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Baba Ghanoush

07 Mon Sep 2015

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اگر فردوس بر روی زمین است همین است و همین است و همین است

The famous poet, Amir Khusrow, is supposed to have uttered the above couplet upon seeing Kashmir for the first time in the late 13th century, though some sources give credit to the Mughal emperor Jahangir. I will let you in on a confession – I secretly think that the great bard was operating under a handicap in that he had not seen the Mediterranean yet :-). The Mare Nostrum, or Our Sea, as we Romans called it, is truly heaven on earth. The region was the birthplace of Western civilisation – Minoans, Egyptians, Hittites, Greeks, Phoenicians, and Romans just to name a few of the great empires that borders the beautiful waters of the almost inland sea – and is surrounded by lands with not just great history and culture but also cuisines. In this post, our quick sample of the culinary delights is baba ghanoush, a simple brinjal dip that serves as an hors d’oeuvre or even a salad.

baba ghanoushThankfully, the origins of baba ghanoush are not strongly disputed like some other dishes like dolma. It is fairly established that preparation is the Levant, or what is today mostly Syria and Lebanon. Known simply as patlıcan salatası in Turkey and salat hatzilim in Israel – brinjal salad – the Arab name is far more interesting. Baba ghanoush means pampered father, at least in informal Arabic. According to Middle Eastern lore, it supposedly referred to an old, toothless father whose daughter had to mash his food for him. Such a straight-forward explanation does not sit well in an Orientalist gaze and so it has been suggested that the dish was invented in the royal harem, the pampered father being an implicit reference to the sultan himself.

Of course, the brinjal originated in South and East Asia, the former variety being slightly darker, larger, and more bulbous while the latter is lighter and smaller. Among the first mentions in the West is Ibn al-Awwam’s 12th century instructions on how to grow the plant. One can only surmise from this that baba ghanoush can be no more than 900 years old, if that.

There are several versions of baba ghanoush, but I will stick to the traditional one which can later be modified to suit one’s palate. Essentially, this means that there is a basic recipe to which people add different ingredients like olives, mint leaves, tomatoes, onions, or curry powder to accommodate regional preferences. For many, the idea of the perfect baba ghanoush is influenced strongly by what they grew up with and has an ineffability about it.

Ingredients:

  • Brinjal – 1, large
  • Tahini* – ⅓ cup
  • Olive oil – 3 tablespoons
  • Ginger – 1 inch piece
  • Garlic – 6-8 flakes
  • Salt – 1 teaspoon
  • Pepper – 1 teaspoon
  • [Optional] Mint – 1½ tablespoons, chopped
  • [Optional] Coriander leaves – 1½ tablespoons, chopped
  • [Optional] Paprika – 1 teaspoon
  • [Optional] Cumin – 1 teaspoon
  • [Optional] Cayenne pepper – 1 teaspoon
  • [Optional] Black olives – 10, pitted and sliced in half
  • [Optional] Tomato – 1, small
  • *[For tahini] Sesame seeds – ⅓ cup
  • *[For tahini] Olive oil – 3-4 tablespoons
  • *[For tahini] Salt – ½ teaspoon

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serves: 3

Process:

*For the tahini:

The first step is to prepare the tahini. I am not a fan of what is available in the stores, or at least, I am yet to find a brand that I like. In any case, it is very easy to make the paste at home just the way you like it, as much as you want, and for a fraction of the cost you would have to shell out for a commercially available jar. Making your own tahini is also quite useful if you live in a place that is not quite cosmopolitan and the local supermarkets do not carry tahini or if your area does not have a Middle Eastern store.

  • Take about a third of a cup of white sesame seeds, also known as gingelly or til, in a pan and toast the seeds gently on a low flame. They should begin giving off a slight aroma but not get brown in the process. Be very careful not to burn the seeds for that is one sure way of ruining your tahini! This process should give the paste a nuttier flavour.
  • Set the seeds aside to cool for a few minutes.
  • Now, put the seeds in a food processor, add half the olive oil, and grind into a paste. Keep checking ever few seconds and add olive oil as per requirements. I prefer my tahini fairly thick but if you want your tahini runny, add more olive oil as you grind. Ensure that all the seeds have been ground into a smooth paste.
  • Add salt to taste
  • Your tahini is ready. Set aside to be added to the baba ghanoush.

If you have made more tahini than you require, there is no need to panic. You can put it in a jar and refrigerate – it should last for at least a month. If the oil begins to separate, stir thoroughly before use again.

For the baba ghanoush:

  • The essence of baba ghanoush is a certain smoky flavour. Unfortunately, it might not be possible for all of us to fire up the grill at all times. One option is to prick the brinjal lightly with a fork and grill it in an oven. A better method is to prick the brinjal and char it over an open gas flame. This might be a little messier but it is worth the extra effort. Keep turning the brinjal and char it until the skin is crinkly and the vegetable seems to collapse upon itself. You are not done until you see visible shrinkage, which ought to take about 10 minutes. Getting this step right will come with experience but do not to undercook the brinjal; needless to say, do not burn it either!
  • Once your brinjal is done, peel off the skin. You can behead the stem and peel off the skin slowly. Under no circumstances should you dip the brinjal in water to make the peeling easier – for one thing, it will not be easier, and second, it will lose its taste. If you feel your hands are getting sticky, keep a tumbler of water nearby in which to dip your fingers from time to time.
  • Next, de-seed the brinjal. I usually do it by slicing the vegetable – yes, I know that technically, it is a fruit! – right down the middle and scooping out the seeds neatly. Then, I stick the blade of my knife about half way into one half and lift. This will reveal more seeds to be scooped out. Do the same with the other half.
  • The next part varies a bit. Some people like to dry out their brinjal by setting in a sieve and letting gravity do its work over an hour. Others dab the brinjal with a paper towel and only reduce the moisture. Yet others do not bother desiccating at all and proceed to mash the vegetable. I belong to the last school and I really do not think the difference in taste is worth the extra hour of preparation time. Mash the brinjal gently with your hand, though you can use a wooden spatula or fork if you are a finicky sort of person, I suppose.
  • Add the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and olive oil to the mixture and mix thoroughly. Be careful with the lemon juice – too much sourness can spoil a good baba ghanoush. At this stage, people add other random things to the mix – cayenne pepper and cumin, olives, coriander and mint, mayonnaise, paprika, tomatoes. I do not indulge in such frivolity and instead use these ingredients as dressing if my guests simply must have them in their baba ghanoush. You can put the mixture in the food processor for about three to five seconds if you wish.
  • Put in a bowl and drizzle some olive oil over it. Serve with warm pita bread. If you live in a bread-deprived culinary zone like India, perhaps phulkas could serve as a substitute.

!بالهناء والشفاء

Börek

27 Sun Oct 2013

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The börek is a lovely creation of the kitchens of Ottoman-controlled lands. Essentially, it refers to an entire family of pastries or snacks made with filo dough. Filo is Greek for leaf, so not surprisingly, filo dough is paper-thin sheets of unleavened flour. Stuffing varies from meat, vegetables, dried nuts and fruits, cheese and even nutella and confectionery products. The börek particularly caught the imagination of Ottoman Jewish communities who took it to places beyond the Ottoman vale, like Emilia-Romagna in Italy. The dish comes is all shapes and sizes, and is ubiquitous in the cuisines of Greece, Israel, Bulgaria, and the inheritor states of the former Yugoslavia.

The word börek comes from the Turkic root, bur-, which means to twist. However, others claim that it stems from the Turkish word, börbör, which means to wrap or cover. Food historians have claimed that the dish is even older than the Turkic migration into Anatolia, that the börek was most probably brought over by the Oghuz Turks from Central Asia between the 8th and 11th centuries.

börekThe börek has spread since then to not just the once Ottoman lands but even beyond and have become central parts of local traditions and customs. For example, in Tunisia, böreks are called brik and are an important part of breaking the fast during the holy month of Ramadan – it is usually the second course, after the chorba, or soup. There is apparently also a tradition in that country that the mother of a bride-to-be makes a börek for the potential groom. If he can eat the brik without spilling any of the egg yolk, he may marry the bride. No pressure, guys! Now you see why your mothers told you not to be messy eaters 🙂 Similarly, Mumbaikars may be surprised to hear that their beloved khari bears an uncanny resemblance to the Saray böreği, or palace börek – both are layers of filo with fresh butter rolled between each sheet.

The most difficult or time-consuming part of making börek is making the dough. Thankfully, pastry sheets may be readily purchased in many supermarkets and special shapes or sizes may be available in ethnic stores. Yet making filo at home is probably healthier, certainly cheaper, and it tastes better than the frozen product. It may be that the better taste is a psychological reaction to the fondness for the labour that goes into making filo sheets, but as long as you create with a yummier end result, who cares, right? People will tell you that making filo is hard work. That is not exactly true – making the dough is easy, but making it into paper-thin sheets is where the hard work comes in! However, there may be ways around that, as you will see.

Ingredients:

For the filo:

  • Flour – 2½ cups (you will realise that not all flour is the same – experiment with whatever is available locally to find the best one. Some make the dough rubbery or difficult to stretch)
  • Water – 200 millilitres (may add a smidgen more if required)
  • Oil – 3 tablespoons (may be vegetable or olive)
  • Vinegar – 1 teaspoon
  • Salt – ½ teaspoon
  • For basting:
    • Milk – 75 millilitres
    • Egg – 1
    • Oil – 3 tablespoons

For beef filling:

  • Beef – 250g, ground
  • Onion – 1, medium
  • Tomato paste – 1 tablespoon
  • Oil – 1 tablespoon
  • Cumin – ½ teaspoon
  • Black pepper – ½ teaspoon
  • Salt – ½ teaspoon

For spinach filling:

  • Spinach – 200g (fresh is best, but frozen or canned will do)
  • Onion – 1, medium
  • Oil – 2 tablespoons
  • Salt – ½ teaspoon
  • Black pepper – ¼ teaspoon

For feta filling:

  • Feta cheese – 200g, crumbling
  • Coriander leaves – ¾ cup

For leek filling:

  • Leek – 1 bunch
  • Feta cheese – ½ cup
  • Coriander leaves
  • Oil – 3 tablespoons
  • Salt – 1 teaspoon

For brinjal filling:

  • Brinjal – 2, large
  • Onion – 1, large
  • Oil – 3 tablespoons
  • Paprika – ½ teaspoon
  • Salt – ½ teaspoon

For potato filling:

  • Potato – 3, medium
  • Onion – 1, medium
  • Tomato paste – 1 tablespoon
  • Oil – 2 tablespoons
  • Cumin – ½ teaspoon
  • Black pepper – ½ teaspoon
  • Salt – ½ teaspoon
 çiğ börek  tepsi börek  Sigara Böreği

Preparation time:

Filo: 200 minutes (including 120 minutes idling)

Stuffing: 10 minutes

Cooking time:

Stuffing: 10 minutes

Börek: 25 minutes

Serves: 6-8

Process:

Filo:

  • Sieve the flour and salt together in a mixing bowl.
  • Combine the water, oil, and vinegar, and slowly pour the mixture into the mixing bowl along with the flour while mixing.
  • If the dough feels sticky, add a little more flour
  • Knead thoroughly until the result is a nice and soft dough. I estimate it will take about 20 minutes by hand. Some food processors come with an attachment/function for kneading, and this may greatly save your labour.
  • Once the dough is ready, shape it into a ball and lightly brush with oil. Then put the oiled ball in a bowl, cover with a damp cloth (I suppose plastic wrap will do too), and let it sit in a cool and shaded place for about two hours.
  • Whisk the oil, milk, and egg for basting in a glass.
  • Now, you need a large, flat, and dry surface on which you can perhaps sprinkle a little flour. Here comes the tricky part – rolling the filo. One easy way to do this is to use a pasta maker. Cut the ball of dough into chunks of required size and send them through the machine. Make sure the machine is dry and the rollers floured so that the dough does not catch on it. If you are going to make long sheets, help the filo along with your (floured) hand so that it does not fold in on itself.
  • Pasta makers have multiple thickness settings, and you can get some really thin sheets from the good ones. Two points to note for this method: the pasta machine’s output bay is usually only around 12-15 centimetres wide, so if you are planning to make a massive, tray-sized börek, it will be a bit trickier (you can always merge the smaller pieces on your tray eventually). Second, be cautiously ambitious about how thin you want your sheets to be. At maximum thinness setting, the sheets can come out pretty thin, but unless you are experienced at moving around dough, you can easily rip the sheet (no problem, you can just roll the dough back into a ball and try again).
  • For the brave souls who wish to do this by hand, arm yourselves with a rolling-pin. Make sure that it is also floured like the surface upon which you will be working. Remember to take off your jewelry, watches, wrist bands, and such – you do not want your hard work ruined by the filo accidentally catching on them.
  • Take some dough and flatten it out on the floured working area. Then, with a rolling-pin, continue to flatten it until it becomes evenly translucent. Some people flatten the dough until it is almost done and then lift it up on the back of their hands as they would a pizza to stretch it out just a little bit more. Every time I have tried that, the dough has ripped, so I would suggest fidelity to the rolling-pin, especially if you are a beginner.
  • Once a sheet is done, place it away on a large, well-floured surface, usually a tray or a cloth. Baste every third or fourth filo sheet with the basting mixture. Keep adding sheets of filo until the dough runs out. You should aim for about 14 sheets, but there is no hard and fast rule about this – just make sure it is not two sheets or two score!

You can make filo sheets in advance and store in the freezer. Just take them out when you need them, allow to thaw, and voilà!

Beef stuffing:

  • Place the oil and ground beef in a pan and heat until the meat changes colour.
  • Chop the onion finely and add it to the meat; sauté until the onions turn brown.
  • Add the tomato paste and salt.
  • Cook over a low to medium flame for 5-7 minutes; keep stirring.
  • Sprinkle the pepper and cumin and mix thoroughly.

Spinach stuffing:

  • Wash the spinach and onion and chop finely. If you are using canned spinach, drain the spinach and rinse.
  • Put the onions and oil in a pan and sauté until the onions are brown.
  • Add the spinach and salt and cook on a low to medium flame for about eight to ten minutes. Put a lid on the pan but stir occasionally.
  • Add the pepper at the end and stir it in.

Feta stuffing:

  • Put the feta cheese and the coriander leaves in a bowl and mix them.

Leek stuffing:

  • Wash and drain the leek, and then cut the them lengthwise and chop thinly.
  • Sauté the leek in a pan with oil and salt on a medium flame for about eight minutes.
  • Take the pan off the flame, add the coriander leaves and feta cheese; mix thoroughly.

Brinjal stuffing:

  • Wash and peel the brinjal; chop the onions finely.
  • In a pan, sauté the onions with the oil on a low to medium flame.
  • Chop the brinjals finely and add into the pan.
  • Add paprika and salt.
  • Cook and stir until the brinjals are soft and tender; this should take approximately ten minutes.

Potato stuffing:

  • Boil the potatoes, peel them, and mash them. Chop the onions finely.
  • Heat the oil in a pan and add the onions; sauté on a low to medium flame until golden brown.
  • Add the potatoes, tomato paste, and salt; Cook for five minutes on a low to medium flame; stir occasionally.
  • Sprinkle the cumin and pepper into the pan and mix thoroughly.

Other stuffing:

  • Some of my friends make börek with stuffings as simple as cream cheese or nutella. For this, triangle-shaped böreks are best.
????????????????????????????? su börek milföy börek

The börek:

  • [TRIANGLES] If you want your börek to be shaped like triangles, cut the large sheet into squares with sides of about eight centimetres. Then, place the stuffing in the middle and fold the square into a triangle. Pinch the edges shut; if they do not stick easily, moisten your fingertips with a little water.
  • [SWIRLS] If you want to make your börek look a little fancier than mere triangles, you can try making them into swirls. For this, you will need a large starting sheet. Place the stuffing at one edge of a sheet of filo and then wrap the sheet around the stuffing. Roll it once or twice around, and then cut the rolled portion from the rest of the sheet. You will be left with something that looks like a rope. Next, gently curl the ‘rope’ in on itself, the circumference of each curl becoming larger and larger until you are done.
  • Place your finished product onto a greased backing tray. Allow for space between each börek as it may expand while baking. Preheat the oven to about 220°C.
  • Baste the börek with a mixture of egg and butter or olive oil. Bake the börek for about 10 minutes and then pull it out and baste again. Put the börek in for 10 more minutes or until golden brown.
  • Once done, pull out of the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes and serve.

Afiyet olsun!

Içli Köfte

23 Wed Oct 2013

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Köfte get around – they respect no national boundary, and they can be made with anything, from meat, fish, vegetables or even cheese. There are, without exaggeration, hundreds of kinds köfte with varying names as they move from culture to culture or even recipe to recipe. However, the concept of köfte is so generic that one cannot source it to any one location – as long as humans have chopped, ground, or pounded meat into conveniently-sized portions, köfte have been around and been known by various names. The earliest mention of ground balls of meat – essentially what köfte are – that I am aware of is in the 4th century Roman cookbook, De Re Coquinaria, by Caelius Apicus.

içli köfteIçli köfte is Turkish for stuffed meatballs, and I am sure that translation killed the romance, mystique, and exoticism of this recipe! Now that any potential for aantel-ing has been thoroughly butchered :-), Istanbul has some spectacular içli köfte, though I have to admit, Elâzığ has some serious harput köftesi. Içli köfte is almost identical to the Sicilian arancini, which itself was brought in by the Arabs. Anyway, the term köfte has two plausible origins: some say it comes from a Turkic dialect in which the term means ‘small ball,’ while others claim that it comes from the Persian کوفته (kufteh) which means ‘to beat’ or ‘to grind.’ Thankfully, etymological battles do not take away from the taste!

Basically, the diversity in köfte comes from six core choices:

  1. the minced meat used – lamb or beef
  2. the onion – grated or chopped
  3. the cooking style – fried, grilled, or baked
  4. the variety and combination of spices
  5. the type and amount of oil or butter used if fried
  6. the amount of fat on the meat

Some common variations of köfte you will see in Turkey are:

  • Kuru köfte – Kuru means dry, and this version is called so because there is no dressing or sauce, just kneaded and pan-fried rolls of minced meat, bread (soaked in water and squeezed), cumin, egg, garlic, onion, parsley, pepper, and köfte baharı (spices mixed for meatballs).
  • Dalyan köfte – A base of the kuru köfte mixture is made and patted into a large chapati-like shape. It is then rolled with carrots, peas, and sometimes hard-boiled eggs in the center and baked in the oven. It is then sliced and served.
  • Izgara köfte – It is prepared as kuru köfte but without eggs, and is grilled.
  • İzmir köftesi – Add potatoes to kuru köfte and cook with tomato sauce in a pot on the stove or in an oven.
  • Şiş köfte – It is the same preparation as kuru köfte but is wrapped around a skewer and grilled (preferably on a charcoal fire).
  • Tekirdağ köftesi – It is almost identical to kuru köfte but rather than use soggy bread, Tekirdağ köftesi uses small, dry pieces of bread.
  • Sulu köfte – It looks like soup; small balls of kneaded minced meat, ground wheat or rice, onion, and parsley are cooked in a sauce of butter, tomato paste and water. Some add small cubes of carrots and potatoes to the “gravy” as well.
  • Ekşili köfte – Also called terbiyeli köfte, it is prepared in the same manner as sulu köfte. The difference is the additional sour (ekşi) taste. A mixture of eggs, lemon, yoghurt, and flour is used to get the sour taste.
  • Çiğ köfte – Fat-less minced meat kneaded with ground wheat (ince bulgur), onion, tomato, cumin, paprika, pepper, mint, coriander, cinnamon. Red pepper paste is an optional ingredient. Beware – this is a raw dish, served with lettuce, and is ordered as a starter.
  • Harput köftesi – Small balls of kneaded minced meat, wheat, onion, parsley, pepper and sweet basil cooked in a sauce of butter, water, tomato, and an option of red pepper paste.
  • İçli köfte – Roast minced meat, onion and walnut with a coating of wheat, flour, egg and red pepper paste. Generally served as a starter. It looks like a big egg and is mostly fried but can be boiled as well. İçli köfte is served with lemon and parsley.
  • İnegöl köftesi – Balls of very thoroughly kneaded minced meat, onion, pepper, and sodium bicarbonate are cooked in the oven. Few spices are used to accentuate the taste of the meat.
  • Kadınbudu köfte – Big balls of kneaded and roasted minced meat, onions, and boiled rice are fried after being dipped in a batter of flour and eggs.
  • Mercimek köftesi – A vegetarian dish made of red lentils and ground wheat kneaded with onion, parsley and tomato paste. It is served with lettuce on the side, in which it is usually wrapped and eaten.

Okay…now that you are a Köfte Grandmaster, perhaps we should get into our tasty morsel, the içli köfte! For all that talk about this being a mere stuffed meatball, making the bulgur shells is not the easiest task for a culinary n00b.

Ingredients:

  • Beef or Lamb – 500g, doubly ground
  • Bulgur – 3 cups, finely ground
  • Onion – 3, large
  • Coriander leaves – 1 cup
  • Egg – 1
  • Walnut – 100 grammes
  • Flour – 2 tablespoons
  • Butter – 2 tablespoons
  • Red pepper paste – 2 tablespoons
  • Cumin – 1½ teaspoon
  • Paprika – 1 teaspoon
  • Tomato paste – 1 tablespoon
  • Salt – 1½ teaspoon
  • Black pepper – 1 teaspoon
  • Vegetable oil for frying

Preparation time: Overnight marination + 60 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Serves: 6-8

Process:

Stuffing:

  • Chop the onions and coriander leaves very finely; crush the walnuts
  • Sauté the meat in the butter for about three minutes and then add the onions. Continue until the meat and onions are both thoroughly browned.
  • Take the meat and onions off the flame and add the coriander leaves, walnuts, and spices. Mix thoroughly. Make sure the meat remains crumbly and does not stick together in a big lump.
  • Once cooled, cover the mix tightly and refrigerate overnight for marination.

Shell:

  • For the shell, take the bulgur in a pot and add boiling water to it until the bulgur is completely covered but only just. Remove the meat from the fridge before you start so that it has time to reach room temperature by the time it is needed.
  • Wait until the water cools, allowing the bulgur to expand. Once the water has cooled down, start kneading the bulgur. Do this until the water has disappeared, and then add the egg, flour, the tomato paste, and salt to the mix.
  • Continue kneading until the result is a nice and soft dough. This step is essential for the consistency of the shell – if you do not want your köfte to crumble later when you fry or handle them, make sure to knead well. This step usually takes some 15-20 minutes for me. Some food processors have a kneading attachment/function which may make your task easier, though I have only tried it with chapati dough and never for köfte shells.
  • To make a köfte shell, take a small amount of dough in your hand and roll it into a ball. Then flatten it against one palm, as if you were clapping. Now with your thumb, gently create a small depression in the dough patty. Refer to the images below (kindly provided by Hürriyet Daily).
bulgur shell stuffed bulgur shell
  • Using the depression as a pivot, slowly rotate the dough in your hand while simultaneously applying pressure to it and gently cupping your palm. If done properly, the result should look like a small cup. If you find that your hands are too dry to ease the dough into a cup, a drop of vegetable oil should help.

Köfte:

  • Fill the bulgur cup with the meat but leave enough room at the top so that you can seal the top. Gently push the dough inwards and pinch it shut. A little water should help the köfte remain shut. The final product should be about eight centimetres long and four centimetres wide.
  • Repeat until all the meat is finished. This recipe should make about 12-15 köfte.
  • Finally, heat some vegetable oil to about 180°C; there should be enough oil for the içli köfte to be completely submerged in the oil.
  • Fry the köfte until they are golden brown.
  • Serve with a little garnish…perhaps a slice of onion, some lettuce, and a couple of sticks of carrot.

Afiyet olsun!