Recipe: Yayla Corbasi (warm yogurt soup from Turkey)

The best from Turkey is the cookbook to get if you want to discover the cuisine of Turkey. Author Hilal Kayis shows you what makes the cuisine of her homeland so special. Because we all know Turkish mezze, sigara börek and lamb köfte (all incredibly delicious, by the way!), but this rich cuisine is much more than that. Every region in Turkey has its own flavors. Take this famous Yayla Corbasi soup, made with yogurt as its base.

It is widely known that yogurt is a frequently used ingredient in Turkish cuisine. This is hardly surprising, as yogurt originated among the nomadic Turkic peoples of Central Asia. In Europe, people became acquainted with yogurt in 1542, when King Francis I of France became seriously ill and grew weaker and weaker. Nothing helped, until the Ottoman sultan Suleiman I sent a doctor and some yogurt to the ailing statesman.

It worked wonders and the king recovered. This marked yogurt’s introduction to Europe, and it is now an indispensable part of our lives. This yayla çorbası has yogurt as its base and is further enriched with legumes, rice or bulgur.

How to make yayla corbasi (warm yogurt soup)

• Rinse the rice, lentils, barley and chickpeas thoroughly in separate bowls.
• Boil the soaked chickpeas in plenty of water for 30 minutes. Add the green lentils and cook for another 30 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Put the yogurt in a mixing bowl and add the egg, flour, salt and lemon juice. Mix until smooth.
• Add 250 ml water and mix well again. Pour into a soup pot and add another 1½ liters of water. Bring everything to a boil while stirring. It is very important to keep stirring continuously until it boils to prevent the mixture from curdling.
• Add the rice, lentils, barley and chickpeas and cook for 30 minutes over low to medium heat. Check whether everything is cooked through.
• Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and add the dried mint. Pour the warm mint oil into the soup, stir briefly and serve the soup in bowls.

Title: The best from Turkey
Author: Hilal Kayis
Price: €24,99
Publisher: Carrera Culinair

Also read:

• 15 tips you want to know before cooking with yogurt
• Why you should start eating your chips with Turkish yogurt
• What is the difference between Greek yogurt and quark?