Traditional Turkish Breakfast (Geleneksel Türk Kahvaltısı)

Have you ever had Turkish breakfast? Those of you who have visited Turkey or have close Turkish friends or family members, probably have had a taste of what Turkish breakfast entails. Breakfast in Turkey is not only about food, but also about family time and gathering.

In Turkish, breakfast is called “kahvaltı” which is derived from “kahve altı” which literally means “under coffee” or “before coffee”. As you may guess, traditionally Turkish coffee (kahve) is not drunk during breakfast, rather after breakfast or in the afternoon. A traditionally brewed black tea is an indispensable part of breakfast. Along with hot black tea, white cheese (analogous to feta), boiled eggs, green or black olives, çökelek (spicy cheese), Turkish sausage, helva, pekmez (grape or mulberry molasses), tomatoes, cucumbers, honey, jam, fresh butter, an omelet called “menemen” and fresh warm bread complete Turkish breakfast. Occasionally, böreks, pides, fried potatoes and various types of pastries are also served for breakfasts. Soups such as “red lentil soup” or “rice soup” can be a part of breakfast in some households. In my household in Turkey, in the summer months, grapes and watermelon are a must during breakfast.




Simit (similar to sesame bagel) is a very popular snack for breakfast. Most people who go to work every morning, will grab a simit on the way to work and eat it with hot tea for breakfast. Students also tend to purchase simit for a quick breakfast. My first and only attempt to make simit at home resulted in failure. Although, when I have some time, I will put my hands to work until I get it right.

Above are some pictures of a typical Turkish breakfast. The breakfast I have set up is very traditional, however does not include everything I have mentioned above. One by one, I would like to describe each of the items in the pictures. I will use the first picture to describe each item.
In the middle of the picture, we have boiled eggs with toasted bread in the plate. This bread is not the traditional bread we eat in Turkey, but since Turkish bread is not available here, we consume this multigrain bread. However, I am including pictures of homemade (after a couple unsuccessful attempts) Turkish flat bread (pide ekmeği) and Turkish somun bread below that are eaten at breakfast. I will post recipes for these breads at another date.

Turkish Flat Bread (Pide Ekmeği)

Turkish Somun Bread (Somun Ekmeği)

To the right of the red plate is Turkish tea, in a slim belly glass which is very traditional. I personally do not get the taste of tea, unless I drink my tea in these glasses. Right above the tea is apricot jam. Straight above the jam is “yayık tereyağı” which is butter that is strained from fresh yogurt. In some parts of Turkey it can be made from milk. For centuries, women in villages have made this kind of butter. It used to be rarely found in supermarkets since commercial butter has taken their place on the shelves. I used to watch my late grandmother when she used to make this butter at home. She used to have a wooden, cylinder shaped item where she would place the yogurt and then shake it vigorously until the butter separated from yogurt. This butter is in its most natural form; no chemicals or any foreign ingredients. It is the tastiest butter I have ever tasted. I guess it is not surprising since it is all natural. I found this type of butter (made from milk instead of yogurt) at the local Turkish market a few months ago and I was very surprised as I did not realize that it was sold in markets. To tell the truth, my grandmother’s butter was much better, but this particular one is still preferable to the other commercial butter that is so detrimental to our health. I actually looked at the ingredients of this butter when I purchased it and it had only two ingredients; milk cream and milk culture.

To the left of the butter, fried potatoes are waiting quietly in a small plate. Straight above the potatoes, a plate full of Turkish sausage, white cheese and kaşar cheese. White cheese is very similar to feta cheese, but I think it’s a little creamier. It can be produced from cow’s or sheep’s milk. No breakfast is complete without white cheese in Turkey. Kaşar cheese is a yellowish cheese that reminds me of swiss cheese. Usually, it is made out of sheep’s milk.

To the left of the sausage and cheese plate is a plate full of black olives. Either green or black olives accompany every Turkish breakfast. Dressing olives is a very common practice even for breakfast. I will post some dressed olive recipes sometime in the future. Below the olives is a pan with a vegetable omelet. Usually “menemen” replaces this omelet, but again it is a matter of preference. That morning, we felt like having an omelet with the veggies we had available in the fridge.

In the left of the omelet is a box of helva with pistachios. This is a sweet that can be based on flour or semolina. Above the helva is a plate of sliced tomato slices with some peppers. The day I set up this breakfast, I did not have any cucumbers on hand, so just imagine that there are fresh, sliced cucumbers next to the tomatoes.

Right below the helva is honey that came with me all the way from Turkey. This honey is produced by my father’s bees that he raises as a hobby. It does taste much better than the commercial honey.

Breakfasts, especially weekend breakfasts are always eaten together with family in Turkey. That is something I look forward to when I visit Turkey. During the summer months, I especially enjoy my mother-in-law’s breakfast which is very rich in variety, set up in the middle of a rose garden, under the shade of an arched pergola covered in bougainvillea vine. It did not take me long to figure out the reason behind my husband’s wanting to have a big breakfast every Saturday and Sunday. Although, we do not have the beautiful setting of his front yard in Turkey, we have the food and each other. Our longest and most useful conversations occur during breakfast and afterwards while sipping our tea. During the week, we have a banana, an apple and some other fruits that are in season such as orange or strawberries for breakfast which we eat at work. Therefore, the weekend breakfast is something we both look forward to.

Note: The picture on the top of my blog behind the title shows a typical Turkish breakfast. My sister-in-law prepared this inviting breakfast table at her house when I visited her in Ankara, Turkey last summer.

Red Bell Pepper Salad (Kırmızı Biber Salatası)

You may be familiar with this type of salad as roasted red peppers are sold everywhere. In Turkey, we spice it up with garlic, parsley and lemon. This can be enjoyed cold as a salad, an appetizer or a side dish. I also like to add these red peppers on sandwiches, especially chicken sandwiches.




3 red bell peppers
1/3 cup fresh parsley (chopped finely)
2 cloves garlic (chopped finely)
1 tbsp olive oil
Juice of ½ lime or lemon
Sprinkle of ground black pepper
Pinch of salt

Turn on oven broiler. If you have a grill, that will work even better. Place the peppers in a Pyrex dish or oven proof tray. Broil each side for about 10 minutes until the skin of the peppers blacken and pull away from the flesh of the peppers. Remove from the broiler and cool.

Once the peppers are cool enough to work with, remove the skins and the seeds. Slice each pepper lengthwise. Add the parsley, garlic, black pepper and salt. Drizzle olive oil and then the lime/lemon juice. Mix well and serve at room temperature or cold as a side dish or a salad.

Islim Kebab Wrapped in Eggplants (Patlıcanlı İslim Kebabı)

Last month, I attended a Turkish cooking class called “A Turkish Feast Fit For A Sultan” taught by Özlem Warren at my favorite supermarket. It was exciting to see a Turkish cooking class in the Foodie magazine of the market (unfortunately, this is rare). Last year, I had seen her scheduled class in the Foodie magazine, but I had to miss it due to prior commitments. This year, I did not want to miss it again, so I actually canceled my previously arranged plans for that night, so I could attend her class. Good thing I did. Obviously, since I am writing about it, I truly enjoyed it. She had some useful cooking tips.

The menu for the class included the following:

Mercimek Çorba (Lentil Soup with Red Pepper-Infused Olive Oil)
Cevizli Biber (Walnut, Red Pepper Paste and Onion Dip with Toasted Bread)
Patlıcanlı İslim Kebabı (Lamb Wrapped in Grilled Eggplant Slices with Tomato Sauce)
Sade Pilav (Rice Pilaf)
Cevizli & Fıstıklı Baklava (Baklava with Walnuts and Pistachios)
Türk Çayı (Turkish Tea)
Lokum (Turkish Delight)

Also, there was Turkish beer “Efes” and wine.

The class included an overview of Turkish cuisine history, Turkish spices, Turkish eating traditions and customs, Turkish Cookery Books (by the way, my favorite Turkish cookbook “Anatolian Feast” was in the top of her list) as well as where to get Turkish cooking ingredients. I suppose I am lucky to live in Houston where there is a small Turkish market, but for those of you who cannot find Turkish ingredients in other cities, most Mediterranean stores should have them as well as online Turkish stores. She also provided the recipes of the dishes she made during the cooking class.

Everything made in the class tasted great, however the Islim Kebab and the Cevizli Biber were exquisite! Cevizli biber (an appetizer) is very popular in Southern Turkey and thus, it reminded me of my home city. I could not hide my excitement when I heard where Özlem was from in Turkey. She is from “Antakya”, the same city my husband is from and the same province I am from which is an hour or so away from where I grew up. She not only talked about food, but also briefly talked about Antakya (the old name is Antioch) and the famous St. Peter’s church where the first word of ‘Christian’ was used for the first time according to historians.

Özlem was kind enough to allow me to publish her own recipe “Patlıcanlı Islim Kebabı” (an Ottoman dish) and I typed her recipe almost exactly as she had it written. Only a few insignificant changes were made to her recipe when I made it. I added garlic since I add garlic to everything, I used olive oil for frying since that’s what I had on hand and I used boneless leg of lamb since that’s what I had on hand. Everything else, I followed exactly as she had instructed.

Thanks Özlem for great tips and I look forward to your cookbook.

Here is the recipe.



1 lamb shoulder or leg of lamb or lamb shank –approximately 2lb
5 large Holland eggplants (the huge ones)
2 medium tomatoes (sliced)
5 green peppers (sliced lengthways)
1 medium carrot (coarsely chopped)
1 large onion (coarsely chopped)
2 cloves garlic (coarsely chopped)
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 bay leaves
6 whole black peppercorns
2 ½ tsp salt (adjust to your taste)
2 cups water

For Sprinkling on Eggplants:

Salt (as much as it takes)

For Frying:

Olive oil (as much as it takes)

For Sauce:

1 ½ tbsp tomato paste
2 cups water
Salt and pepper (adjust to your taste)

Cut the lamb shoulder or leg into approximately 1 inch thick chunks. Heat olive oil in a pan and add the lamb chunks and the bone. Add the onions, garlic and carrots and sauté for a couple minutes. Add the tomato paste, bay leaves, peppercorns and the water. Cover and cook gently for about 2 hours, until the meat falls off the bone. Season with salt and set the pan aside. Let it cool off and discard the bone.



Peel eggplants lengthways in stripes like a zebra.




Slice the eggplants lengthways, about ½ inch thick.



Sprinkle with some salt on both sides and leave for about 15 minutes.



Squeeze out their moisture with paper towel. Then shallow fry them in the oil for about 2-3 minutes until golden brown.




Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on the paper towel to absorb the excess oil. Let the fried eggplants cool off.





On a board or a plate, place one eggplant slice horizontally and the other slice vertically on top of each other and place the meat mixture in the middle.













Fold over the slices to wrap the meat mixture and place eggplant package seamside down, in a greased Pyrex dish. Lay a slice of tomato on top and the green pepper and fasten the structure with a cocktail stick.




Preheat oven to 350º F. Mix the tomato paste with water and season with salt and pepper. Pour this sauce around the eggplant packages.



Bake in the oven for about 25-30 minutes. Serve on a dinner plate with tomato sauce and rice pilaf.

White Beans with Beef (Etli Kuru Fasülye)

The past couple of weeks have been hectic and the next few weeks are not looking good either. I apologize for those of you who wrote comments, for not publishing them in a timely manner. As always, thank you for stopping by. I am not completely back, but I wanted to post this recipe before the weather warms up.


This is one of the most popular dishes in Turkey. Traditionally, it is served with pilaf, onion or/and pickles. It tastes best in cool weather. Enjoy!

3 cups white beans
1 small onion (chopped finely)
1 1/3 lb sirloin steak or any other meat cut you prefer (cut in cubes)
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp red pepper paste
2 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp black pepper
3 1/2 tsp salt
8 cups water

Soak beans overnight. Drain and boil in a large pot for about 40-45 minutes or until the beans are slightly soft. Depending on the type of beans and the stove you use, this time could vary; so make sure to check the softness of the beans before removing from stove.
After removing from heat, drain the beans.

In a pan, cook the beef without oil until it takes brownish color and dispose of the juices that are released. In a large pot, heat olive oil. Add the already cooked meat to the oil. Add the onions and sauté until transparent. Add the beans and stir. Dissolve the tomato paste and the red pepper paste in the 8 cups water. Pour on the beans. Add salt and pepper and cook on medium heat for about 20 minutes. Lower the heat and cook another 10-15 minutes. Make sure the beans are soft, but not mushy prior to removing from heat. Serve hot with rice or bulgur pilaf and some warm bread.

Cowboy Steak with Turkish Coffee (Türk Kahveli Kovboy Biftek)

It is time to post a traditionally not Turkish recipe, but with a little Turkish twist. As most Texans are aware, the annual ‘2009 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo’ is currently going on and ending this Sunday March 22, 2009. So, you will see the rodeo theme or something related to it almost everywhere in Houston. When I was doing my grocery shopping a couple weeks back, I noticed the ‘cowboy steaks’ that were on weekly special. I purchased one (Each one was huge!).

While waiting at the check out line, I randomly grabbed a food magazine and just randomly opened it. The magazine turned out to be “Eat Smart with Ellie Krieger” and the page I opened had a recipe for cowboy steak! The most interesting part is this steak was with a coffee and chili rub. I had read about traditional cowboy steaks being cooked with coffee in the past, so it seemed very appealing. I skimmed through the ingredients and the recipe and a light went up in my head as to how to cook the steak. The coffee sounded too interesting so I could not pass it up, however I substituted it with Turkish coffee and used Turkish condiments for the recipe.

Turkish coffee deserves a post by itself, so I will post a Turkish coffee recipe sometime. If you are a coffee lover and if you have not had Turkish coffee, I bet you will like it.

Back to the recipe, it really turned out very good. The taste was so unique and delightful. The coffee flavor was not overpowering as I expected; it was just right. You may use any kind of steak you like; it does not have to be a cowboy steak. Note that leftovers can make great sandwiches with your favorite vegetables.

1 cowboy steak (or any other steak)
2 tbsp hot red pepper paste
1 tsp ground Turkish coffee
1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
3-4 sprigs fresh thyme (Leaves separated, approx. 1 ½ tsp)
1 tsp dried mint
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sea salt

Open 4-5 small slits on each side of steak. Rub the salt all over the steak. In a large bowl, add all the ingredients together except 1 tbsp olive oil which will be used for searing the steak. Create a thick paste by integrating all the ingredients. If you prefer, you may add 1-2 tsp water to make it a little runny. Rub this thick paste on the steak and let it marinate for about 30 minutes. The sauce will be able to flow inside the slits which will make the meat tastier.

Heat the olive oil in a large pan and sear the steak 10 minutes on each side. This depends on the thickness of the steak. The steak I bought was very thick so I had to cook it longer. Once both sides are seared, place the pan in the broiler. You may place the steak in another pan or a Pyrex dish. Broil each side for 10 minutes. This should cook the steak medium. If you prefer it rare or medium well, extend or reduce cooking time in the broiler accordingly. Serve with your favorite vegetables.

Dolma with Dried Eggplants (Kuru Patlican Dolması)

Have you ever had dried eggplants? Dried eggplants are very evocative of my childhood. My regular readers, may think that I have numerous foods that bring back my childhood memories. That is because I had not had most these foods since I was a young girl. Now that I am exploring cooking (especially Turkish cooking), I am recalling many foods that I have missed all these years. The first 10 years I had been in the U.S., I was almost completely removed from Turkish language, culture, people and hence the wonderful traditional food. A time comes when one does feel the reconnection with ones past; sooner or later. To me, this started when I started running into some very familiar Mediterranean ingredients in stores and got excited. Yes, I used to get excited when I saw Mediterranean foods or ingredients and was ecstatic when I saw Turkish brands. It was so rare or non-existent in most of the places I had lived.

Before I get off the subject, last summer when I visited home and was getting ready to come back to my other home, I asked my mother if she had any dried eggplants. It was the middle of the summer and thus fresh eggplants were everywhere; so no one had them.

I did leave home without the dried eggplants last summer and actually forgot about them, until recently when my sister visited home. My lovely mother had sent me bunch of dried eggplants with her. I had forgotten about them, but apparently, she had not. I guess that is how mothers are. I was very excited about them and did not take me long before I made dolmas with the dried eggplants.

Since ancient times, Mediterranean people dried eggplants, tomatoes, peppers and okra beneath the hot, intense Mediterranean sun during the summer in preparation for the winter. In the old times, vegetables were not always available throughout the year. Nowadays, we can find almost any vegetable or fruit year round due to agricultural advances; however, vegetables and fruits always taste the best when in season. In any case, the tradition of drying vegetables comes from lack of the vegetables during a certain season. The vegetables are salted and left on top of the roofs or balconies of houses in large trays or in long strings. This tradition still continues; not because of lack of vegetables, but because of that distinct flavor that comes out of dried vegetables. They are still sold in various markets in Turkey and maybe here in the U.S. too.

I have also seen eggplants cut in long pieces and dried for purposes of stew with tomato sauce similar to ‘Patlıcan Bastırma’. It would be cooked the same way by substituting fresh eggplants with dried ones. This recipe shows eggplants that are carved inside and dried to be used for making dolmas. This is what I was yearning for. So, here is the recipe.

Note: 50 eggplants may sound like as a large number, but they were very small. My mom said she particularly selected them small as they look cuter and easier to eat. If you have larger eggplants, you will need fewer than 50 for sure.

50 small dried eggplants
4 small tomatoes (cut up in small cubes to close the eggplants)
Juice of 1 lemon
1 garlic clove
3 sprigs mint
2 cups water

Any stuffing; vegetarian (rice), beef or chicken will work perfectly. I used the stuffing with chicken from my Stuffed Bell Peppers recipe.

For the Chicken Stuffing:

1½ cups short grain rice
1 lb ground chicken
½ cup chopped fresh parsley
¼ cup chopped fresh mint
1 large chopped garlic clove (or 2 small ones)
Juice of 1 lime
½ chopped onion
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp red pepper paste
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1½ tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper

Fill a large pot with water and boil. When it boils, turnoff the heat and add the dried eggplants. Let them soak for about 20-25 minutes. The eggplants will become soft after soaking.

Wash the inside and outside of the eggplant with hot water 3 times. Since the eggplants are dried, we want to make sure we get rid of any dust they have collected. Let the eggplants drain after washing.

Mix all the ingredients for stuffing with your hands to make sure all the ingredients are integrated. Set aside. I always use first aid gloves for this as I do not want to make my hands take different colors.

Stuff each eggplant up to the top, but leave a 1/2 of an inch of room, so that when the rice expands after cooking, it will have room.

Close the eggplants with a small cube of the tomato.

Arrange in a large pot.

Squeeze the lemon on top of the stuffed eggplants and throw in the sliced garlic and the mint. Add the water and place two-three small plates to add weight on the eggplants so that they stay compact. Cover and cook on medium heat for about 30 minutes. Turn the heat to low and cook another 30-40 minutes.

Stuffed Collard Green Leaves with Bulgur (Bulgurlu Kara Lahana Sarması)

Since vegetables in the cabbage family are in season now, I am making an effort to post my recipes that involves cabbage or its cousins before the season is over. I am a believer of eating vegetables that are in season, although I do occasionally make exceptions.

Stuffed cabbage was another dish that I strongly disliked when I was a kid, especially, the kind with bulgur stuffing. Obviously, similar to many children, I did not understand good food. Instead of cabbage, I used collard greens in this recipe which are mostly popular in the Black Sea region of Turkey. You may also use cabbage with this stuffing. Since I also had a cabbage on hand, I did roll a few of the sarmas using cabbage as you can see in the picture.

For Stuffing:

2 cups bulgur (medium grain)
1 tbsp fresh mint (chopped)
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp red pepper paste
4 cloves of garlic
Juice of 1 lemon
½ tsp ground black pepper
½ tsp cumin
½ cup olive oil
2 tsp salt

1 ½ cup hot water (for soaking bulgur)

For Rolling and Cooking Sarmas:

2 bunches collard greens
2 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves (sliced)
1 tsp salt
2 cups water


For Garnishing:

1 roasted red bell pepper
3-4 sprigs parsley
½ lemon (sliced)

Soak the bulgur in a large bowl with hot water. Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for 15-20 minutes until the bulgur is soft. If it is not completely soft, that is fine as the bulgur will be cooking later.

Add all the stuffing ingredients to the bulgur. Mix well with your hands so that all the ingredients are married together.

Cut the stems of the collard greens and discard.


If the collard leaves are too large (most likely they will be), cut them in half or quarters. Half-fill water in a large pot and boil. Put the collard green leaves in the boiling water for 1 minute and remove. Shock the leaves under cold water to stop the cooking process. Gently squeeze the leaves to remove excess water. Let them drain completely.


On a cutting board or a plate, place a leaf the smooth side down.


The wider part of the leaf should be toward you. Place a spoonful of bulgur stuffing inside the leaf.

(I had a picture that displayed the stuffing inside the the leaf, but I must have inadvertently deleted it when I was editing the pictures. After wasting more than an hour trying to retrieve it, I still couldn't find it, so I gave up. You will just have to use your imagination!)

Close the sides and start rolling. This will hinder any of the stuffing to escape the leaf while cooking.

Follow this process for each leaf and arrange neatly in a pot.

When you are finished arranging the sarmas, sprinkle the salt on top. Arrange the sliced garlic on top of the sarmas. Drizzle the olive oil and add the water. Place a plate or two on top of the sarmas so that they do not float around during cooking.

Cook for 10 minutes covered on medium heat. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 more minutes. Be cautious not to cook the sarmas too long since the collard greens will be too soft and torn. Garnish with roasted red bell peppers, parsley and lemon slices. Enjoy cold or warm.