Grilled Fish on Sourdough Bread with herb mayonnaise, served with Sumac, Red onion and Tomato salad; “Balik Ekmek ” with a twist

Posted by Ozlem on Apr 30, 2012 in Appetizers and Mezes, Salads, Seafood | 12 comments

Tags: calamari, capers, haddock, lemon, lettuce, parsley, red onion, sea bass, sourdough bread, sumac, tomatoes

One of the most popular street foods at home is grilled (or lightly fried) fish, served between slices of our traditional white loaf. Fishermen grill the fish at their boats and prepare this sandwich right there for you; with a breeze from the Bosphorus and view of boats passing by, that first bite is just heavenly. Turkey is bounded by the sea on three sides – the Mediterranean,Aegeanand the Blacksea. With the Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus and Dardanelles at northwest,Turkeyhas over 7,000km (4,350 miles) of coastline. The plentiful...

Grilled Sardines (in vine leaves) with Tomatoes and Peppers

Posted by Ozlem on Jun 6, 2011 in Seafood, Uncategorized | 4 comments

Grilled (or chargrilled) sardines are very popular at home, especially in summer time. It is also common to grill the sardines wrapped in vine leaves – the tangy taste of vine leaves work well with the distinctive flavor of sardines (You can buy preserved vine leaves in jars in supermarkets or Middle Eastern / Mediterranean stores). I like to grill sardines with cherry tomatoes and bell peppers; their juicy, sweet flavor complements the strong taste of sardines well. Make sure to serve the sardines with wedges of lemon to squeeze over...

Baked Salmon with Onions, Red Peppers and Lemon – Soganli, Kirmizi Biberli Firinda Somon

Posted by Ozlem on Mar 29, 2011 in Seafood, Uncategorized | 2 comments

Turkey is surrounded by the Aegean, Mediterranean and Blacksea and we get a good variety of fish. Generally, fish is bought very fresh, straight off the boats or from the fish markets. When it comes to cooking fish, Turks are purists and they don’t do much to it; you wouldn’t see any sauce around the fish served at home. Grilled fish is mostly served with a little dash of olive oil, grilled vegetables and fresh green salad with sliced red onions by the side. I love the simplicity of this baked salmon recipe, yet it is packed with...

Angus’s Spaghetti Shrimp with Turkish Red Pepper Flakes infused Olive Oil – Angus’un Karidesli, Kirmizi Biberli Makarnasi

Posted by Ozlem on May 3, 2010 in Seafood, Uncategorized | 1 comment

My husband Angus makes an incredible shrimp spaghetti using Turkish red pepper flakes and he kindly let me share his wonderful and easy to prepare recipe with you. He infuses the smoky Turkish red pepper flakes in olive oil, which adds an amazing flavor to the shrimps. I always, always look forward to his shrimp spaghetti! If you can’t get hold of Turkish red pepper flakes (preferably Aleppo), substitute with hot chili flakes. Make it as fiery as you like! Serves 2 generously Preparation time: 5 minutesCooking time: 15 minutes 280 gr /...