Black-eyed Peas with Sujuk (Sucuklu Tane Börülce)

The colder the weather gets, the more I cook with beans and grains. This is a hearthy, spicy, and belly warming stew from Central Anatolia. I was lucky to find fresh black-eyed peas, but you can start from dry black-eyeds or use canned peas.Sujuk is Middle Eastern beef sausage dried with several spices black pepper, cumin, garlic, paprika, etc. You can find sujuk at Middle Eastern stores.1/2 lb black-eyed peas1/2 or 1/3 sujuk, sliced (I never tried...

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Bulgur Risotto with Beet and Beer (Bira ve Pancarla Bulgurlu Risotto)

We've been obsessed with risotto lately. Once I got familiar with the ins and outs of making risotto, I felt like I gained the authority to explore with the "genre." I wanted to make an almost Turkish fall risotto. The recipe gets its Turkishness from bulgur, and its fallness from beet, beer, and walnuts.I used Negra Modelo, a non-hoppy dark lager. I didn't want to bitter up the risotto with hops. Beets have somewhat sweet flavor that goes perfect...

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Red Lentil and Wheat Berry Soup (Kırmızı Mercimekli ve Buğdaylı Çorba)

1/2 cup wheat berries1 cup red lentils6 cups of beef or vegetable stock/brotha pinch of saffron2 tbsp olive oil1 tsp dried mint flakes1 tsp red pepper flakessalt-Boil wheat berries with 4 cups of water until soft. Rinse excessive water.-In a pot boil 6 cups of beef or vegetable stock. Add first saffron threads, boil for a minute and then add wheat berries and red lentils. Cook for 20-25 minutes until lentils are cooked.-Heat oil in a pan. Add mint...

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Veggie Oven Bag Stew (Fırın Torbasında Türlü)

A nice and easy fall stew.1 eggplant, cubed1 zucchini, cut in quarter rounds1 carrot, cut in small half rounds1 cup baby okra2 green chilies, chopped1 potato, diced2 tomatoes, diced1 big onion, chopped3 cloves of garlic, sliced1 cup water2 tbsp tomato pastesaltpepper1/2 cup parsley,chopped2 tbsp olive oil or butterand1 oven bag-Mix all the ingredients except for water and tomato paste in a big bowl. (if you want to add any kind of meat, you can add...

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Peppers with Cheese (Lorlu Biber)

Another great Thracian specialty! Just like menemen, peppers with cheese can also be served as a side dish, main dish, or a breakfast treat. Many people enjoy lorlu biber for breakfast, but in my family we usually have it for dinner with fresh bread. it's really easy to make, and almost impossible to make it bad.For this recipe you can use as many peppers and as much cheese as you want. Traditionally lorlu biber is made with banana peppers. However,...

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