30 DAYS, 30 DISHES – DAY 18: MANTI

Manti are tiny little dumplings, filled with ground meat, similar to ravioli. Sheets of dough are rolled thinly and cut into small squares, then a small amount of filling is added and the sides pinched together, to form little dumpling parcels. The manti is then boiled and served covered in garlic yogurt with a spicy sauce, made from oil or butter and chili flakes.

Making it from scratch is a lot of effort, so when they decide to make it, women in Turkish villages invite each other around and they’ll sit in a group forming a little production line, gossiping whilst making hundreds of manti for their families.

I like it, as long as it’s not too soggy, but I still struggle with the concept of yogurt on dinner foods!

 

30 DAYS, 30 DISHES – DAY 10: ALI NAZIK KEBAB

Ali nazik kebab is one of my favourites! Cubes of marinated lamb on a bed of patlıcan (aubergine) puree mixed with yogurt and served with rice and salad. I love the smoky taste of the creamy aubergine mashed with garlic yogurt, so delicious!

Would you believe, before I lived in Turkey I had never tried aubergine, now I always look for it on the menu!

P.S Sorry I missed a day of posting yesterday – I was just so busy!

30 DAYS, 30 DISHES – DAY 4: BEYTI KEBAB


Beyti kebab is a popular kebab dish. Minced beef or lamb is cooked on skewers, then wrapped in thin lavaş bread (similar to tortilla wraps). It’s then sliced up into inch-thick pieces and arranged in a circle on a plate. A tomato based sauce is poured over the top, and yogurt placed in the middle. It’s a bit spicy, and usually served with rice. The combination of the rice and lavaş bread makes it very filling!

I’ve actually never had this dish in Turkey, but have in two different Turkish restaurants, one in London, one in Essex. It was served slightly differently in each place, one served it with peppers and tomatoes, and a thicker sauce, the other served it with cucumber.

It’s a good one to try – as long as you’re not put off by the sight of yogurt on your dinner plate. It took me years to get the hang of that!

Yogurt with dinner? ..

Hands up who has a Turkish friend, relative or partner who insists on eating yogurt with main meals? Berkay loves it, the sight and thought of it honestly makes me gag, there is just something about eating plain yogurt with dinner that is wrong to me, yogurt is for dessert! Berkay eats it with fish, chicken, pasta.. you name it. The other day he had a big bowl full with his omlette and chips!
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It’s so funny to me, I just can’t get my head around it.
Do you like it? Did you ever think to try it before?

Apologies for the short post today, was out at a friend’s house til late and I’m so tired. I think a long post is due.. perhaps I’ll write one tomorrow. (: