Turkish Lamb and Bean Güveç

It’s been a long while since I made a proper Turkish güveç.

If you remember, a Turkish güveç is a casserole cooked in a special earthenware dish. In some ways, this Turkish dish is similar to the American casserole where you throw together some vegetables, meat, spices and perhaps a starch like potatoes or rice all in a pot. You let the pot slowly simmer to allow the meat to get tender and the juices to mingle.

The güveç is a perfect winter dish, but it’s one that’s also enjoyed all year round particularly during our visits to Cappadocia.

I don’t normally eat lamb, but I decided to try making a lamb güveç for my husband. This involved a trip down to my friendly butcher guys at Kardeşler Kasabı in Beşiktaş where I asked for kuzu boyun (lamb neck) as recommended from a friend.

Clearly, my butcher was not happy with that choice as he shook his head. “Az et. Ne yapıyorsunuz?” (Little meat. What are you making?)

I explained in Turkish that I wanted to make kuzu etli kuru fasülye güveç (lamb with white beans casserole).

My butcher went into the meat walk-in and came back out with kuzu kol (lamb shoulder) and told me this cut was much better.

Who am I to argue with my butcher? I think he’s a saint for putting up with this yabancı. I even brought them a batch of chocolate-mint cookies for New Year’s for being so kind to me all the time.

Well, you may not have an amusing scene with your butcher like I did, I promise this lamb güveç will melt in your mouth and warm your belly.

Afiyet olsun!

Turkish lamb & bean güveç  served in individual clay güveç dishes.

Turkish Lamb and Bean Güveç/(Kuzu Etli Kuru Fasülye Güveç)

(Adapted from “The Sultan’s Kitchen” by Ozcan Ozan)

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

2          oz.                   unsalted butter

1          T.                     Turkish olive oil

1          ea.                    large onion, diced

4-6       ea.                    garlic cloves, chopped

3          ea.                    carrots, medium diced

1          lg.                    potato, medium diced

1          kilo (2.2 #)       lamb shoulder, cut into 1-inch cubes (kuzu kol kuşbaşı)

1          400 g.              can of diced tomatoes

1          large can          white beans or 2 cups dried white beans soaked overnight, drained

1          T.                     tomato paste

1          tsp.                  ground cumin

1          tsp.                  pul biber (optional)

2          cups                 beef/lamb stock or water

2          cups                 green peppers, sliced (4-5 dolma biber)

TT                                salt and freshly ground black pepper

1.         In a large, heavy casserole dish, heat the butter and oil. Add the onions and garlic. Sweat the vegetables until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes.

2.         Next, add the carrots, potato and lamb. Cook for several minutes until the lamb is browned. (I added the lamb bones too for extra flavor.)

3.         Then, add the tomatoes, beans, tomato paste, spices, beef stock or water. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the pot with a lid and simmer for 45 minutes-1 hour. While cooking, check to see if you may need to add more liquid.

4.         If you used dried beans, the casserole will need about another hour to cook the beans until they are tender. If you want, you can transfer the pot to the oven and continue cooking at 350F/175C.

5.         Since I used canned beans, I just added the green peppers towards the end of the 1 hour and let cook for 5-10 minutes.     

6.         Serve the güveç with chopped parsley and rice pilaf on the side.

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Summer Curried Beans/Barbunya Körili

Summer is at its peak in Turkey right now!

Every pazar is overflowing with stall after stall of beautiful fresh produce. I’m tempted to buy everything even though there’s just the two of us at home.

Well, we do end up buying more than we need every Saturday when we visit our local pazar in Beşiktaş. On Mondays, I usually look through everything we bought and start prepping it for use.

Since Istanbul has been fairly hot, I try to spend only one day in the kitchen and make a big dish of something that will last most of the week. That way I only have to reheat the leftovers and make a fresh salad for dinner.

This one-pot recipe is one that evolved from the red and green peppers, carrots, potatoes, tomatoes and fresh garlic and cilantro begging to be used up in the kitchen. You could also adapt the recipe to whatever vegetables you have on hand.

All the veggies and spices organized on the table for my Summer Curried Beans recipe.

For spices, I used a blend of curry-like flavors so the beans taste very Indian-like. My husband could smell the beans cooking as soon as he walked in the door. (All spices are available in Istanbul at my favorite spice shop, Ucuzcular Baharat, Mısır Çarşısı, No. 51, in Eminönü)

I also added ground beef to my Turkish barbunya (similar to pinto beans) because my husband must have meat at practically every meal. However, the beef could easily be omitted to create a spicy vegetarian dish.

It will take you about two hours to cut all the veggies and cook the beans, but it will save you time throughout the week. Trust me!

What kind of recipes are you making with the summer produce right now?

Afiyet olsun!

Summer Curried Beans in a bowl served with my Indian fabric I bought on our Singapore trip.

Summer Curried Beans/Barbunya Körili

Serves: 8-10

Ingredients:

2            T.                        vegetable oil

3            med.                    onions, sliced

3            med.                    tomatoes, large diced

1            head                    fresh garlic, chopped small

4            ea.                       carrots, chopped in small chunks

2            med.                    potatoes, large diced

500             g.                    kontrafile yağsız kıyma (lean ground beef) from Atlas Kasabı.

3            ea.                       red peppers, 1-inch julienned

4            ea.                       green peppers, 1-inch julienned

3            c.                        Turkish barbunya beans (dried pinto beans), soaked overnight in water, strained

1.5            L.                      water

1            ea.                        beef bouillon cube (et suyu)

1            tsp.                        ground ginger

2            tsp.                        pul biber (chili powder)

1            tsp.                        ground cumin

1            tsp.                        ground coriander powder

2            tsp.                        garam masala powder

½            tsp.                       tumeric

Garnish:                              fresh cilantro leaves

In a large stockpot, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the onions and cook until the onions start to brown and caramelize, about 15 minutes.

Caramelize the onions in a large pot.

Add the tomatoes and garlic. Cook and stir for a few minutes.

Then add the carrots and potatoes. Next, add the ground beef, cooking until the beef is browned, about 10 minutes.

Then, add the peppers, beans, water, bouillon cube and spices. Cover the pot with a lid. Cook over medium heat until beans are cooked through, about 1 hour, stirring the beans every now and then.

Serve the curried beans in a bowl. Garnish with fresh cilantro if you are lucky enough to find it here in Turkey!

If you can't find cilantro, fresh parsley would work as well.

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Fava Bean, Spring Garlic Pasta - Smells Like Spring

My first time cooking with taze bakla (fresh fava beans) was disappointing here in Istanbul.

Similar to those moments when I spot a beautiful dessert or pastry at a pastane, but when I eat it, the dessert is dry, crumbly, too sweet and just plain not good.

At first, I was ecstatic to try the taze bakla I bought at the Saturday pazar in Beşiktaş. These fuzzy green bean-like pods were definitely fresh and a sign of spring! I'm awfully tired of seeing all the root vegetables at the pazar in Istanbul.

But shelling these small bakla is just like shelling spring peas! Maybe even worse!

Each pod contained 4 or 5 miniscule fava beans. So I only yielded 60 grams (about half a cup) out of the half kilo I purchased.

Well, at least I had a delicious plan for these prized fava beans.

My lettuce vendor had thrown in a bunch of spring garlic (yeni sarımsak (new garlic) as he referred to it) that smelled sweet and sharp. This was a real treat as spring garlic is only around for a few weeks. (See: last year's Spring Garlic Soup recipe.)

Fava beans and a bunch of spring garlic, which could be mistaken for scallions. 

So the fresh fava beans and spring garlic make for a simple, spring-flavored pasta. For once, my recipe only contains a handful of ingredients and is just a bit of this and that.

I also added some leftover Italian mortadella from our Bologna trip that was begging to be used. Hey, my love of pork won me over.

Who could resist a bite of this garlicky pasta with loads of Parmesan cheese, mortadella
 and basil?

Afiyet Olsun!

Fava Bean, Spring Garlic Pasta (Bakla ve Makarna)

Ingredients:

1-2       T.                                 olive oil

300      g.         (10.5 oz.)         package of fresh pasta like fettuccine

Handful                                   taze bakla (fresh fava beans)

1                      bunch              spring garlic, chopped

To taste                                   salt and pepper

As needed                               Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

Handful                                   fresh basil, julienned

Optional:         handful of diced mortadella or some pancetta

In a large pot, bring the water to a boil. Drop in the fresh pasta and fava beans. Cook until al dente - about 3 minutes. Strain immediately, but save some of the pasta water.

Meanwhile, in a medium skillet, heat the olive oil. Sauté the spring garlic and pork, if using, for a few minutes.

Then, in the large pot used for the pasta, combine the spring garlic, pork, pasta, fava beans and some of the pasta water. Throw in a knob of butter for some added richness. Season with salt and pepper. Stir and taste again. Add more pasta water as needed to make a light sauce.

Garnish the pasta with lots of freshly grated Parmesan cheese and basil. (I couldn't resist trying a giant forkful of the pasta right out of the pot!)

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Foodie Treasure Hunt in Istanbul

When I finally found dried black beans here in Istanbul, I was ecstatic.

Black beans are not a traditional Turkish item, so stores just don’t seem to carry them. But when you do find “foreign” food items and spices, it’s like discovering a pile of culinary gold in Istanbul. It's only taken me 10 months to stumble upon these beans.

I immediately had visions of black beans cooked with Latin American spices and flavors.

Next stop, I paid a visit to my favorite butcher shop, Atlas Kasabı, to order 1 kilo of kontrfile yağsız kıyma (lean ground beef).

At home, I selected several spices I thought would go well together with the black beans and beef. 

Front row, left to right: cumin and Janissary spice.
Back row, left to right: ground ancho chili powder, ground guajillo powder and  Black & Red spice.

I’d recently bought a bunch of spices from my friends at the Mısır Çarşısı (Egyptian Bazaar or Spice Bazaar). Here are some photos I took at the bazaar:

Spices galore!

Sumac is often mixed in with kofte or used to garnish salads and soups.

High quality spices and dried teas can be found at this family-owned spice shop
in the Egyptian Bazaar in Istanbul.

Once the main ingredients were blended with a few vegetables, the end result was a spicy, low-fat bowl of chili-like goodness. My husband couldn't believe this tasty dish could be low-fat and full of such flavor!

Garnish each bowl with a dollop of yogurt or sour cream and crushed red pepper.

If you can’t locate some of these spices in the recipe below, I would recommend using a combination of your favorite ground chili pepper spices and cumin.

Afiyet olsun!

Where to shop:

• Macro Center: Abdi Ipekci Cad. No: 24/26, Nişantaşı, Istanbul (Look for Sezon Siyah Fasulye in a black box next to the other dried beans and bulgur.)
• Great spices and dried teas - Ucuzcular Baharat, Mısır Çarşısı, No. 51, Eminönü, Istanbul

Joy’s Spicy Black Bean and Ground Beef One-Pot Recipe
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
200 g. siyah fasulye (dried black beans)

500 g. kontrfile yağsız kıyma (lean ground beef)
2 ea. medium onions, diced small
1 whole head, fresh garlic, diced small
150 g. (about 3) red peppers, thinly sliced
150 g. (about 3) green peppers, thinly sliced
1 T. ground cumin
1 T. Janissary spice (a well-seasoned blend with hints of cumin and pul biber)
1 tsp. ground ancho chili powder
1 tsp. ground guajillo chili powder
1 tsp. Penzeys Black and Red Spice
2 T. tomato paste
1 qt. hot water
TT salt

1. Soak the beans overnight in water. Or in a medium-sized bowl, cover the dried beans with hot water. Let sit out at room temperature for at least 1 hour before using. Strain.
2. In a large pot, brown the ground beef. Then, add the onions, garlic and peppers. Cook for several minutes until the vegetables soften.
3. Then, add the spices, black beans, tomato paste and cover with hot water. Add more water as needed during the cooking process. Cover the pot with a lid and let cook for at least 30 minutes. Test the beans to see whether they are well cooked; continue cooking if necessary. Season with salt.
4. Serve the chili in individual bowls and garnish with a dollop of yogurt or sour cream.

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Beans ‘N’ Greens

I feel as if my cold has slipped into its flannel pajamas and settled in my chest for a long winter’s nap.

It’s 4 a.m. and I can’t sleep.

Last night, I smothered myself in Vicks, pulled the covers over my head and hoped it would help. I can’t tell because after four hours or so of actual sleep the Nyquil wore off and I started coughing again.

I plan to spend today resting between the couch and the bed and hopefully recuperate. I will be drinking tea and eating soup because those are the only things that seem to soothe my throat.

Last night, I made another batch of soup full of healthy vegetables. I also added some chicken because my husband probably wouldn’t consider it a meal otherwise. Though, honestly, the soup doesn’t need any meat.

To boost the “the healing properties” in my soup, I infused the subtle, peppery flavors of ginger root into the stock. Ginger has been used for medicinal purposes in its native India and China for centuries. The knobby herb is used to treat a variety of ailments such as fevers, nausea, indigestion, suppressing coughs, arthritis and more.

I’ve even steeped ginger and lemon together to make a tea when I’ve had a sore throat in the past. I’m just fond of ginger and figured it would taste good in the soup too.

I made this hearty winter soup to help me get over my cold, but I think you’ll also enjoy it because it’s simply good.

Afiyet Olsun!

Beans ‘N’ Greens Winter Soup

Ingredients:

1 ½      c.         250 g.  dried white kidney beans, soaked in cold water overnight

5          c.         1.5 L.   chicken stock or water

1 ½-2”                         fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced

           

1          T.                     olive oil

1 ½      c.         150 g.  leeks, rinsed, halved and thinly sliced

1          c.         100 g.  shitake mushrooms, sliced

2-3       ea.                    carrots, halved and thinly sliced

2          ea.                    celery sticks, halved and thinly sliced

5-6       ea.                    garlic cloves, chopped small

¼         c.                     fresh parsley, chopped small

½         tsp.                  dried thyme

1          ea.                    bay leaf

TT                                salt and black pepper

3.5       oz.       100 g.  leafy greens such as spinach, kale, dandelion or chard (I only used spinach and probably would increase the amount a bit next time.)

8          oz.       250 g.  boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chopped small

1. Take the soaked beans from the fridge. Drain. Rinse again with fresh water. Drain.

2. Place the beans in a large pot and cover with cold water by 2 to 3 inches. Add a teaspoon of salt to the water.

3. Bring the beans to a simmer, covering with a lid. The beans will need to cook about 1 hour. As the cooking time nears, test a few and taste if they are soft.

4. While the beans are cooking, heat the chicken stock with the ginger. Bring to a boil for a minute or turn. Then, turn off the heat, covering the pot with a lid and let steep for 15 to 20 minutes. Strain.

5. Next, in a third pot, heat the vegetable oil in another 6-8 quart stockpot over medium heat. Add the leeks, mushrooms, carrots, celery and garlic. Sauté the vegetables for a few minutes until they begin to soften.

6. Next, add the parsley, thyme, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Taking a handful at a time, cut the greens into strips with a kitchen shears and place into the pot. Cover the greens with the chicken stock, adding the chicken and bring the mixture to a simmer.

7. Then turn the heat down to low while the beans finish cooking, stirring often. At this point, your beans should almost be done.

7. When the beans are ready, strain off the water. Add the beans to the soup. Let the soup cook for about 20 minutes to allow the flavors to mingle together.

8. Taste the soup and adjust the seasonings as needed. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve.

Note: If you use canned beans, you can skip several steps and add the beans at the same time as the chicken.

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