Turkish recipes using Dried foods (3) Collection
|
stuffed dried vegetables (peppers, aubergines and courgettes) |
peppers in tomato sauce |
stuffed leaves (quince, cherry and bean) |
|
|
[from turkc-l, the turkish culture list] |
|
preserving the tastes of summer: dried foods |
|
by can kiziltan |
|
as summer makes way for autumn in the towns and villages of turkey, |
the task of preparing winter foodstuffs begins. this is a tradition |
that goes back thousands of years. until modern times it was crucial |
for every household to preserve and store sufficient food for the long |
winter months, and neighbours still get together to help one another, |
turning the hard work into an enjoyable social ritual. since large |
quantities are involved, the work is carried out in the sofas (shared |
living area of a house), courtyards and terraces. yufka (large, paper |
thin circles of bread) are rolled out, baked and piled up to the |
ceiling; flour, yoghurt and spices are kneaded into tarhana dough and |
spread on clean sheets in the sun to dry for winter soup; vegetables |
are purchased when they are most plentiful and at their cheapest in |
the markets for making pickles; sheets of pastry are sliced |
rhythmically on wooden tables to make dried noodles, the tapping of |
the knife mingling with the shouts of children playing and the chatter |
of the women. |
|
green peppers, courgettes and aubergines hollowed out ready for |
stuffing and hung on strings to dry adorn the house walls and |
balconies like brightly jewelled necklaces. today, thanks to tinning, |
shock freezing and the spread of greenhouse cultivation, almost every |
type of fruit and vegetable is easily obtainable throughout the year, |
but this has by no means affected the popularity of traditional dried |
foods. on the contrary they have gained in popularity in recent years |
due not only to their distinctive and irreplaceable flavour, but to |
the newly awakening interest in ecological foodstuffs. peppers are |
perhaps foremost among dried foods, and stuffed dried peppers are |
truly delicious. indeed some people enjoy them so much, that they even |
make this dish in the summer. green and red peppers, the latter |
generally hot, are dried separately. the stalks and seeds of the small |
green bell peppers used for stuffing are removed, and then they are |
threaded onto strings and hung in the shade to dry. red peppers on the |
other hand are hung in the sun. |
|
aubergines are similarly topped and hollowed out with a round ended |
knife, threaded on strings and hung in the sun hollow side down. the |
aubergine tops and centres are not thrown away but cut into chunks and |
also spread in the sun to dry, ready to be used in various winter |
dishes known as micirik a$i, ba$ kavurmasi or dograma. courgettes are |
scraped and left to soak in plenty of water, scraped again, cut into |
10-12 centimetre lengths and hollowed out with a special corer. then |
they are sprinkled with salt, threaded on strings and hung up to dry |
in the sun. tomatoes are either made into tomato paste or dried. for |
the latter they are cut into two or four pieces, liberally salted, and |
spread on rush mats in the sun. in the malatya region cherry, quince |
and bean leaves are gathered in april and may, dried and used for |
stuffing. so for a feast of sundried flavours in the winter months, |
try this selection of recipes for turkish dishes made of traditional |
dried vegetables. |
|
* can kiziltan is a freelance writer. |
|
|
(ID: 7193) Mirror: rec.food.recipes: Mon, Jun 28, 2004 |