would also be great as a salad dressing.
MAKES 350ML (12FL OZ)
3 garlic cloves, finely grated
freshly squeezed juice of 2 lemons
300ml (10fl oz) extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon sumac
fine salt
Put all the ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Stored in the refrigerator, this dressing will keep for up to 3 weeks.
CAPER DRESSING
This dressing has a great zing to it. Spoon it over roast lamb, chicken or even a piece of fish. My favourite pairing is with the Grilled Quails.
MAKES 150G (5 ½OZ)
4 tab
lespoons Lilliput capers, rinsed and roughly chopped
3 tablespoons caster sugar
6 tablespoons moscatel vinegar
1 banana shallot, finely diced
small bunch of mint, leaves only, chopped
small bunch of coriander, leaves and stalks, chopped
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Mix all the ingredients together and it’s ready to go. Stored in the refrigerator, this dressing will keep for 1 week.
POMEGRANATE DRESSING
We use this dressing at the restaurant for all the salads that accompany the pides and lahmacun. Our salads are a thing of beauty, if you ask me: we combine a selection of bitter and sweet leaves, herbs, onions, tomatoes, radishes, marinated olives, pickled red cabbage and anything else that’s wonderful and in season. The dressing brings out all those flavours to give a zingy hit and cut through the richness of the pides. However, I would highly recommend coating any salad with this dressing, with or without pides.
MAKES 650ML (23FL OZ)
115ml (3¾fl oz) pomegranate molasses
250ml (9fl oz) turnip juice (salgam)
250ml (9fl oz) extra-virgin olive oil
40ml (1½fl oz) red wine vinegar
fine salt
Put all the ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Taste to check the seasoning. Stored in the refrigerator, this dressing will keep for up to 4 weeks.
SHERRY VINEGAR CARAMEL
I love mixing acidic and sweet flavours. This caramel is a perfect balance of the two, and is great drizzled over many savoury dishes, to give them a boost of flavour. Try it with grilled fish, or a ragout of chickpeas or beans.
MAKES 300ML (10FL OZ)
750ml (27fl oz) sherry vinegar
200g (7oz) caster sugar
400g (14fl oz) water
Put the vinegar and sugar in a pan with the water and bring to the boil. Simmer to reduce it to a light syrup.
When you think it is ready, drizzle a little onto a plate and put it in the refrigerator for 5 minutes to test it. If the syrup just holds its shape on the plate without running too much, it is ready.
MARINATED OLIVES
My mum is obsessed with green olives from Cyprus. She would often bring back as many as she could carry from her summer visits, then prepare them in batches using this recipe. I love dipping bread into all the juices.
MAKES 1 KG (2LB 4OZ)
500g (1lb 2oz) black olives (preferably Turkish), rinsed
500g (1lb 2oz) green olives (preferably Turkish), rinsed
4 tablespoons dried oregano, preferably wild
4 garlic cloves, lightly crushed
500ml (18fl oz) extra-virgin olive oil
zest (in strips) and freshly squeezed juice from 2 lemons
2 tablespoons coriander seeds, toasted and lightly crushed
Mix all the ingredients together in a large, sterilized screwtop jar or airtight container and leave to macerate for at least 1 day before eating. The olives will keep for up to 3 weeks.
PICKLED RED CABBAGE
We use this in the salad that is served with all our pides. I like to use this pickle recipe for any vegetables, not just red cabbage: simply pour the pickling liquid over your chosen veg while still hot and leave for a minimum of 3 days.
MAKES 2 KG (4LB 8OZ)
2 litres (3½ pints) water
1 litre (1¾ pints) cider vinegar
500g (1lb 2oz) caster sugar
6 cloves
2 star anise
1 tablespoon fine salt
1 red cabbage, thinly sliced (preferably using a mandoline)
Put the water in a pan along with 750ml (27fl oz) of the vinegar, the sugar, spices and salt and bring to the boil. Simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the remaining vinegar. Strain over the red cabbage and cover with a lid. Once cool, transfer it to a sterilized jar and store in the refrigerator for 3 days before eating. The pickled cabbage will keep for up to 8 weeks.
FRIED DRIED CHILLI YOGURT
This is inspired by the delicious (and very hot) fried dried chillies that are served alongside fried liver in the city of Edirne.
MAKES 500G (1LB 2OZ)
1 tablespoon sunflower oil
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 hot dried red chillies
500ml (18fl oz) Turkish or Greek yogurt
freshly squeezed juice of ½ lemon
fine salt
Heat the sunflower oil in a small frying pan over a high heat. Add the chillies and cook until they change colour, turn a little darker and become crisp. Allow to cool, then roughly chop them.
Once cooled, place in a bowl, whisk in the remaining ingredients and season with salt.
ÇEMEN
Çemen is Turkish for fenugreek but the word is also used to refer to this spice paste. It is is most commonly eaten as part of Kayseri pastirma, a type of cured beef that is salted, pressed and air-dried before being smeared all over with çemen and left to cure. I adore it and struggle to stop eating it once I have started. I have figured out that the thing I love most about pastirma is the flavour of the çemen, so I have made my own version and now use it in all sorts of recipes.
MAKES 1 KG (2LB 4OZ)
25g (1oz) ground fenugreek
4 garlic cloves, peeled
40g (1½oz) caster sugar
75g (2¾oz) paprika
25g (1oz) hot smoked paprika
50g (2oz) sweet smoked paprika
10g (¼oz) ground cumin
50ml (1¾fl oz) extra-virgin olive oil
300ml (10fl oz) water
Put the fenugreek in bowl, pour in enough water to cover by 2.5cm (1 inch) and stir together. Leave to soak for 10 minutes, then drain off the excess water. Put the fenugreek and all the remaining ingredients in a food processor – it’s best to add the garlic first, then put everything else on top – and blend to a fine purée. The paste will keep for up to 3 months, stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
ORANGE CREAM
We use this orange cream at the restaurant as an accompaniment to our Chocolate, Prune & Cardamom Delice. When they’re in season, we like to use bergamot oranges to make it.
MAKES 800G (1LB 12OZ)
grated zest and juice of 2 oranges (bergamot or blood oranges can be used, if available)
400ml (14fl oz) milk
175ml (6fl oz) double cream
2 large eggs, plus 1 large egg yolk
75g (2¾oz) caster sugar
60g (2¼oz) cornflour
100g (3½oz) unsalted butter, diced
2 gelatine leaves
Put the orange zest, milk and 50ml (2fl oz) of the cream in a pan and bring to the boil. Meanwhile, whisk the eggs, egg yolk, sugar and cornflour until pale and fluffy. Still whisking, pour the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture. Return it to the pan and cook, whisking continuously, over a medium heat for 4–5minutes, or until thickened and the cornflour has cooked out. Take the pan off the heat and add the butter in 3 batches, ensuring that each batch melts in before adding the next.
Soak the gelatine in cold water until soft, then add it to the warm custard mixture, whisking until it dissolves. Strain through a fine sieve and allow it to cool completely. Whip the remaining double cream to soft peaks. Finally, stir the orange juice into the custard mixture and fold in the whipped cream.
ORANGE BLOSSOM SYRUP
This syrup is great on French toast, pancakes or any lovely Turkish dessert that calls for syrup.
MAKES 250ML (9FL OZ)
250g (9oz) caster sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
5g (⅛oz) cloves
5g (⅛oz) star anise
140ml (4½fl oz) water
1–2 tablespoons orange blossom water
Put all the ingredients, except the orange blossom water, in a pan and bring to the boil. Simmer until it reaches a syrupy consistency. Remove from the heat and add the orange blossom water. Leave the spices in to keep infusing until you
use the syrup. Stored in the refrigerator, this syrup will keep for up to 3 months.
PRESERVED LEMONS
Preserved lemons are readily available these days, but it’s so easy to make your own. I highly recommend trying this recipe and stashing them away to jazz up your meals.
MAKES 1.5 KG (3LB 5OZ)
10 lemons, quartered
50g (1¾oz) fine salt
25g (1oz) flaky sea salt
2 bay leaves
4 sprigs of thyme
Mix all the ingredients together, slightly squishing the lemons as you go. Put them in a sterilized jar or lidded container, seal tightly and put them in the refrigerator. Leave to macerate for 4 weeks, turning the container upside down every day. The lemons will keep for up to 3 months.
Semolina custard & filo böreks
Spiced rice pudding brûlée with pistachios, caramelized pineapple, rum jelly, lychees & candied lime zest
