Turkish Omelette (Kaygana)

The first time I tried kaygana was 15 years ago when I was traveling in the Black Sea region with my family. There was a small authentic restaurant that served only Black Sea region food on the way to Sumela Monastery, in Trabzon province, and they served us kaygana along with other numerous delicious local food. Since I've always had a love-hate relationship with eggs, I was reluctant to taste it at first. But then it became my favorite egg dish....

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Yogurt Soup (Yayla Çorbası)

Yogurt soup is a popular comfort dish both in Turkey and Central Asia. To me, it shows how we, Turks, are obsessed with yogurt; we even cook it! It's also a very common sick soup; even inhaling the strong smell of mint or tarragon makes you feel better. Although Turks love this soup, I can see why many people, especially those who are not in good terms with yogurt, may not like this. So, the decision is up to you: to try or not to try...1/4 cup...

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Herby Black-eyed Pea (Zeytinyağlı Börülce)

I've been looking for pomegranate molasses/syrup for a long time to make tabbouleh (kısır). Finally I found a Lebanese one in an international market. Pomegranate syrup is an essential ingredient in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cooking. It's delicious as a salad dressing ingredient as well as a base for marinade. Now that I found it I'll use it more, but first I used it on black-eyed pea which both as a dish and as a salad is very common in...

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Bhutanese Red Rice (Kırmızı Pirinçli Butan Pilavı)

Rice, whether it's white, brown, long, short,forbidden (black), or red, is one of my favorite dishes. Red rice with its nutty flavor has secured a good place in my heart, and as a result in my kitchen, in the last year. I usually cook it alaturka; however, this time I wanted to try a Bhutanese recipe since red rice is from Bhutan. I found the recipe online here. I only made small changes, and the Bhutanese rice turned out to be great. I served it...

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Turkish Rice Pudding-Baked (Fırın Sütlaç)

Sütlaç is a light dessert originated in Ottoman cuisine. The rumor goes that it was flavored with rose water in palace kitchens, but in my kitchen I skipped that ingredient. If you want to try the original taste, add 2-3 tsp rose water to milk.1 lt (32 oz.) milk1/2 cup white rice1 cup white sugar1/4 cup corn flour or corn starch-Wash the rice and boil it with 2 cups of water until water is soaked-Put rice, milk, and sugar in a pot and stir on low....

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