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Grated Radish Salad with Tahini Sauce; Tahinli Turp Salatasi

Grated radish salad with tahini dressing; Tahinli Turp Salatasi

Grated radish salad with tahini dressing; Tahinli Turp Salatasi

Juicy, crunchy red radishes – turp, as we call in Turkey- add a lovely, punchy colour and a delightful peppery taste to dips and salads. In southern Turkey, in Adana region as well as in Antakya, we make a delicious, refreshing radish salad with a simple tahini sauce. We serve this Tahinli Turp Salatasi as part of a mezze spread, especially to accompany Oruk or Icli Kofte, our version of the Middle Eastern Kibbeh. The refreshing, peppery flavors of the radish salad complement the rich, nutty Oruk very well.

Delightful and easy to make radish salad with tahini sauce; tahinli turp salatasi

Delightful and easy to make radish salad with tahini sauce; tahinli turp salatasi

Tahini or Tahin, as we call it in Turkish, is a paste made from sesame seeds; it is a much loved ingredient in southern Turkish cooking as well as in the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean. We use tahini in dips like hummus, salads and in baking, as in this tahini bread rolls. Most supermarkets carry tahini these days; make sure to give it a good stir before using it as it tends to separate.

Tahini makes a delicious, healthy dressing at this wonderful radish salad; tahinli turp salatasi

 I hope you can give this delicious, nutritious radish salad with tahini a go; so easy to make and packed with flavor. Here I’d like to thank my talented seramic artist cousin, dear Nihal Sarioglu and Zen Ceramics in Istanbul for my beautiful plate, showcasing this lovely radish salad with tahini sauce.

Afiyet Olsun,
Ozlem

5.0 from 4 reviews
Grated Radish Salad with Tahini Sauce; Tahinli Turp Salatasi
 
Juicy, crunchy red radishes – turp, as we call in Turkey- add a lovely, punchy colour and a delightful peppery taste to dips and salads. In southern Turkey, in Adana region as well as in Antakya, we make a delicious, refreshing radish salad with a simple tahini sauce. We serve this Tahinli Turp Salatasi as part of a mezze spread, especially to accompany Oruk or Icli Kofte, our version of the Middle Eastern Kibbeh. Hope you enjoy it, Afiyet Olsun.
Author:
Recipe type: Healthy Turkish Salads with Tahini Sauce
Cuisine: Southern Turkish Cuisine
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 200 gr / 7 oz. red radishes, washed and pat dried
  • 1 clove of garlic, crushed with salt and finely chopped
  • Juice of 1 small lemon
  • 15 ml/ 1 tbsp. tahini, stirred
  • 30 ml/ 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
  • 5 ml/ 1 tsp. cumin
  • 5 ml/ 1 tsp. red pepper flakes or chili flakes
  • Sea Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • Flat leaf parsley to decorate
Instructions
  1. Clean and pat dry the radishes. Trim off the stem end and tip, keep the skin.
  2. Grate the radishes and place in a bowl. Sprinkle some salt over and let the moisture come out, for 5 minutes.
  3. Using an absorbent kitchen paper towel or clean tea towel, squeeze the grated radishes to get rid of the excess moisture. Later, place them in a serving bowl.
  4. To make the tahini sauce; combine the tahini, chopped garlic, lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil in a small container and mix well. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to your taste.
  5. Pour in this sauce over the grated radishes and combine well.
  6. Sprinkle the ground cumin and red pepper flakes over the radish salad with tahini and decorate with flat leaf parsley.
  7. Afiyet Olsun.
Notes
Make sure to give tahini a good stir before using it as it tends to separate.

Stuffed grapevine leaves, aubergine with lentils, Turkish flat breads and More; Let’s create a Turkish Feast; Sunday 13th December, 12 noon – 3.30pm; Divertimenti Cookery School – Hands On –

"An unforgettable evening of Turkish cookery; loved your passion, enthusiasm and clear instructions, many thanks for a great class."

“An unforgettable evening of Turkish cookery; loved your passion, enthusiasm and clear instructions, many thanks for a great class.”

Turkish cuisine not only reflects a rich historical and cultural heritage, it is also healthy and a feast to all your senses. Kick off the festive season in style and join us for an unforgettable day of scrumptious Turkish food, history and culture at my Turkish Cookery class at Divertimenti Cookery School on Sunday 13th December, 12 noon – 3.30pm. During this Hands On class, you will be amazed to see how easy it is to recreate these delicious courses once you have a go. From courgette fritters with feta and dill, mucver, to stuffed vine leaves, yaprak sarma, from aubergines, lentils and peppers cooked in olive oil to Pide, Turkish flat breads with toppings and stuffed apricots dessert with walnuts, you will have a chance to create and enjoy an authentic, wholesome Turkish feast, great for entertaining.

We will me making Turkish oval flat breads with cheese and vegetables, Peynirli, sebzeli pide, and many more at my Dec. 13th Turkish Cookery Class

We will be making Turkish oval flat breads with cheese and vegetables, Peynirli, sebzeli pide, and many more at my Dec. 13th Turkish Cookery Class

Here’s the class details; Signing up for this class is through Divertimenti Cookery School at this link, hope you can join us!

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18 Responses to Grated Radish Salad with Tahini Sauce; Tahinli Turp Salatasi

  1. joyce October 19, 2015 at 9:37 pm #

    this looks so good. i love radishes.

    • Ozlem Warren October 20, 2015 at 9:04 am #

      Thanks Joyce, hope you enjoy the tahini dressing!

  2. Peri's Spice Ladle October 20, 2015 at 3:32 am #

    Just the lovely color and texture of radish in your simple recipe makes me want to grab a spoon. A must try when I get some radishes home next time. Excited to see the next cooking class, as amazing as always:) xxPeri.

    • Ozlem Warren October 20, 2015 at 9:03 am #

      Dear Peri, many thanks for your kind note; love the simplicity of this recipe too, hope you enjoy it. Huge thanks for your kind support for my classes, much appreciated as always : ) Ozlem xx

  3. Alan October 20, 2015 at 4:47 am #

    . . we love these great big radishes in our salads – never thought of mixing with tahini though – next time!

    • Ozlem Warren October 20, 2015 at 9:02 am #

      I love the big radishes you get at home too – so peppery and packed with flavor – tahini dressing is wonderful with radishes, hope you enjoy it – cok selamlar, Ozlem x

  4. Rob October 20, 2015 at 8:31 pm #

    Oh my goodness – this is absolutely amazing!

    I dont even particularly like radishes, but this is brilliant. I spent more than an hour cooking Oruk and the radishes were the star!

    • Ozlem Warren October 21, 2015 at 9:01 am #

      Merhaba dear Rob, what a lovely note, you made my day! First of all, massive thank you and congrats on giving Oruk recipe a go; it is not the easiest but rewarding, hope you enjoyed it. So very glad you enjoyed the radish salad, stunning flavors, isn’t it – it was a star on our table too! Many thanks for taking the time to write, much appreciated. Selamlar, Ozlem

  5. seniordogsabroad October 21, 2015 at 2:30 am #

    Özlem’ciğim, Thanks so much for this very seasonal salad. The turps in the market here in Turkey now are many colors – green, red, black, white and purple and red with different levels of tartness and I love them all. I’m also really keen on salads with turp but have never heard of one with tahini. Just got a big jar of tahin from our local manav last week so can’t wait to try this – maybe tonight. Your class in December sounds like it will be terrific – lucky students! Seni çok özleyorum, ailene selam söyle, öptüm. J

    • Ozlem Warren October 21, 2015 at 9:05 am #

      Sevgili Jolee’cigim, lovely to get your note; how I wished to be at home and getting my hands on to those colorful turp, radishes at home, I can just imagine how flavorful they are, please enjoy for us too! I think you may enjoy this one; knowing you like peanut butter, tahini’s nutty, seedy rich taste complements the radishes with lemon juice, garlic and e.v. olive oil very well – and so easy!:) Hope you enjoy it, afiyet olsun. ps. Loved your adventures in Erzurum, what a trip! Bende sizleri cok ozluyorum, cok selam ve sevgiler, Ozlem

  6. Turkey's For Life October 21, 2015 at 10:17 am #

    Mmmmm, love, love, love radishes ad we buy them often – but we’re like Alan, above, and have never thought of mixing them with tahini paste. Interesting. Will experiment with that next time.
    Julia

    • Ozlem Warren October 21, 2015 at 10:41 am #

      Thanks for stopping by Julia, it is a popular salad in southern Turkey, especially in Adana region and happy to spread the word! Hope you can give it a go, it is easy and delicious; cok selamlar, Ozlem x

  7. Holz February 20, 2017 at 12:23 pm #

    Today I prepared this delicious salad, certainly not the last time. That’s the real taste of Anatolia. Thank you!

    • Ozlem Warren February 20, 2017 at 9:40 pm #

      Many thanks for your kind note Holz, I wholeheartedly agree with you, it really is!

  8. Lucy Burany January 17, 2019 at 8:39 am #

    Dear Ozlem
    I make this grated radish salad,and served with Icli Kofteh my dad loved it ,he asked for seconds he told me he loves the radish salad a lot,I told him I’ll make more another day,he was so happy.I have a favor to ask you how do you make su boreg ,water borek ,I remember my mom make it from scratch rolling the dough and boiling them in water,and my mom used grated mozzarella cheese and chopped parsley in the center dough and baked in the oven,is there any easier way to make this borek can you put the recipe .I will appreciate thank you.

    • Ozlem Warren January 20, 2019 at 3:11 pm #

      Merhaba dear Lucy,
      Many thanks for your kind note, so glad you and your dad enjoying my recipes, really delighted to hear it – this salad is my father’s favourite too; do hope they bring special memories back.

      Also wanted to let you know, my cookery book Ozlem’s Turkish Table has all these recipes and more too – and it is signed copies at the moment! – it is a special book with my personal stories and stunning photography and over 90 authentic Turkish recipes, if interested, you can order at this link below, it is shipped promptly worldwide:

      https://www.gbpublishing.co.uk/product-page/ozlem-s-turkish-table-hardback

      I haven’t made Su boregi yet but I have a recipe for the Filo pastry with cheese and spinach, very similar to Su boregi in my blog and also in my book, do hope you enjoy making them, Afiyet Olsun, ozlem

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