The generally used name of this herb in European languages comes from the Greek word basileus, meaning “belonging to the king”. It is rumored that only the king was allowed to gather this herb. I think that this name is appropriate as many chefs consider basil as ‘the king of herbs’. Purple basil is called “reyhan” in Turkish, a name that is thought to come from the Arabic word “al-raihan”.
Basil is indigenous to India and other tropical Asian countries. Like mint, it belongs to the labiate family of plants.
It is sacred for Vishnu, one of the main Indian gods, and represents his wife Lakshmi, which gives it an important religious meaning.
It was used in ancient civilizations and is said to be used today in voodoo rites in Haiti to boost fertility and passion.
According to a tradition existing since prehistorical times to the present in various civilizations, basil is placed around the body of the deceased to facilitate the passage from this life to the next.
Basil is a perfect source of vitamin K and is also rich in iron, calcium and Vitamin A.
Basil is at the center of Italian cuisine. The Capri salad and Pesto are only a couple of examples of their renowned dishes in which it is used in large quantities.
The taste and aroma of fresh basil cannot be compared to the dried herb. Carefully wash the leaves, dry and chop them. Mix with a small quantity of olive oil, fill in ice cube molds and freeze. You can melt 1 – 2 cubes to use as needed.
If you have a headache due to stress and cannot sleep well, place 1 teaspoon crushed basil, 1 teaspoon crushed mint and ½ teaspoon of linden blossoms in a container, pour 1 cup of boiling water over the mixture. Set aside for 5 – 8 minutes, then drain and drink the liquid.
tags basil
This simple but appetizing meal was very popular from the 1960s to the end of the 1980s. Inappropriate applications, using tasteless smaller shrimp and cheap sauces unfortunately pushed this zesty meal aside.
Importation of horseradish sauce to Turkey started during the last years. They usually use mayonnaise for the cocktail sauce, but if you can find horseradish sauce in the market please use that instead. It is really different and has a taste that goes well with shrimp.
tags prawn, ketchup, sugar
This recipe is from a book called Gurme Kent Gaziantep Mutfağı (Gourmet Cuisine of Gaziantep), which I translated into English, and is published by Oğlak Publishing House of Istanbul. This was the first kebap recipe I dared to experiment. People at home just loved it. Once our 15 years of helping hand Gülseren also got the details, it became a basic meal of our house.
If one wonders what meals are cooked and how, in the Anatolian households, this book is a good source. I use the recipes in this book sometimes as they are and sometimes with my adaptations. For example I learned from the Gaziantep Kitchen that adding 1 cup of cooked pulse makes a difference in taste, whenever I cook a vegetable dish with diced beef.
tags red pepper paste, tomato, ground beef, eggplant, onion
When I started buying raw milk for making yogurt on a weekly basis, I ordered more than I needed for trying desserts that are made with milk. According to my household I made excellent rice pudding and ice cream, and I made both many a times.
Sugar I use in my rice pudding is much less than many recipes around, but still the end product is a dessert and very satisfactory.
If you want to make a variation rice pudding with mastic, you have to add 1/2 tsp of crushed mastic to the milk and bring it to a boil, take it off the stove. Let it rest for 15 minutes, and then filter it through a cheese cloth. Use this as your milk in the original recipe. You do not have to use the vanilla extract with mastic.
tags gluten-free, starch, rice, rice flour, sugar, milk
The commercial name of vanilla, due to the rod like shape, comes from the Spanish word for scabbard, Vainilla. This plant belongs to the orchid family and it's a tropical vine. Vanilla needs humid tropikal climate, and it grows around the equator between sea level and 600 meters. The first flowers come 3 years after planting. Only 10% of the plants can pollinate naturally. Because of a hand pollination method found in 1840s now all flowers can turn into fruit. The fruit reaches it's characteristic taste and smell because of a complicated drying and fermentation process found by the Aztecs. all these applications and the need for artificial pollination outside of Mexico makes this one of the most expensive spices.
Like any other expensive natural product, synthetic side products of vanilla were developed, but no comparison to the delicate taste of the natural one.
If you like making desserts or cakes, please do not be lazy and work on my recipe.
tags vanilla bean, vodka
Kitchen vocabulary stems from life experiences and comparisons. I am adding the top chart used in my "All Sports Cafe'den Sevgiyle" book where I presented preps with pictures.
From left to right
FIRST ROW : garlic/slice, onion/mince, onion/fine dice, onion/slice, carrot/julienne, Carrot/thick slice, carrot/fine dice
SECOND ROW : cremini mushroom/ thick slice, mushroom/slice, bell pepper/fine dice, bell pepper/julienne, spinach/shred, spinach/thick slice, parsley/thick slice
THIRD ROW : zucchini/dice, cucumber/julienne, cucumber skin/julienne, green beans/julienne, celeriac/fine dice, feta cheese/thick shred, parmesan/thin shred
Evimin mutfağı 21 senelik executive chef tecrübemle zenginleşiyor.
Yemeklerimi hep ölçerek yapıyorum. Mutfak tartım, kup ve kaşık ölçeklerim hep elimin altında. Göz kararı tuz, aldığı kadar un bana uymuyor. 🙂
Zamanla kazanılan melekeler yerine en baştan termometre gibi artık her yerde üç kuruşa bulunan aletlerden yardım alıyorum. ‘Parmağını 7 saniye sütte tutabilirsen, sütün ısısı tamamdır’ benim dağarcığımda yok!
Kelimelerle anlatmayı beceremiyorsam resim kullanıyorum.
Bir yemeği ilk defa yaparken mutlaka yazıyorum ve tarif dosyama kaydediyorum. Herhangi bir yemeği tekrar yapacağım zaman mutlaka tarifi önüme alıyorum. En iyi bildiğim yemeği bile ezberden yapmayı sevmiyorum, çünkü muhakkak birşeyleri unutuyorum. Evet, genelde yenisi de lezzetli oluyor ancak hep yaptığımdan farklı olunca mutsuz oluyorum.
Bizler maalesef mutfağı usta-çırak ilişkisiyle öğrenmedik. Mutfağımızda çok fazla zaman harcamaya da vaktimiz olamadı. Yöntemlerim bana mutfağımı sevdirdi. Paylaşarak sizlere de sevdirmeyi umuyorum. 🙂
I started making my own yogurt a couple of years back. First I used daily fresh milk, then organic and now I use raw milk only. I obtain my milk from a dependable source with fat not removed. Row milk has a light sweet and beautiful taste. Stil I can not make my yogurt by staying away from the pasteurization process that the modern world imposes on us, but I am very close to that alternative.
It took a while for our household to get used to my yogurt. As the old habits of consuming industrial yogurt dies along with my disappearing learning curve mistakes, I got to a point where I am making yogurt from 4-5 kilograms of raw milk every week. Nowadays nearly a bowl of yogurt accompanies every meal in our house. I never succeeded making thick to the knife cutting yogurt, but if I remove the accumulated water when consuming the remaining amounts can be really thick. I do not get thick layers of clotted cream, but what I get is reeeeeally tasty.
tags milk, yogurt
One of the meals I always remember with pleasure is pasta gratin. It was made with bechamel sauce and a lot of grated kashari cheese on top. I loved the crispy crust and the pasta melting in mouth. I modernized it a little bit, added vegetables to make it healthier. But the essence is the same, it is a nostalgic meal.
tags red pepper paste, broccoli, cheddar cheese, mustard, cream, pasta, garlic, onion, milk, whole wheat flour, kashari cheese
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