Tag Archives | tomatoes

Etli Taze Fasulye – Green beans with ground meat and vegetables

By Ozlem Warren on September 15, 2010 in Casseroles and Stews 1

Etli Taze fasulye; green beans cooked with onions, tomatoes, potatoes with ground meat; delicious, healthy and easy

I spotted some lovely runner beans in the market and made this very popular Turkish dish. I like to add potatoes too, though traditionally we wouldn’t. It is wholesome, healthy, delicious and very easy to make – and you get your 4 vegetables a day in one go! If you can’t find runner beans, you can use French beans too.

You can cook this dish ahead of time and gently reheat just before eating. It is a huge help and comfort not to worry about dinners during the week and this recipe certainly helps! You can serve with pilaff rice and Cacik dip, Cucumber and yoghurt dip with mint, for a complete meal.

Serves 4 – 6
Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 45-50 minutes

250 gr/9 oz ground (minced) lean beef
500 gr/1 1/4 lb runner beans (or French beans), trimmed and cut in 3-4 pieces
115 gr/4 oz small potatoes, halved and sliced
2 medium onions, finely sliced
400 gr/14 oz can of chopped tomatoes
30 ml/ 2 tablespoons olive oil
240 ml/ 8 lf oz water
Salt and pepper to taste
Red pepper/ paprika flakes to serve – optional-

Sauté the onions with the olive oil for a couple of minutes over medium heat and add the ground meat. Continue cooking for further couple of minutes. Add the potatoes, beans and tomatoes and mix well. Season with salt and pepper, cover and cook over medium to low heat for about 40 minutes (French beans may take shorter to cook). Cook for a further 5-10 minutes if needed. Check the seasoning and add more salt and pepper to your liking.

Serve hot, sprinkled with red pepper/ paprika flakes if you would like, with some crusty bread or plain rice by the side.

Afiyet Olsun!

Note: I previously made the vegetarian version of this dish, “Runner beans cooked in olive oil”, Zeytinyagli taze fasulye, which is lovely for hot summers day.

Karniyarik – Stuffed Eggplants (Aubergines) with ground lamb, tomatoes and onions

By Ozlem Warren on June 2, 2010 in Casseroles and Stews 58

Karniyarik; Stuffed eggplants with ground meat, onion, tomatoes

This impressive dish is a legacy of the Ottoman Palace kitchens and yet another of the imperial demands for ingenuity concerning the much loved eggplant, aubergine, you will find this dish wherever you go in Turkey! Though traditionally made with ground lamb, you may prepare it with ground beef or have a vegetarian version too. Simply replace the meat with your favorite vegetable (mushrooms, chickpeas work very well), sprinkle some grated cheese over the top and bake it, it turns out to be a delicious alternative.

This Karniyarik recipe and many more are included at my cookery book, Ozlem’s Turkish Table, Recipes from My Homeland, along with stunning photography and personal stories. Signed copies are now 30 % OFF for a limited time at this link and delivered worldwide including the USA.

You can cook this dish ahead of time and gently reheat in the oven. Karniyarik freezes very well, once cooked. Here’s also my YouTube video for how to make Karniyarik :

Preparation time – 45 minutes Cooking time – 55 minutes

3 dark purple eggplants (aubergines; small to medium variety if possible)
340 gr / 12 ounces ground (minced) lean lamb
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
400 gr /14 oz (1 can of) chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
240 ml / 1 cup water
1 bunch or 1/2 cup Italian (flat) parsley, finely chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 – 4 tablespoons canola oil or ground nut oil for shallow frying
6 thin slices of tomato and green bell peppers, seeded – for decorative topping
1 -2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 180 C / 350 F

Cut the eggplants in half lengthways leaving the stalk intact. In each half of eggplant, cut a deep split lengthways without cutting through to the skin on the opposite side and leaving 1/2″-13 mm- uncut at either end. Sprinkle salt over the flesh side of the eggplants and leave them aside for 15 minutes. Salt will help the moisture come out of the eggplants.

In a little of the olive oil, sauté the onions until soft. Add the ground lamb and cook until all the moisture is absorbed. Add the garlic, chopped tomatoes, tomato paste and red pepper flakes. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, mix well. Continue cooking for a further couple of minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in most of the chopped parsley. Seasoning is important, so please check the seasoning of the mixture and add more salt or pepper if you would like.

Dry the eggplants with kitchen towel thoroughly. Lightly brown them evenly on both sides in the canola oil or gorundnut oil. With the split sides facing up, place them into a well-oiled ovenproof dish or a baking tray. Spoon the filling into the splits. On the top of each filled eggplant put a slice of tomato and a green bell pepper. Mix the water with a drizzle of olive oil. Pour this mixture on the baking tray. Cover and bake in the preheated oven for about 45 minutes. Remove the cover and continue baking for another 15 minutes or until they are tender and the eggplants are nicely browned on top.

Serve hot with plain rice and a dollop of plain yoghurt by the side.

Bulgur Wheat Pilaf with Vegetables – Sebzeli Bulgur Pilavi

By Ozlem Warren on May 17, 2010 in Pilafs and Rice 9

Bulgur wheat pilaf with onions, tomatoes and peppers

My cousin asked me recently what to feed his 15 month old baby. Our children have been eating mainly what we have been eating (with the condition of compromising from the seasoning and adding more salt and spices on our own plate), we have been lucky. And that’s what I have suggested to him. Turkish food provides a healthy and balanced diet to the children too and this bulgur pilaf with vegetables would be a healthy and delicious option to give to them – my children enjoy it greatly!

Often confused with cracked wheat, bulgur wheat is a grain made from cooked whole wheat berries, which have had the bran removed, and is then dried in the sun and crushed. As it has already been cooked, it requires little cooking to reconstitute itself. It is available coarsely and finely ground. For pilaf, the coarser type is used, to create a nutty and delicious dish, which is a meal in itself and served with yoghurt. Bulgur has been a major staple in many rural areas in Turkey; during the Ottoman Period, the rice was a very precious commodity that only the rich could afford. This made the bulgur a very popular option and healthy one too. It is reach in fiber and provides good source of protein.

Serves 6
Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: about 20-25 minutes

350 gr/ 12 oz/ 2 cups of coarse organic bulgur wheat, rinsed and drained
2 medium onions, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, diced
15 ml / 1 tablespoon olive oil
30 ml / 2 tablespoons butter
400 gr /14 oz can of chopped tomatoes
600 ml / 1 pint / 2 1/2 cup hot vegetable or chicken stock or water
1 teaspoon salt – please adjust to your taste –
freshly ground black pepper
chopped parsley for garnish – optional-

Rinse the bulgur under cold running water, drain and set a side.

Sauté the chopped onions in olive oil and butter until soft. Add the green bell pepper and chopped tomatoes, cook for another minute. Add the stock (or water) and bring to boil.

Add the bulgur, salt and ground pepper and stir once. Cover and cook over a low heat until the bulgur has absorbed all the stock and stem holes are visible on the surface. It is important not to stir the pilaf during this time. Remove the pan from the heat. Cover the pan with a cloth or absorbent kitchen paper and the lid over the top. The bulgur will continue cooking in the steam and the cloth will absorb any excess moisture. Leave to stand covered, for at least 15 minutes before serving.