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Tarhana çorbası
Fermented yoghurt and vegetable soup
Tarhana çorbası: tangy soup of dried, fermented yoghurt-and-vegetable tarhana
Late every summer, women across Central Anatolia, from Uşak to Konya and Sivas, ferment a dough of yoghurt, flour, tomatoes, peppers and onion, dry it on cloths in the sun and rub it into crumbs. All winter that tarhana becomes a quick, warming soup with a gentle sourness and the sweetness of sun-dried pepper. It is breakfast in villages, a cure for colds in cities, and is eaten with bread and a squeeze of lemon. Common mistake: tipping dry tarhana straight into hot liquid, which forms stubborn lumps; soak it in cold water first. Chef's tip: finish with a spoon of butter sizzled with dried mint and chilli flakes drizzled over each bowl; it lifts the whole soup.
- Total time
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 3 ½ oz dried tarhana powder
- 1 cup cold water
- ⅔ oz butter
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tsp Turkish red pepper paste
- 4 ¼ cups hot vegetable stock or water
- ½ tsp saltto taste
For the mint butter
- ⅞ oz butter
- 1 tsp dried mint
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Stir 3 ½ oz dried tarhana powder into 1 cup cold water in a bowl and leave for 10 minutes, until it softens into a thick, smooth paste.
10 minStep 2: Melt ⅔ oz butter in a saucepan over a medium heat. Stir in 1 tbsp tomato paste and 1 tsp Turkish red pepper paste and cook 1 minute, until they darken.
1 minStep 3: Pour in 4 ¼ cups hot vegetable stock or water, then whisk in the tarhana paste. Keep whisking as it comes to the boil.
Step 4: Simmer over a low heat for 12–15 minutes, stirring often so it doesn't catch, until the soup is creamy and coats a spoon. Add ½ tsp salt to taste; tarhana itself is salty, so taste first.
15 minStep 5: Melt ⅞ oz butter in a small pan until foaming, take off the heat and stir in 1 tsp dried mint and ½ tsp Turkish chilli flakes (pul biber). Drizzle over each bowl and serve.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 190 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 23 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does tarhana çorbası take?
- About 30 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of butter?
- The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).
- What can I use instead of butter?
- The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).
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